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_Speed-Baking Potatoes |
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One of the greatest travesties in the history of quick cooking is the erroneous notion that a baked potato and a microwave-baked potato have any similarity, other than the fact that they are both hot. The flesh of a properly baked potato is fluffy and dry, while the interior of the same potato cooked in a microwave will be flabby and damp. What’s happening?
There are two types of potatoes when it comes to cooking. Mealy potatoes, which include russets (such as Idaho), purple potatoes, and fingerling potatoes, are preferred for baking because they have a high concentration of dry starch in their cells. As they cook, the moisture in the potato starts to steam, and at about 150°F the starch starts to absorb that moisture, causing the starch cells to swell and separate from one another. Because there is so much starch in mealy potatoes, any moisture that doesn’t evaporate through the skin gets absorbed, resulting in a fluffy, tender, and relatively dry texture.
Unfortunately, this doesn’t happen in a microwave, but there is a compromise that yields moderately fluffy results. Turn on the oven to 450°F. While it is heating, set the potatoes in a microwave oven and cook at full power for about 8 minutes, which is approximately the time it will take for your oven to preheat. Transfer the partially cooked potatoes to the oven until they are cooked through, about 20 minutes for large russet potatoes.
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