Making Ends Meet: Smash it with Mash

This month, Paul Dickson has been working with frozen mashed potato and shares the benefits of incorporating it into your menu.

Now, I’m going to start by saying that I have to admit, as a chef, I have always been sceptical about using a frozen mashed potato. However, there are some fantastic quality products out there now – take the Signature by Country Range Mashed Potato with Butter for example. It only contains five natural ingredients, the exact same as when making mash from scratch, and it can be such a saviour in a busy kitchen. It reduces labour time, waste and ensures a consistently high standard of finish every time, with no worries about seasonal potato changes. If, like me, you’ve never even considered using a frozen mashed potato, here is my guide to some ways that you can use it as a major time saver with the same results as making it from scratch.

Paratha Perfection

This is one of the most versatile and easy recipes, which can be served as a starter, lunch, handheld snack or part of a small plates menu. The options for fillings are endless and this is where I find a frozen mash really works. I portion out my proved doughballs, roll them out and stuff them with a spiced vegetable and mashed potato filling. Seal them up and bake until golden. Light, fluffy and crowd-pleasing. You can make them as big or small as you wish.

Pillowy Goodness

I’ve talked before about gnocchi being a great way to use up leftover potato, but what about if you want to feature it on your menu and don’t have enough? The prep time makes a potentially quick and easy dish a lot more labour intensive. A good quality frozen mash cuts out that prep time without having any impact on the end result – giving you the perfect quick seasonal special that you can switch up throughout the year.

Load it up

For a winter warmer, why not swap your loaded fries for loaded mash? A great upsell opportunity, as well as becoming a main dish in its own right. It’s also a perfect street food style grab and go option which is bound to draw a crowd! The beauty of using frozen mash for this is that it can be ready in minutes and you can keep on top of portion control. Load up with anything you like – here, I’ve baked it with cheese, bacon and leeks – the ultimate comfort food!

Cooking with Care

We recently worked with IDDSI and care catering trainer, Andy Cullum, who gave us his top ways of using frozen mashed potato:

1. Protein packed fish cakes
2. Cutlery-free croquettes
3. Comforting corned beef hash
4. Decorative duchess potatoes
5. Velvety nutrient-rich soup