Vinegar causes the potatoes to form a thin crust that further helps in retaining their shape. Vinegar increases the acid pH levels of water which further helps the potato just like when you add a little salt to the water while boiling eggs.
When cooking potatoes to use in potato salad, add a little vinegar to the water when boiling the potatoes.
Because vinegar prevents potatoes from fully softening, recipes where you want the potato to be crispy on the outside but soft on the inside actually benefit from the addition of acid.
Vinegar allows you to boil the potatoes the longest and keep them firm but I didn't get the soft outer surface I wanted. (I did get very creamy middles though!) Good, but not quite. Baking soda starts softening the outside right away, long before the middles are cooked.
For three pounds of potatoes use a 4- to 5-quart pot. Add enough cold water to cover the tops of the potatoes. Add ½ to 1 teaspoon salt to the water. Turn the burner on high and bring water to boiling.
Always start potatoes in cold water.
Dropping them into boiling water is a bad idea because the hot water will cook the outsides of the potatoes faster than the insides, leaving you with unevenly cooked taters. By the time they've fully cooked to the core, the outsides will be mushy and start to flake apart.
You Don't Season the Water
As with pasta water, there's a reason to liberally salt the water in which the potatoes will cook: As the starches in potatoes warm up, they open up and absorb water (and salt if you season the water). When they're finished cooking, the cells close off.
To keep them from turning brown or becoming mushy when cooked, add some white vinegar (1 Tbsp. per 2 cups water) before submerging the potatoes. You can also toss cut potatoes with a mixture of vitamin C and water to keep them white without flavoring them.
We usually recommend no more than 24 hours. You can keep the potatoes from absorbing the water by making sure the water is not salted, and is chilled (you can even add ice to the water). To keep the potatoes from turning black from oxidation, add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white wine vinegar to a gallon of water.
Boil potatoes with skin- Boiling potatoes can lower their nutritional content like vitamin C and B vitamins if they are boiled without skin. Boiling them with skin can save nutrients that may lost in cooking water. Try to use minimal water like with steaming.
A potato's cell walls contain pectin, and these pectin chains remain stable when they come into contact with acids. This means that potatoes will remain hard if they are in a dish that has a lot of acid (for example, a dish you've added wine to). Salt is needed to dissolve these pectin chains.
The potatoes get a double hit of vinegar: First, they are roasted in a simple vinaigrette, then are tossed with another smack of acidity just before serving. Use white-wine vinegar for a stronger vinegar flavor, or apple cider vinegar if you want a subtler flavor.
Next time you find your spuds refusing to soften, whether simmered with tomatoes, cooked with a lemon marinade, or stewed in a vinegary sauce—it's probably not the potatoes at fault. Give them a par-boil in good old salted water first, before you dress them in that tart, mouth-puckering acid.
You can expect higher concentrations of acetic acid to increase the boiling point even more. Diluting the vinegar will bring the boiling point closer to that of pure water.
Here's how this sticky state of affairs happens: Cooking causes the starch granules within the potato cells to absorb water and swell. Some cells will inevitably burst, releasing tacky gel that helps give mashed potatoes their cohesiveness.
No, but it would have a higher concentration. Vinegar is an aqueous solution of acetic acid. If you boil off some of the water, while preserving the acetic acid, you'll have the same pH (the same acidity) but a higher concentration of acetic acid (less water in the mix).
Place potatoes into a pot and add 1 1/2 cups vinegar with 3 cups cold water (or enough to just about cover the potatoes). Add in 1 tbsp salt, give it a stir then bring to a boil.
Soaking potatoes in water helps remove excess starch. Excess starch can inhibit the potatoes from cooking evenly as well as creating a gummy or sticky texture on the outside of your potatoes.
Leaching method: Peel and dice potatoes. Place in a large pot of warm tap water and soak for 2 to 4 hours. Drain and set aside.
Once the potatoes have soaked, rinse and drain them. Then — also very important — use a towel to pat them down until they are nice and dry before moving onto the next step.
Potatoes soak up a lot of flavor, so salting the water prior to cooking is a good idea for the best taste. And you aren't limited to plain salted water for boiling your potatoes, either.
The key to good crispy chips is: 2) Soak them in cold water and vinegar. The vinegar is like magic for potatoes. It keeps them pretty while you cook them, soaking out the extra moisture, while at the same time not transferring the vinegar flavor to the chips.
For most potato dishes it's important to add the potatoes to cold water and allow the water to come to a boil with the potatoes in the water. The potato starch can react as soon as it comes in contact with hot water, which will promote uneven cooking and mealy potatoes.
Bring the water to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low. Cover the pot with a lid and let simmer until fork-tender, about 10-15 minutes for small and/or cubed potatoes or 20-25 minutes for large potatoes. Drain and cool.
Can You Boil Potatoes For Too Long? Yes. If you boil potatoes for too long, they'll lose their structure and absorb too much water. That means that they'll become mushy, won't have the correct texture, and won't hold their shape.