If you need potatoes that will last a while, buy unwashed potatoes. Unwashed potatoes last longer than clean potatoes, as the dirt protects them from bruising. Only wash them just before you are going to use them.
Rule number one of potato storage is to not wash them. Knock off as much soil as you can while harvesting, but unwashed potatoes will store WAY longer than washed potatoes will. You can just wash as needed for use throughout the winter months.
Keep potatoes dry.
Don't wash your potatoes before you store them. The dampness can cause them to spoil faster. If you grow your own potatoes, gently knock the dirt off after you pick them and store them dry.
Keep Potatoes in a Cool and Dry Environment
As previously explained, potatoes should be placed in a cardboard box, mesh bag, or basket to ensure good ventilation. Store your potatoes in a cool, dark place (45 to 50 F is the ideal temperature range), such as your pantry or unheated basement.
Keep them in a cool, dry place away from light, like a dark corner of the kitchen or in a cabinet. Wherever you store them should be well ventilated. And, if possible, avoid storing them near other fruits (like bananas or onions) that can cause them to spoil faster.
You need to keep your potatoes in a dry, dark place. Exposure to light or moisture can bring on rotting in the skin. You'll also need to allow your spuds to be well-ventilated so avoid any airtight containers or spots – a netted bag or wicker basket should do the trick.
If you need potatoes that will last a while, buy unwashed potatoes. Unwashed potatoes last longer than clean potatoes, as the dirt protects them from bruising. Only wash them just before you are going to use them.
The Food and Drug Administration advises you wash potatoes before you eat them. Potatoes grow in the ground, and carry not only dirt but also bacteria to the grocery store and later, your table. Pesticides also remain on potato skin; even organic potatoes carry some degree of contaminants.
"Potatoes are firmly in the buried-in-soil category, so they'll need a thorough wash before cooking," says Catt Fields White, a former chef and the founder of San Diego Markets and The Farmers Market Pros. "In addition to good and bad bacterias, pesticides can linger in the soil and those need to go."
Furthermore, potatoes are root vegetables, which means that they're grown underground, so it's likely that they'll be dirty when you buy them. For these reasons, it's important to clean potatoes, even if you plan on peeling them.
Generally, potatoes last one to two months when stored in a cool, dry, dark and well-ventilated space (never under the sink!), such as the pantry, versus one to two weeks in the refrigerator, according to FoodSafety.gov's FoodKeeper app, the federal consumer resource for food safety.
At room temperature, on the counter, for example, potatoes will last up to two weeks. Undoubtedly, the best way to store whole, uncooked potatoes is outside of the fridge. Storing potatoes in the fridge will cause the starch to turn to sugar, giving them a sweet flavor that you don't want from your potatoes.
You should definitely clean potatoes even if you plan to peel them. Why? Dirt and contaminants. Potatoes are on the Environmental Working Group's Dirty Dozen list of produce most contaminated with pesticides, meaning it's advised you buy organic, if possible.
A: All potatoes are flumed in water as they go down the sorting lines and washed before being packed into cartons or bags, it doesn't hurt to rinse them one more time to get any surface dirt or sand off the potatoes you receive.
After all, the skin has just as many nutrients as the flesh of the potato—roughly the same amount of protein, vitamin C, and iron. That means when you peel a potato and just compost or throw out the peelings, you're dumping half of the potato's nutrients. That's a bad deal for you and for the potato!
First let's talk about why cut potatoes need to be immersed in water to begin with. The reason is to prevent the potatoes exposure to air, which causes dehydration, oxidation, and discoloration. Immersing cut potatoes will also help rinse off excess starch.
Check for soft spots, dark spots, sprouts, or green color. If the potato has little sprouts remove them, then prep potato for your dish. If there is a little green cut that off. If the potato has long spouts, is soft, wrinkled, or has lots of dark spots get rid of it.
So, store your potatoes unpeeled and unwashed; in a cool, dry and dark spot like an enclosed kitchen cabinet away from the sink. Also, avoid keeping raw potatoes in the fridge – too cold, and the starch-to-sugar conversion starts up as well, ruining their texture, colour and flavour.
It is common for produce to go through a postharvest rinse prior to arriving at the grocery store. Produce is washed in order to clean the produce, and to remove any microbial contaminants (e.g., Listeria, Salmonella, E. Coli 0157:H7).
Instead use burlap sacks or breathable containers like paper bags, cardboard boxes, baskets and bowls to allow for air flow. Don't freeze raw potatoes.
Can you eat potatoes right after harvest? Sure can! While we recommend curing them for long-term storage, freshly-dug potatoes are perfect for eating right out of the ground (maybe clean them off a bit first).
Put the potatoes on a sheet of newspaper in a dark place – it's important they don't touch, as air needs to circulate between the spuds. Leave your potatoes here for a couple of weeks. Store in a well-ventilated, cool, dry place below 10°C.
Sprouted potatoes that are still firm, have relatively small sprouts, and don't show any wrinkles or shriveling are okay to eat, as long as you cut off the sprouted parts and soft spots. However, there's still a chance you could get sick. If your potato is sprouted and shriveled up, then it's too far gone. Toss, it.