Removing starch from potatoes: How to do it and why it’s good for you

Potato starch ensures that potatoes are soft and creamy. At the same time, however, it also causes potatoes to fall apart easily in crispy dishes.

• To avoid this, you can remove the starch. This ensures that the potatoes remain really hard and crispy in dishes such as fried potatoes, French fries, etc.
• However, you should refrain from removing the starch for mushy potato dishes. This is because it is the starch that gives soups, mashed potatoes, etc. their lovely creaminess.

Method 1: Remove the starch from potatoes in cold water

Starch is a main component of potatoes. It not only makes potatoes mushy, but also gives them their calories. When peeling potatoes, you can easily see the starch, as it is a sticky liquid. It is not possible to remove all of the starch. If you want to remove as much starch as possible from potatoes, soak them in cold water.

1. Peel the potatoes and then cut them into small pieces or strips, depending on the dish.
2. Place the potato pieces in a container with cold water.
3. Once the water turns yellowish-white, rinse the potato pieces and repeat the soaking process in cold water.
4. With repeated soaking, you will notice that the water remains clearer and clearer. Each time you soak the potatoes, more starch is dissolved and you can now continue processing them.

Method 2: Reduce the potato starch by blanching

You can obtain potato starch by blanching:

1. To do this, place the chopped potatoes in boiling water for a short time (two to six minutes, depending on their size).
2. Once the potatoes are slightly soft on the outside, drain the water.
3. Then rinse the potato pieces under cold water and pat them dry with a kitchen towel.
4. You can then continue to prepare the potatoes according to your chosen recipe.