Boiling Potatoes
⚠️ This recipe is general guidance, not professional instruction — you cook at your own risk. See our Terms of Use for details.
A knife should slide out of a cooked potato clean, with no resistance. If yours never quite does, the problem usually starts before the water even gets hot — specifically, with how hot the water already was when the potatoes went in.
Ingredients
- 800 g – 1 kg potatoes
- water, enough for your pot size
- 1 teaspoon salt
Steps
- Peel the potatoes, or leave the skin on if you are cooking them unpeeled, for example for a potato salad.
- Cut them into similarly sized pieces — if some are twice the size of others, they will cook at different rates and you will end up with an uneven result.
- Put them in a pot and cover with cold water so they are fully submerged, then add the salt.
- Put the pot on high heat and bring the water to a boil.
- Once it is boiling, turn the heat down to medium-low and cook for another 20–25 minutes, depending on how big your pieces are.
- Start testing for doneness after about 18 minutes — poke the tip of a knife or a fork into the largest piece; it should go in easily, with no resistance.
- Drain the water and let the potatoes sit in the colander for a few minutes to let the steam escape before serving or mashing them.
Tip: The cold start matters — if you dropped the potatoes straight into boiling water, the outer layer would cook much faster than the center, and by the time the middle was done, the edges would already be falling apart. Starting cold lets the temperature rise gradually, so the heat has time to reach all the way through evenly.
This recipe is general inspiration, not professional instruction — times, temperatures, and ingredient suitability can vary depending on your situation. You cook at your own risk: follow the kitchen safety and hygiene basics and use your own judgment, especially with raw foods and allergens. We are not responsible for any damages resulting from using this recipe. See the terms of use for details.