Do potatoes really need to be pricked before cooking? We investigated!
It's the kind of thing we do almost mechanically, because grandma already did it: prick our potatoes before cooking them. But is it really useful? Can we risk a potato explosion? Is this even truer for sweet potatoes? At Petitchef, we took a closer look at the question - and came up with some not-so-obvious answers.
Where does this reflex to prick potatoes come from?
The idea is simple: when you cook a whole potato, its skin acts like a watertight shell. Inside, steam builds up, and if it can't escape, the pressure rises... to the point of potentially exploding the potato. Hence the trick of the little holes in the fork, to avoid this kind of culinary catastrophe.
But does it really happen?
Field test: 4 potatoes, 0 explosion
A team of food writers and designers set out to find out (source: Slate.fr). They baked two potatoes and two sweet potatoes - some pricked, some not - at 430°F/220°C.
The result? Not a single explosion. The core texture was similar. The only difference was that one spiked potato had blackened (slight oxidation due to waiting time before cooking). In short: nothing dramatic.
Scientists have their say too
For all that, Brennan Smith, a professor at the University of Idaho's School of Food Science, recommends continuing to spike your potatoes:
" The steam has to be able to escape. Otherwise, the potato becomes a mini pressure cooker, and it can sometimes explode. "
He adds that the risk is higher in the microwave, where the heat rises very quickly. On the other hand, there's no big difference between varieties: sweet potatoes, firm or floury potatoes, they're all in the same boat.
Small potatoes (grenaille type) are less concerned: their thin skins and small size generally allow steam to escape naturally.
Verdict: do we bite or not?
Let's face it: the risk of explosion is rare, but not non-existent. And since poking a potato takes all of 5 seconds, why deprive yourself?
- For cooking in the microwave or in the oven: no hesitation.
- If you're boiling or steaming, it's best to do so too, for safety's sake.
- What if you forget? Don't panic, you won't trigger a culinary bomb threat... but your potato could play a trick on you.
Adèle Peyches