Easily Upgrade Instant Mashed Potatoes With More Of The Star Ingredient

While it's safe to say not all instant mashed potato brands are created equal, this easy-to-make version of the delicious side dish generally deserves much more love than it gets. One of the many underrated aspects of instant mashed potatoes is its versatility. Not only can the instant dish be great all on its own, but it can be made even better with the help of additional ingredients not featured in the directions — notably, canned potatoes. We spoke with George Ryle, the in-house chef at Swaledale Butchers, about the feasibility of using canned potatoes to further improve instant mashed potatoes and he agreed it can yield great results. "Canned potatoes can help instant mash feel a bit more like the real thing," Ryle explained. "They add body, a bit more potato flavor, and a texture that feels less uniform, which is often what gives instant mash away."

In the same sense that potato flakes can thicken homemade mashed potatoes and improve their texture, canned potatoes provide a chunkier mouthfeel that instant potatoes otherwise lack. Although canned potatoes carry a certain stigma with them as one of the canned vegetables chefs recommend avoiding (in large part due to their diminished nutritional value), they're worth giving a shot in instant mashed potatoes due, in part, to their convenience. Convenience is already the biggest selling point of instant mashed potatoes, so the pairing just makes sense.

So, canned potatoes can prove instrumental in making instant mashed potatoes taste homemade, but it's important to know how to implement them in order to truly succeed. "I'd add them near the end, once they're well-drained, then mash or fold them gently rather than really working them hard," Ryle advised. "You want them to disappear into the mash without turning it heavy or gluey." Using canned potatoes during the later stages of making instant mashed potatoes is a similar technique to what you'd do if you were adding fresh potatoes to the dish – only, fresh potatoes would require more prep work.

If canned potatoes aren't your thing but you're still looking for a similar upgrade to the dish, Ryle had some recommendations. "If you're after the same sort of richness or lift, cream cheese, sour cream, crème fraîche, or even roasted garlic can all help," Ryle explained. As far as taste is concerned, the chef pointed to using plenty of black pepper and other seasonings to properly complete the dish. While he didn't give any specific examples, adding ranch seasoning to mashed potatoes is a popular choice; as are Cajun seasoning, Italian seasoning, and Old Bay.