Round whites and round reds are firm, waxier in texture and particularly good for boiling and steaming. Yukon Gold are also good for mashing, baking and French frying. Sweet potatoes, with a dense, moist, fluffy texture, are good baked, deep-fried, mashed and microwaved. New potatoes are wonderful and are harvested in an immature state often while tops are still green. They skin easily and the thin flavorful skins should be boiled or steamed with the rest of the potato.
New potatoes retain good quality only for a week or so.
They are better stored in the refrigerator. Nutrition Potatoes are an excellent source of potassium, a good source of Vitamin C and a source of fibre and folacin. History Along with tomatoes and squash, potatoes are native to South America. The potato was slow to be adopted by early settlers to North America, particularly by the Puritans, partly because they were profoundly suspicious of any vegetable not mentioned in the Bible. Potatoes helped save Ireland from famine in 1740 and Prussia in 1774.