How to Boil Potatoes – Oma’s Salzkartoffeln

by: Gerhild Fulson  / Oma Gerhild shares easy, authentic German recipes you can trust, rooted in family tradition and featured in her cookbooks.

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Here's how to boil potatoes! One of the most traditional of all German side dishes known as Salzkartoffeln aka. salt potatoes!

Here's how to boil potatoes, one of the most traditional of all German side dishes known as Salzkartoffeln which translates as "salt potato." Peeled and quartered, potatoes are cooked in salted water. 

Boiled potatoes are star accompaniments to all kinds of meats and fish. Below, they are shown alongside goulash and red cabbage. YUM!

If you need to keep the drained potatoes warm, cover pot with towel and then lid. Potatoes will stay warm without going soggy for about 15 to 20 minutes.

New potatoes are great for cooking in their jackets (peels) and are called “Pellkartoffeln”, but once the potatoes are a bit older and the skins thicker, peeling is necessary. That's what's used for these “Salzkartoffeln.”

Another delicious way to use any leftover boiled potatoes is Hoppel Poppel, a recipe from Berlin. With added eggs and bacon, it's a great lunch or light supper.

“How long to boil potatoes?” is a common question. Medium-sized potatoes that have been quartered will take about 20 minutes. Use a knife to check if they are ready. If the knife goes in easily, they're done. Overcooking will make them too soft and mushy and they may fall apart.

The best Potato Varieties to Use

The best potatoes to use as boiled potatoes are varieties that hold their shape well without becoming too starchy or mushy.

• Yukon Gold are a great all-purpose potato that has a buttery flavor and a creamy texture. 
• Red Potatoes are really good to use as well, since these are classified as waxy potatoes with a firm texture. 

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Oma says,

Among the many recipes using potatoes in German cookbooks, this is among the easiest. Leftovers can be used for Bratkartoffel, another traditional German side dish.

This is actually one of my very favourite treats. I usually boil extra potatoes just to have leftovers for this on the following day.

Ready to boil potatoes?

Print Recipe

How to Boil Potatoes – Oma’s Salzkartoffeln

Here's how to boil potatoes, one of the most traditional of all German side dishes known as Salzkartoffeln which translates as "salt potato." Peeled and quartered, potatoes are cooked in salted water. 

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Servings:

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

• Use one medium potato per person.
• salt 

Instructions:

1. Use one medium potato per person.
2. Wash well, remove sprouts and blemishes, and then peel. Use a potato peeler or small paring knife.
3. Immediately put peeled potatoes into a bowl of water to prevent discoloring.
4. When ready to cook, cut into quarters and place into the pot. Cover with water.
5. Add salt, about 1 teaspoon per quart.
6. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and continue boiling gently until tender, approx. 20 minutes. Test by poking the potato with a sharp paring knife. If it slides easily all the way to the center, the potatoes are done.
7. Drain by holding the lid on the pot with potholders and lifting the lid a bit from the edge, and pour the water off. You can also gently pour into a large colander to drain water.
8. Return the drained potatoes in the pot over the heat to steam dry the potatoes. This only takes a minute or two, gently shaking the pot, so the potatoes don't stick. 
9. Serve immediately.

Notes/Hints:

• The best potatoes to use are Yukon Gold and Red Potatoes. 
• Save cooking water to use in soups or gravies. You can also add it when baking bread.
• To make the drained potatoes more 'mealy', put a folded towel over pot (remove the lid first) for 5 minutes. Shake pot gently. Remove the towel which will have absorbed excess steam.
• If you really need to keep them hot for a little while, after draining the potatoes, but a folded terrycloth towel over the pot. Put the lid on over the towel and let the pot sit in a warm area. This should keep the potatoes hot and dry for about 15 - 20 minutes.

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Unless otherwise noted recipe, images and content © Just like Oma | www.quick-german-recipes.com

10.24.2024 revision update

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Hi, I'm Oma Gerhild! As a food writer and cookbook author, I'm always looking to find ways to pass on my German heritage using local ingredients. Quick and easy. That's my goal. Wunderbar food. That's the result.