No cooking repertoire is complete without my beloved mashed potatoes recipe. Creamy, full of flavor, and pairing well with so many main dishes, this perfect side dish has solid 5-star reviews for a reason. Made with pantry staples such as potatoes, salt, butter, milk or cream, and salt, these potatoes are as accessible and simple to prepare as they are a fan favorite.
Add garlic to the potatoes to make garlic mashed potatoes, or omit it for simpler rich and savory notes. Either way, this recipe is guaranteed to be the best mashed potatoes recipe you’ve ever tried! Serve it for your next celebratory dinner or treat your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner guests to it. No holiday meal is complete without it! For more delicious potato recipes, check out my smashed potatoes recipe, twice baked potatoes recipe, and Hasselback potatoes recipe.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Potatoes – choose Yukon gold potatoes or russet potatoes for the best flavor and texture, however, red potatoes can also work if desired. Alternatively, opt for a mix of Yukon golds and russets for a balanced texture and flavor.
Whole milk – creates that luscious, creamy texture for the perfect mashed potatoes. You can also use heavy cream for more richness. For the best flavor, do not use skim or low-fat milk, as the milk fat provides delicious flavor and a creamy mouthfeel to the potatoes.
Garlic – optional, but highly recommended. The garlic cloves are simmered whole with the potatoes, offering subtly nutty and sweet notes to the potatoes and providing a steakhouse-style finish. If you only have garlic powder, stir in 1 teaspoon while mashing the potatoes.
Salt – enhances all of our favorite mashed potato flavors, as underseasoned potatoes will taste lifeless and flat. Add salt to the water before boiling the potatoes and season the potatoes with salt to taste before serving for optimal flavor.
How to Make Mashed Potatoes
1. Peel the potatoes if desired and cut them into equal-sized chunks.
2. Place the potato chunks into a large pot. Add the peeled garlic to the pot and season the potatoes and garlic with salt.
3. Fill the pot with enough cold water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender.
4. Drain the hot potatoes and garlic and then transfer back to the warm pot. Set the heat to low and gently move the potatoes around for a minute in the pot to help dry off any excess water. Remove from the heat and mash the potatoes to your desired consistency using a potato masher or wooden spoon.
5. Combine the milk and unsalted butter in a microwave-safe dish. Microwave on high, stirring every 20 seconds, or until the butter is melted, or for about 2 minutes.
6. Pour the hot milk mixture into the potatoes. Gently stir and mix until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish the mashed potatoes with more butter, cracked pepper, minced chives, or parsley if desired.
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- Don’t over-boil the potatoes. Doing so will add extra moisture making watery potatoes, as well as changing the texture, creating mealy or crumbly potatoes. Instead, boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes, or as soon as the potatoes can easily be pierced with a knife or fork but not falling apart in the water.
- Pan-dry the potatoes before mashing. This will help any extra moisture evaporate from the potatoes, keeping them from being wet or heavy.
- Heat the milk or cream and butter before stirring in. Warming the milk and butter helps the ingredients to absorb into the hot potatoes better. For best results, warm in the microwave in short bursts so the milk doesn’t boil and the mixture doesn’t splatter. Additionally, add extra milk as needed if the potatoes are too thick for your liking.
- Avoid overmixing the potatoes. Overworking the potatoes will overdevelop the starch and cause them to be gummy or gluey, a far cry from the fluffy potatoes we desire! Mash the potatoes until just to your desired texture and gently mix in the milk, butter, and seasonings until just combined. For this reason, I do not recommend using an electric mixer. Some recipes call for a hand or stand mixer and whisk attachment, but I find that harms the texture of this recipe.
- Potato mashing variations. A potato masher or wooden spoon is my mashing tool of choice. However, a potato ricer can also be used for smooth and ultra-light potatoes.
- Optional variations. Make this mashed potato recipe your own by stirring in ¼ cup of cream cheese, sour cream, grated parmesan cheese, lots of black pepper, tmor even a soft cheese like Boursin. Stirring in shredded cheddar cheese and crumbled bacon can give this dish a twice-baked potato twist. Alternatively, you can make roasted garlic mashed potatoes by stirring a half bulb of roasted garlic in with the milk and butter. Or, enhance the recipe by seasoning it with Italian seasoning, Ranch or French onion seasoning, or chives.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftovers covered in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. The potatoes can also be cooled to room temperature and then frozen in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Defrost the potatoes in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours, or until thawed through, or warm them on low heat in the microwave until defrosted, stirring periodically throughout the cooking time.
If ever in doubt, serve mashed potatoes! They are a versatile side dish that goes well with a myriad of main dishes and don’t forget to pour some of my homemade gravy over the top! Some of my favorite pairing options include roasted turkey, easy fried chicken, chicken fried steak, and bacon wrapped filet mignon, though they will certainly be well received with almost any meal.
I am convinced that mashed potatoes are holiday mealtime famous not only because of their flavor but also because they are so easily prepared ahead of time. Save last-minute stress by soaking the potatoes in a large pot of cold salted water up to 4 hours ahead of cooking time. Or, prepare the dish a day ahead of time and refrigerate before warming in a slow cooker on low heat for an hour before serving, stirring the potatoes periodically, until they are warmed through.
If you’ve tried this mashed potatoes recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Mashed Potatoes
Video
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Strainer
- Wooden spoon or potato masher
Ingredients
- 4 pounds potatoes Yukon gold or Russet (1.8kg)
- 4 cloves garlic optional
- 1 tablespoon salt plus more to taste
- ½ cup unsalted butter (113g)
- ¾ cup whole milk or cream (180ml)
- Ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Peel the potatoes if desired, then cut them into equal-sized chunks and place in a large pot. Peel the garlic cloves and add to the potatoes.
- Fill the pot with enough water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Add 2 teaspoons of salt to the water and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender.
- While the potatoes are boiling, combine the milk and butter in a microwave-safe dish. Microwave on High, stirring every 20 seconds, until the butter is melted, about 2 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes and garlic, then transfer back to the warm pot. Set the heat to low and gently move the potatoes around for a minute to help dry off any excess water. Remove from heat and mash the potatoes to the desired consistency using a potato masher or wooden spoon.
- Pour the hot milk mixture in while gently mixing the mashed potatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with more butter and garnish with cracked pepper, minced chives, or parsley if desired.
Notes
- Don’t over-boil the potatoes. Doing so will add extra moisture making watery potatoes, as well as changing the texture, creating mealy or crumbly potatoes. Instead, boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes, or as soon as the potatoes can easily be pierced with a knife or fork but not falling apart in the water.
- Pan-dry the potatoes before mashing. This will help any extra moisture evaporate from the potatoes, keeping them from being wet or heavy.
- Heat the milk or cream and butter before stirring in. Warming the milk and butter helps the ingredients to absorb into the hot potatoes better. For best results, warm in the microwave in short bursts so the milk doesn’t boil and the mixture doesn’t splatter. Additionally, add extra milk as needed if the potatoes are too thick for your liking.
- Avoid overmixing the potatoes. Overworking the potatoes will overdevelop the starch and cause them to be gummy or gluey, a far cry from the fluffy potatoes we desire! Mash the potatoes until just to your desired texture and gently mix in the milk, butter, and seasonings until just combined. For this reason, I do not recommend using an electric mixer. Some recipes call for a hand or stand mixer and whisk attachment, but I find that harms the texture of this recipe.
- Potato mashing variations. A potato masher or wooden spoon is my mashing tool of choice. However, a potato ricer can also be used for smooth and ultra-light potatoes.
- Optional variations. Make this mashed potato recipe your own by stirring in ¼ cup of cream cheese, sour cream, grated parmesan cheese, lots of black pepper, tmor even a soft cheese like Boursin. Stirring in shredded cheddar cheese and crumbled bacon can give this dish a twice-baked potato twist. Alternatively, you can make roasted garlic mashed potatoes by stirring a half bulb of roasted garlic in with the milk and butter. Or, enhance the recipe by seasoning it with Italian seasoning, Ranch or French onion seasoning, or chives.