Ideally, my daughter would eat mashed potatoes with the skins on. But as I have usually peeled the potatoes, I have personally trained her to expect mashed potatoes with the skins off. I hate to compost the skins and waste them. Fortunately, you can never go wrong with fat, salt and potatoes, even if just the lowly skins.
I made shepherd’s pie recently and had peels left over. Shepherd’s pie topped with mashed potatoes and served with fried potato skins on the side would send me into tuber overload. So I stored the skins in the fridge and fried them the next day. I have an inkling you should use up the skins pretty quickly, while they’re still stiff and starchy.
A note on the potatoes: I always buy organic potatoes, and usually from the farmer’s market. The Environmental Working Group lists conventional potatoes at number twelve on its Dirty Dozen List of produce with the most pesticide residue. According to the NIH, of the entire potato, the skin has the highest levels of DDT and its derivatives.
Ingredients
- Potato peels
- Olive oil and butter or other fat
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1. Add fat to pan and melt over medium-high heat. Lard would taste great too but I’m out (I render my own and will post that next).
2. Add potatoes, salt and pepper, and fry until brown and crispy.
I served mine with homemade ketchup. My picky eater gobbled up this after-school snack.
I’ve been making scrap vinegar lately (I’ll write a post on that eventually) after learning how from the awesome Kitchen-Counter-Culture blog. Annie makes all sorts of scrap vinegars, including one made from potato peels, which she uses it as a cleaner. I’m amazed by what I can make out of what most people consider trash.
Those look delish! 🙂 I’m going to try it!
Thanks! I was able to grab only a few 🙂
Scrap vinegar! This I have to try. I use so much vinegar cleaning, in the laundry, etc — it would be marvelous to make my own.
I’m pretty excited about it. I have one batch bottled and two more brewing. I rinse my hair with diluted cider vinegar and thought I would try my scrap vinegar instead. I’m not sure how it will work, but I will soon find out. You can cook with it also. My daughter and I have tried to make vinegar a few times to no avail, but this first batch seems to have turned out really well.
I use vinegar on my hair too! Another use to try 🙂
I’m going to try this! But did you know you can also throw peels into stock or make an official soup http://kathleenmwall.com/2014/02/17/potato-peel-broth/…. Mine are often green and thats why I do the vinegar thing….
You have the best ideas. I do save all my vegetable peels and little scraps in the freezer until I have amassed enough for broth, but I hadn’t heard of a soup for potato peels. It calls for hot sauce and I’m fermenting hot peppers right now for my first batch of the stuff. Thanks for the link 🙂
So delicious have never tried these, will do it soon 🙂
They make a tasty, quick snack. I think you’ll like them.
Brilliant!
Thank you 🙂
They look delicious!
I only tried a few before my daughter got her hands on them, but they tasted really good.
Oh I just love these!! I probably take away any health benefits by smothering them in salt and chilli flakes, but at least they make me zero waste! Halo can remain 😛
Mmmm, good idea about the chili flakes. I’ll try that next time. Yes, you can wear the halo while eating these 🙂
I tell my husband that story about conventional potatoes and skins every time he eats one at a restaurant…;)
Hahaha. You sound just like me! Sometimes I wish I knew less about food (well not really). More like…sometimes, I think people around me wish I knew less about food…or at least that I would keep my mouth shut 🙂
LOL!!! I hear ya!!!
They look great 🙂 I make mine with sweet potato, only problem is they’re so good I tend to eat them all before anyone else gets a chance!
Yum! Sweet potatoes would taste delicious. Thanks for the idea. I don’t buy sweet potatoes very often but I do love them. I have fermented sweet potato fly on my to-do list and I think you peel the sweet potatoes first 🙂
Great Anne! Have to try this!
Thanks for visiting trinitiesinfo.wordpress.com
and liking the posts, have posted some more pages that you will like-about dental health and Indian Architecture.
BTW your DIY deo is still working and regular use has made my sweat odour negligible, means even if I don’t use it, I still don’t feel smelly. Soda bicarb effect?
You’re welcome Jasmin. Thanks for following my blog 🙂 I’ll check out your new posts. The deodorant works for me the second day if I forget to put it on. I keep saying I’m going to write an ode to baking soda. I’ll get around to it one of these days…
Thanks Anne, I enjoy your posts!
Thank you Jasmin. I enjoy yours too 🙂
What a great idea. I’ve never cooked peelings, but I often make mashed potato by baking the potatoes in their skins (because peeling potatoes is a pet hate), then scooping out and mashing the flesh. Then the cooked skins can be frozen, and later baked as potato skins! I like them with paprika sprinkled on top.
And on a completely different topic, this has reminded me of a book I read some years ago called “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”. It’s set in Guernsey under the German occupation. I think I might fish it out and reread. Can’t remember if there’s a recipe for potato peel pie in it…
Yum. I haven’t baked potatoes in a while. That sounds like a delicious way to make mashed potatoes, plus keep the skins in larger, tasty pieces.
I hadn’t heard of that book or the dish. I looked them both up and they both sound good. Thanks for the recommendation. Have you ever tried potato peel pie?
I haven’t tried potato peel pie – I’d forgotten all about it in fact until I read your post! It’s got me thinking about it again…
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