Take The Stress Out Of Sides And Make Mashed Potatoes In Your Slow Cooker

There's an easy way to make mashed potatoes without dragging out the biggest pot in your kitchen and standing around waiting for water to boil. Whether it's for the holidays or a hectic mid-week scramble for dinner, a slow cooker is the best stress-free way to make your mash. It's a one-pot solution that even keeps the food warm if you're not serving it right away. 

Start by peeling and cutting up about five pounds of potatoes and add them to your slow cooker. Russet potatoes are typically used for fluffiness, but some Yukon Golds will add a natural buttery taste and rich color. Mix in salt to taste and a cup of water to steam the potatoes (steamed spuds are actually fluffier than boiled). Want to add extra flavor? Use broth or stock instead of water.

To keep the top layer of spuds from drying out, dot the potatoes with butter and press parchment paper over them. Cover the slow cooker, set it on high, and let the potatoes steam for three to four hours. They will cook uniformly and form a fluffy base for your favorite mash recipe. To make prep even easier, you can start them in the morning or even the night before dinner. Set the cooker on low and let the spuds cook for six to eight hours. Once they're done, you can add extra ingredients right into the pot, mash up those airy potatoes, and keep them warm while your other dishes get prepared.

Mashed potatoes in a slow cooker certainly sound great, but what about food safety? Is it safe to leave your food in the cooker for several hours? Whether the potatoes are chunky or whipped smooth, they can stay in the appliance as long as they don't cool below 140 degrees Fahrenheit, as bacteria can rapidly multiply around this temperature. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, food left in a slow cooker on "low" will stay safe; however, the "warm" setting usually leaves your food at (or close to) that 140-degree limit. Only leave your mash on warm for two to four hours.

So long as you keep safety in mind, slow cookers make it easy to have mashed potatoes on standby. For the creamiest texture, stick to whole milk and salted butter, like in the easiest mashed potato recipe (period). Or, try something completely different like curry powder; Italian herbs; or mashed potatoes with goat cheese and kale, which is a new take on traditional Irish colcannon, an iconic style of mashed potato. For a super fast and simple meal, bangers and mash with onion gravy comes together in a flash, even more so with the mash made in advance. This one-pot technique cuts down on cleanup, too, which makes slow cooker potatoes one of the easiest side dishes to prepare on crazy weekdays.