Sprouting Spuds

Buying loose potatoes in supermarkets is very limited I find JohnD, they only seem to offer general purpose white. I like to get specific varieties for roasting, mashing, boiling, etc. These only seem to be sold in 2.5 kg bags which last the two of us quite a while.
David1968 freezing mashed potato was mentioned further up the thread by Phoenix who does this regularly and recommends it.
DiggingDoris I’ve also heard about not storing onions with potatoes and have moved them into a different drawer but doesn’t seem to have made much difference, perhaps they need moving further away .
Thank you all for your input, I shall continue to cut off the shoots and use the potatoes anyway. Will also try freezing roasted potatoes as well as mashed. Thanks Anmarr.

My grandmother used to wait until the milk was really solid and separated and then strain it through butter muslin until the liquids had dissappeared and, bingo! you have a nice white soft chees , like cottage cheese.

Potatoes are a bit like rhubarb. one part is edible, the rest of the plant isn't, so take the sprouts off(poisonous) and eat the tuber (edible).

Even the cold part of modern houses is much warmer than in the past and we are not having the long cold winters of yore - look at this winter, everything in the garden has been sprouting early.

I too find that potatoes don't keep as well nowadays as they used to. I store mine in a wooden box in the cellar. The box has a lid, is lined with newspaper and stands on four bricks so air circulates under it.

But by the end of a month the tatties are sprouting. I blame the plastic bags they are packed and sold in, as they are always damp when you open the bag at home.

My DH grows our potatoes, usually seed potatoes from horticultural shop. He doesn’t replant our own sprouted potatoes as quote’youre not supposed to do that’, no further information cometh . However when we go on holiday he will bring potatoes from elsewhere to chit.

If my sluds start to sprout because I haven’t used them quick enough...... I peel them all and boil them and mash them . Put into plastic pots and freeze them. Sorted.

Spuds not sluds!,

I think the problem is the potatoes are kept too long at the suppliers.
Through his job my DH became a potato expert and told me you should never keep potatoes in the fridge as the sugar content makes them turn black. They should be in a cool place in the dark.

Like others I'm not bothered by the sprouts, rub them off and cook as usual (not eating any green bits) and have lived over three score years without poisoning.
Given the worries of some others on this thread I thought I'd Google it!
Yes it IS safe to eat them after they start to chit:
www.seasonalspuds.com/blog/can-you-eat-potatoes-after-they-have-sprouted-and-other-myths-about-spuds/

Keep them in a cool place, in a paper bag not plastic, and put an apple in with them.

I keep mine in the dark but be warned they do have eyes to find their way out.

I keep mine in the salad drawer of the fridge and most of the time it seems to keep them sprout free.

He doesn’t replant our own sprouted potatoes as quote ’youre not supposed to do that’, no further information cometh
Our DH's must have gone to the same horticultural school 00mam00 - mine muttered something about 'disease'
For the same reason I am not allowed to put potato peelings on the compost heap.

I think the trouble is that the potatoes are washed. My neighbour who lives alone has a sack of potatoes from the farm which she keeps in the garage and they last her for months.

To the people who say they keep their potatoes in the fridge - don't. If you Google it you will be told by keeping them in the fridge it accelerates the starches being turned into sugars which effects the taste and obviously not so good for you either !

For all enquires re sprouting spuds: I have always popped an apple in besides my potatoes which I keep in a basket in one of my kitchen cupboards and have never had a problem since! Don’t ask me where I learnt this trick but it was definitely from a chef on a cooking programme or in a magazine. It’s worth the apple! Any make will do, hope this helps.

Here is an old trick to make potatoes not sprout as fast.But if they have all ready sprouts on,knock them of 1st before putting an apple in your potato bag.it do`s not stop them but it really do`s slow the sprouts down. And yes the supermarkets keep the spuds in their cold stores before bringing them out to fill the shelves etc.That`s another reason why sometimes you peel a potato & they are black inside,or when you boil them they sometimes turn black in the water.Some farms spray the potatoes to retard them from sprouting,before packaging them for the shops,which is ok,in a way.but the only down side to that is if you only use a few spuds at a time,instead of sprouting, the retard chemical rots the potato eyes inside the spud,then it makes the potato go black inside.To be Frank well it makes a change from kenny,its swings & roundabouts,but if your spuds come in a plastic bag make a few more airholes in them,or put them in a paper bag.

I buy potatoes fortnightly and they last well with no ‘sprouting’. Perhaps the ones you buy aren’t very fresh and so go off quicker.

I've planted my sprouting potatoes.

There is nothing wrong with sprouted potatoes just peel them and use them as normal when they have gone too far they go wrinkly
I keep mine in the salad drawer in the fridge that reduces sprouting to a minimum. Dark and cool.

* Jalima1108* - “seed” potatoes (generally from Scotland here in the U.K.) are used to minimise the risks of your crop being contaminated with blight spores and viral diseases. This is why lots of people don’t want to compost them - as if they have picked disease up it’s just going to spread it about.
In colder climates the aphids that spread the disease don’t flourish so you can buy “certified virus free” tubers to plant without worry.

Thank you NotSpaghetti

I use a Potato sack I bought from LAKELAND many years ago,keeps them perfectly, no sprouts at all.

Potatoes sprout because they are old! Most of the potatoes we buy in supermarkets are more than a year old, and have been kept in 'potato pies' (a layer of potatoes, a layer of straw, a layer of potatoes, etc.)

Just cut off the sprouts and use - not if they've gone soft though. I just ditch these.

But you can plant sprouting spuds too! Look for the 'rose' on the potato - the end where most of the sprouts are, and plant this uppermost. About 3" down.

Of course you can buy proper 'seed potatoes', earth them up, blah-de-blah. (If you want to be a serious potato grower!)

But I just shove them in anywhere in the garden. Dig them up when the flowers have died. You'll get about 5 - 6 potatoes for every one planted. And they're lovely. Magic!

Potatoes being stores in “pies” stopped many years ago, the old potatoes you are buying today will have been stored in boxes in controlled climate stores. As new potatoes become more available the old ones from last years crop dwindle during June.

Your store must be keeping them too long or mine are treated as they do not sprout
I hope mine arent gm I think I need to find out at sainsbury next time i go
Did you also know that spuds are not counted in your 5 aday