In every Spanish house they eat potatoes some day a week and it is rare to find a home where there is not almost always. This causes us to need to store them. Contrary to what we thought, the pantry is not the best place to do it.
The potato is a classic of Spanish gastronomy and there are countless dishes that include it. This tuber has a unique flavor and, when we store it, you must fight to keep it in good condition.
For a long time we have thought that it was best to store potatoes in a cool, dark place, away from sunlight and extreme temperatures. However, The most recent studies have found that we are not storing them well.
The homemade trick so that the potato does not go bad
You want to make a potato omelet, you’re already thinking about making sure it doesn’t stick to the pan but you’re not even able to get to that step. When you go to the pantry to get them you realize that They have sprouts and are not suitable for consumption.
Traditionally it has been advised that we keep them in a pantrysince it is the coolest, driest and ideal point to keep them in good condition. However, more and more experts are opposing this custom.
For them, The ideal place to store potatoes is in the refrigerator. There they can stay in good condition for a month: twice as long as in the pantry. Of course, it is not worth saving them in any way.
People are reluctant to store potatoes in the refrigerator for two reasons:
- Risk of the formation of sugars that, when cooked, give rise to carcinogenic substances: Food Standards Agency investigations have shown this is not true.
- Moisture risk: This is real, humidity can encourage the appearance of fungi and spoil the potato, but it is something simple to solve.
How to store potatoes in the refrigerator?
By storing potatoes in the refrigerator you are doubling the time in which you will have them available. So that there is no humidity you should do it this way:
- Wrap them in a dry cloth or individually on paper to avoid excess moisture.
- Save them as far away from the onion as possiblesince they emit a gas that accelerates the ripening process.
- In case you have enough space, Place the potatoes in a container so that they are not in contact with other foods and keep them as dry as possible.
