High-starch potatoes, such as russets (baking potatoes), have densely packed starch cells that swell and separate from one another when cooked, resulting in a dry, fluffy texture. High-starch potatoes also make creamy mashed potatoes and french fries with a flaky interior.
What happens to potatoes when baked?
When you bake a potato, the starch granules absorb the moisture within the potato. Within the confines of the potato skin, moisture soon turns to steam that expands with great force, separating the starch granules and making a fluffy baked potato. ... Extra water contributes to making potatoes gummy when mashed.
What happens to potatoes when heated?
Upon heating the potato, the starch granules in the cell will start to absorb more and more water, swelling up as a result. At some point, the starch granules burst. Each starch granule contains a lot of individual starch molecules made up of amylose and amylopectin.
Does baking a potato change its weight?
If you start with a raw potato weighing 200g, the actual potato will still contain the same amount of calories after baking, but will weigh less. ... But because baking has caused water loss, the weight of the potato is now only 110g. So if using the baked figure, you would enter 110g = 150 kcals.
Does baking a potato remove nutrients?
MYTH #2. MOST COOKING METHODS DESTROY THE NUTRIENTS IN POTATOES. While boiling potatoes does cause a small loss of water-soluble nutrients like vitamin C and vitamin B6, the white potato retains most, if not all, of its potassium and dietary fiber regardless of cooking method, such as baking, boiling, or frying.
Do potatoes shrink when baked?
Potatoes do shrink when cooked because they lose the water content. Uncooked potatoes are made of 21% of dry mass, (60-80% of potato mass is starch) and 79% of water. Depending on the cooking method, potatoes can lose anywhere from 2-40% of their weight.
What does baking a potato in foil do?
Foil holds in moisture and steams the potatoes, resulting in a "boiled" taste and texture. Turn the potatoes over halfway through the baking time to prevent browning of the undersides where they touch the baking tray or oven rack.
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