New potatoes............

If you can get hold of Norfolks they have a good flavour. Trouble with supermarkets is they don't provenance their loose new potatoes so, apart from Jerseys, you have no idea what you are buying. Try your local market - they quite often have two or three varieties.

I haven't bought any yet, but I get the impression that supermarket fruit and veg are sprayed and prewashed so obsessionally that some of the natural flavour is washed away.

Never liked them. Give me mash every time.?

I have noticed that shop ones don't seem to have the lovely new potato flavour over the last couple of years, the only ones that do are the ones dug fresh from the garden. I don't think the Jersey Royals are worth the extra money any more.

Try Pembroke new potatoes, really scrummy.

I agree that shop bought new potatoes now seem tasteless and we rarely have then just boiled. Our neighbour has an allotment - his are fabulous broiled and tossed in butter.

Don't know what varieties I've been buying but they're fine boiled and eaten hot with plenty of butter. I don't peel them and we just squash them slightly with a fork before adding generous smearings of butter. Shopping later so I'll check what varieties we've used.

Maybe it's more butter you need, caz

PS even MrBags likes them prepared thus and he has always, until this year, claimed that he doesn't like boiled potatoes.

I do what bags does, but add the butter whilst they're still in the pot, plus I grate a good bit of parmesan also into the pot before I squash them (just a bit).

But I agree, without the above attention, New potatoes are pretty tasteless - and even "glassy".

We are lucky in Lancashire to have Pilling potatoes grown mostly on the Fylde between Blackpool and Lancaster. Ready at the beginning of June and delicious.

I never peel mine, boil and drain but leave in pan. Then add some butter and chopped mint.

I think that the fact that we lose some of our sense of taste and smell as we get older, has a lot to do with it. I used to be a 'super taster' but find things with delicate flavours very bland now

I think may be it s me I did wonder if my tastebuds had declined Maranta is that actually a fact ? To me all the shop bought veg seem tasteless they are bland and with no strong flavours at all I add strong seasoning to everything

I think Charlotte have the best taste. I grew some one year but they were awful, split on cooking and went into the water. Even steamed the texture was all wrong. Think it was a dry year.

My Dad used to grow Arran Pilot potatoes. They were lovely. We haven't had any new potatoes yet, but DH though he'd bought some. He doesn't read what's on the package though, they were just those baby boil potatoes.?

I go for "Charlotte" every time. They are seasonal and you cannot always get them but the flavour is superb.

Shysal I have not had a problem with them but I am sure the growing conditions can affect the plant.

Yes I remember Charlotte from last year and they did have flavour....I don't peel mine and do add butter, seasoning and garden mint thatbags ...I wonder if my sense of taste is going as Maranta suggested, that could be partly the problem.......thanks for your responses

There was a thread recently about this.

Jersey Royals last year were overpriced, tasteless and the wrong shape, perhaps it was just a bad year, like sometimes happens with wine?

Agree with other posters, Charlottes seem to be a good reliable spud!

Yes we like charlottes. I used to buy Vivaldis also. The best potatoes we ever ate were in Cyprus. They were really creamy and almost yellow.

We had Jersey Royals for lunch today. They were lovely and tasted just as they should. My husband bought them in the Co-op he works in.

We recently had a variety called Gemson. They tasted fine to me but, as you may have gathered, I don't stint the butter.

We had the first Ayrshire tatties of the season on Friday and they were gorgeous, at £4 a kilo (wholesale) they are not cheap but they are worth it

How can potatoes be the 'wrong shape' were they square ?

I thought Jersey potatoes were, or used to be ' kidney' shaped, or was that something else. Now they are just irregular.