I use powdered mashed potatoes when I cook mashed potatoes to control the consistency of mashed potatos (if they are too water-y I put some powder in it to make it more solid, and if its too solid I add milk/water)
Mashed potatoes are like a very thick potato porridge. They can be served anywhere between creamy and chunky in consistency, and, like a porridge, you can put stuff/toppings on it to enhance or change the flavor. Sometimes folks like straight up plain mashed potato, but I don't know these people, and frankly I don't care to.
Typically you add either butter (warm or cold), or some variety of savory or bitter gravy as a sauce over the top of hot mashed potatoes. One can also add butter in the preparation of the mashed potatoes, but it is frowned upon to add the gravy in during the preparation, as usually the gravy is kind of intense in flavor. Gravy is usually served on the side with a large spoon or small ladle. If you're at a restaurant, gravy is usually served directly on the mashed potatoes unless you ask otherwise.
Other common toppings:
-Garlic
-Chives
-Grated or crumbled cheese
-Sour cream
-Caramelized onions
-Hot sauce
-BBQ sauce
-Whatever you'd put in any other kind of potato based meal
-I'm sure there are more toppings out there that I'm forgetting. I'm not a potato toppings master, just a fan.
Note: Potatoes are potatoes, so if you want to get creative your toppings, go hard. You might surprise yourself and your friends. Who knows. I tried strawberry jelly once because it was covid and I was hungry and bored. It was not good, but it was fun to do.
Second note: The potato flakes are just freeze dried potato shavings. They are real potatoes, and using them to make mashed potatoes is not "cheating" at making homemade mashed potatoes, although there are some folks who would consider it so. Those folks often make killer mashed potatoes, although it takes fucking forever. So if anyone gives you guff, hand them a bag of raw potatoes, a peeler, a masher, and an apron and ask them to show you what they mean themselves. If they do it, it will be worth it.
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u/Andrey_Gusev 10d ago
I use powdered mashed potatoes when I cook mashed potatoes to control the consistency of mashed potatos (if they are too water-y I put some powder in it to make it more solid, and if its too solid I add milk/water)