Do you love potatoes and want to know more about them? Discover here Everything you always wanted to know about the potato:from its origin, the history to fun recipes with potatoes. A must read for the true Dutchman who of course loves the popular food number 1.
The Dutch are known for their love of potatoes. Whether it's a stew, fries or a boiled potato, on average a Dutch person eats 37 kg of potato per year. But what does the average Dutch person know about the potato? In this article you will find all information about the potato, including links to make delicious potato dishes.
The potato belongs to the nightshade family, just like the tomato, pepper and tobacco. The green parts of the potato are poisonous. Like other members of the nightshade family, the plant contains alkaloids. In addition to tubers, potato plants can also form berries, which, unlike those of the tomato, are very poisonous. There are major differences in the formation of berries between the different potato varieties. Not all potatoes are suitable for consumption.
Green spots, eyes and offshoots should be cut from the potato before cooking. These contain large amounts of solanine. Solanine is a toxic substance that is not broken down by cooking, but does decrease. Solanine poisoning causes the following symptoms:burning and sharp sensation in the throat, diarrhoea, nausea, drowsiness, anxiety, breaking out of sweat, breathlessness, unconsciousness and cramps. Keep this in mind when preparing potatoes.
In South America, the potato was probably cultivated around the beginning of our era in the central Andes and present-day Bolivia and Peru up to an altitude of 4000m. There, this stem tuber growing under the earth had been eaten as a staple food for a long time. However, it was not until 1526 that Spaniard Fransisco Pizarro became acquainted with the potato among the Incas. The Spanish conquerors brought the potato to Europe in the course of the 16th century.
In the beginning, potatoes in Europe were only grown for their beautiful flowers. That in itself is quite strange, given the insignificant and puny flowers that grow on a potato plant.
Until well into the 18th century, however, potatoes were little used as food, they were mainly used as animal feed. The Irish had the 'courage' to be the first to grow the potato as food. They soon discovered the value of the potato as a food.
Even until the end of the 19th century, the potato in the Netherlands was still regarded as an inferior food for the poorest of the poor. Because people were not aware of the toxic solanine present in potatoes, people also regularly became ill, although the link to the potato was only made much later.
Nevertheless, things gradually changed, partly due to the failure of various harvests. This also forced the richer to switch to the consumption of potatoes. Nowadays, the potato has become an indispensable part of Dutch cuisine.
The potato contains a lot of starch and hardly any fat. The protein content is slightly lower than with grains, but the proteins of the potato complement the proteins of eggs and milk very well. A potato contains an average of 2% high-quality vegetable protein.
Potatoes are rich in vitamin C, potassium, magnesium and contain significant amounts of vitamins B2, B6, phosphorus and iron. Because it provides relatively little energy and is a good stomach filling, you can eat quite a lot of it. Moreover, the potato provides for an important part in the need for nutrients.
The potato must be boiled or baked, because humans cannot digest raw potato starch. To preserve the nutrients as much as possible during the preparation, it is best to cook the potato in the skin. Use as little water as possible and cook in a tight-fitting pan. The skin offers natural protection against loss of nutrients during cooking. This is especially true for the preservation of the water-soluble B group vitamins, vitamin C and minerals. One of the ways to prepare a potato in skin is by making stuffed potato.
Potato can be processed into various foods, such as chips, mashed potatoes and of course fries.
These are thinly sliced potatoes, which are high in fat, salt, and other flavorings. Of course you can also make chips yourself.
Usually, mashed potatoes are sold in bags or packets as powder. You then have to mix this powder with milk and/or water and possibly a knob of butter to make mashed potatoes. The disadvantage of this is that you ingest all kinds of unnecessary added nutrients and flavorings, which have no further value for the body. It is even better to make mashed potatoes yourself.
This is the potato in fried form. Whether it's long pommes frites, the thick Belgian fries or the crinkle fries, all variations concern the fried potato, fried in deep-frying fat and often (a lot) salted. Of course you can also make fries yourself. Use a potato cutter to make it easy on yourself.
The potato is also used in the manufacture of potato flour † Potato flour is used to bind sauces, for example. In the paper industry, starch is used to strengthen the paper and to apply a smooth, writable layer on it. Starch is also found in diapers and synthetics, in batteries, tablets or capsules, wallpaper paste, ink, ice cream and cardboard.
A plastic factory in Oosterhout makes environmentally friendly plastic . in a special way by using potato scraps. They use potato scraps from potato chips and chips factories to make plastic. This is a very environmentally friendly method of cleaning up the waste from the French fries factory and the plastic that is made is also biodegradable. This plastic digests in the open air within six months and is not harmful if consumed by animals.
Looking for some inspiration for dinner? Did you know that potato is a low budget idea? Especially if you use ready-made potato puree. You can make mashed potatoes even tastier as follows:
You can also make a delicious salad from baked potatoes, as my daughter proved. And no, this is no ordinary potato salad. You can also vary endlessly with baked potatoes. You can completely adjust the filling to your own taste.
How do you prefer to eat potatoes?
