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07-03-2019 12:33 PM
@Fressa - I definitely recommend NOT putting your potatoes in the fridge—that extra cold air messes with the taste and texture of the potatoes because the starches convert to sugars more quickly, and if you fry them, they will turn dark. In fact, if you keep them too cold for too long, those converted sugars can even become toxic. And humidity is actually good for potatoes; they're almost 90% water, so when they're moved to storage, they lose a lot of moisture. You don't want them to get or stay wet, which is why air circulation is crucial, but a high relative humidity will keep them at their freshest and tastiest.
07-03-2019 01:45 PM
@loriqvc wrote:In fact, if you keep them too cold for too long, those converted sugars can even become toxic.
Can you provide more info on this?
I’ve never read anything about cold causing ‘converted sugars’
to become ‘toxic. In fact, it’s encouraged to cold storage potatoes
for long periods of time....so that statement doesn’t make sense.
I believe you are confusing ‘cold’ with ‘light.’
“..solanine, the toxin increases in abundance when potatoes
are exposed to light.”
07-03-2019 02:00 PM - edited 07-03-2019 02:08 PM
@sidsmom - You are correct that potatoes are far more likely to become toxic due to overexposure to light, and you are also correct that cold storage is appropriate for potatoes. However, temperatures that are too cold for too long can lead to potatoes developing black spots as the starches convert to sugars (you'll see this with uncooked potatoes that have been frozen for long periods), and those can lead to conditions similar to dry rot that are definitely unhealthy.
ETA: And when the too-cold or frozen potatoes thaw, they can quickly get slimy, moldy, and mealy, so you likely wouldn't want to eat them anyway.
07-03-2019 02:12 PM - edited 07-03-2019 02:16 PM
@loriqvc wrote:@sidsmom - You are correct that potatoes are far more likely to become toxic due to overexposure to light, and you are also correct that cold storage is appropriate for potatoes. However, temperatures that are too cold for too long can lead to potatoes developing black spots as the starches convert to sugars (you'll see this with uncooked potatoes that have been frozen for long periods), and those can lead to conditions similar to "dry rot" that are definitely unhealthy.
It’s not a ‘convert to sugar’ but mostly lack of moisture...
much like freezer burn. Moisture evaporates.
It’s not unhealthy...it just looks weird. Cut out and eat.
Nothing toxic about it.
These are a couple myths👇👇👇
...and thawed frozen potatoes getting “slimy, moldy, and mealy”?
So doesn’t make sense.
07-03-2019 02:15 PM
@sidsmom - This really isn't worth much further debate, but all of the information you provided is about standard raw potatoes, not frozen ones.
07-03-2019 04:41 PM - edited 07-03-2019 04:48 PM
I was taught by my farm family to store potatoes in a cool dark place. For long storage success, store them in a single layer, not stacked nor touching.
Bruised potatoes rot, which is where the liquid came from. Potatoes and onions need to be removed from the paper, or net bags they come from the store in, to get the weight off them and for air flow.
Our potatoes are on stacked plastic bread crates in the garage. A flat piece of cardboard, or a flattened paper bag is ideal to store potatoes on.
07-03-2019 07:19 PM
I buy potatoes a few at a time and I have been keeping them in my Temptations breadbox which I leave on the countertop. They stay dark and mostly dry in there and keep a good while. Easy to clean out on occasion if needed.
07-03-2019 07:20 PM
Thanks everyone for all of the great recommendations. Wish I could store them somewhere besides inside of the sink cabinet, but this is a very, very old house and there just isn't any other place. My mom kept them there for years in the same plastic tub. Guess the problem now is that there's just my sister and myself so we're not eating potatoes that often. We don't have a dishwasher, so hopefully the potatoes don't get too hot there, plus the doors on the cabinet don't fit very tightly, so some air gets in.
I've tried looking for some metal bins, but so far, they've all been too big. I would love to use containers that you can put on your countertop (like the one made by The Pioneer Woman) or the wire baskets you can either set on the floor or mount to a wall, but we truly have no place to put these. There are a few plastic ones on Amazon that might work out for putting in my cabinet, but I haven't decided. A couple of choices are made by a company called Bino (clear plastic), and then there's the JapanBargain Japanese stackable bin that looks interesting. Don't like the prices however. Would just place the taters in a brown paper bag, but in case I would ever stupidly let them rot again, I'd want something under the bag to contain the mess. Obviously, I am going to do my best to never, ever let that happen again!
07-03-2019 07:38 PM
@qualityshopper & others:
so glad you started this post & others have given ideas on storage.
I have stopped buying potatoes in 5 lb. bag because they always seemed to go bad. Either had soft dark spots, insides had black spots or "eyes" although I stored them in my pantry closet in opened brown bag.
I now buy 2-3 at a time of course they are $2.29/lb. but better than throwing away bad food.
Thanks for the suggestions I just might try again buying them!
07-03-2019 10:44 PM - edited 07-03-2019 11:52 PM
@qualityshopper If you and your sister live alone, you might have cut down heating in unused bedrooms.
This is wicker potato storage from amazon. They have a variety of baskets and bins.
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