What are "salt potatoes"?

[pax]

I moved up here from Virginia, and at a lot of outside events, fairs, etc, there are always booths selling salt potatoes. What ARE they? How are they prepared? Why can't I have nice crunchy fries?

Someone please 'splain to the hick what the deal is?

Edited June 12, 2010 by pax (log)

[weinoo]

My guess is potatoes roasted/baked in salt.

[slkinsey]

They are small potatoes boiled in extremely salty water (as in 3/4 cup of kosher salt per quart of water).

[Kerry Beal]

After a little online searching - I really want some of these! Starch, salt and butter - what's not to love.

[Holly Moore]

On the menu at Maui's Dog House at 8th and Jersey Avenues North in Wildwood NJ

Salty Balls - Fresh small potatoes cooked in a brine of salt and spices and served with drawn butter just dip the taters in the butter and it's heavenly. A Maui original . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.50

[suzilightning]

they are a specialty of the area around Syracuse where, supposedly, the workers would put some small potatoes in the pans concentrating the salt and pull them out for their lunch - this is where Morton's salt comes from.

they are really, really good

[David Ross]

My guess is potatoes roasted/baked in salt.

Well, I'm agreeing here...and I never checked in with what the Internet told me--I've just always made "salt potatoes" by taking a good Northwest-grown Russet and packing it with a mixture of wet Kosher salt, wrapping it in foil and then baking it in a 375 oven for about 1-1/2 hours or so. Been doing it long before it was probably trendy in restaurants. Gives the potato a soft skin that takes on the salty flavor. Sort of a classier, and tastier, version of that 60's foil-wrapped spud you got in steakhouses of the day.

[crinoidgirl]

slkinsey and suzilightning are right. I grew up in Syracuse. It's a local institution.

[John Rosevear]

Our local market sells tiny purple potatoes that are wonderful prepared this way. I use the salt/water ratio that Sam mentioned and toss with melted butter just before serving. Simple and good.

[JAZ]

The potatoes don't fall apart with that much salt in the water?

[heidih]

The potatoes don't fall apart with that much salt in the water?

My understanding is that the potatoes are quite small and just suck up the briny liquid. Our bleudauvergne did a piece on her blog that I think explains it well- same as posters have said about the salty liquid and butter dip: Salt potatoes

[greenmountain]

Here in New England they are mandatory with steamers or a clambake. Well, for me anyways, and the people I grew up around. Steamers, salt potatoes, butter and corn are the ingredients that make summer. Ahhhhh.

[John Rosevear]

Here in New England they are mandatory with steamers or a clambake. Well, for me anyways, and the people I grew up around. Steamers, salt potatoes, butter and corn are the ingredients that make summer. Ahhhhh.

Ayup.

(Though secretly, I don't really like steamers (or steamiz, as we used to say in RI).)

[John Rosevear]

The potatoes don't fall apart with that much salt in the water?

Nope. It just salts the skins perfectly.

[JTravel]

In the Rochester area you can buy them in the supermarket....I think it is 4 pounds of little potatoes and a packet of salt. It gives directions on the potato bag.....how much water basically. Anyone with a large pot can do it themselves.

[abooja]

I never bothered to research this before, but Wegmans sells bags of raw potatoes that they call "Salt Potatoes". Who knew that they are intended for this very dish?

[Kerry Beal]

I never bothered to research this before, but Wegmans sells bags of raw potatoes that they call "Salt Potatoes". Who knew that they are intended for this very dish?

Funny - they discuss a lower sodium option in the directions!

[Nataani]

In the Canary islands one local dish is called "Papas Arrugadas", roughly translated to wrinkly potatoes. They are usually done with new potatoes of one variety or another, but the small purple potatoes mentioned above are commonplace too (I was told that they originate their).

The recipe is simple, wash about a pound of potatoes and put them in a pot, filling with water to about a half inch below the level of the potatoes. Add 3/4 - 1 cup of sea salt and simmer as you would normally for boiling potatoes. When they are done, fish them out one by one (Don´t strain!!). The potatoes come out with a fine dusting of salt, and suprisingly are not overly salty at all. If the potatoes are simmered at low enough heat for long enough, they come out wrinkly, as the dish´s name says.

[pax]

Well thank you all. Really, how can you not love potatoes any way? Next time I'll give them a whirl.

[Fat Guy]

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, which originates in Syracuse but has a branch in Harlem, serves salt potatoes. I've had them a few times. They're tasty.

[JTravel]

The current issue of "edible Finger Lakes" has a nice article about salt potatoes:

http://www.ediblecommunities.com/fingerlakes/summer-2010/iconic-foods.htm

Nice magazine about the bounty of our part of the world.

[Jammin]

this is the article i bookmarked about a year ago when i first discovered these. similar info, but hope it helps.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/22/travel/escapes/22rNYfood.html?_r=2&em&oref=slogin