"Gary Davis" wrote in message
...
On 10/17/04 12:07 PM, in article ,
"Vincent
Burgum" wrote:

Can anyone tell me what I have done wrong.
It sounds like you did many things right. You planted potatoes and
they
grew successfully! Yippee!...oh sorry I keep forgetting this is a UK
newsgroup...'Yippee' should read....'jolly good, old chap!'
I grew potatoes for the first time this year. For Earlies I planted
Rocket, and
for Maincrop used King
Edward. Both types produced wh\t I considered decent looking spuds in
reasonable quantities, but when I tried to ccok them they were bopth
terrible. Both varieties turned to a mushy pulp when boiled, but both
were
ok when chipped. What did I do wrong?
I have had similar experiences with different potato varieties that I
have grown. I was able to have success by changing my cooking procedure
and
pot.
I use a heavy stainless steel pot with a heavy lid. (usually a more
expensive pot but worth it). I try not to have too much water in the pot.
Once the water starts boiling (lid on and spitting) I turn the heat down
to
low (keep lid on). The spitting soon stops...
I then cook at this low heat until done....the more times you lift the
lid the more heat you will lose from the cooking process. Note: Stainless
steel is a poor conductor of heat...it takes longer to heat it up but once
the heat is in the pot, it takes longer to cool, so the heat stays in the
pot and cooks the potatoes. I add no salt to the water as some say this
removes the nutrients. I salt to taste later after they are cooked.
You could try this but you will have to experiment with the amount of
water you put in the pot and the length of time you leave the pot
unopened.
It works for me although I did have to experiment a little during the
learning curve. Good luck
It really won't make any difference. Some potato varieties will turn to
mush however carefully you boil them. The trick is to learn about potato
varieties and grow one bred for good boiling qualities.