Potato

The potato (plural form: potatoes) (Solanum tuberosum) is a perennial plant of the Solanaceae, or nightshade, family, grown for its starchy tuber. Potatoes are the world's most important tuber crop and fourth most important source of food energy (after rice, wheat, and maize): farmers and gardeners grow them world-wide. Growers cultivate thousands of different varieties of potato. The potato originated in the Andes, in the area of present-day Peru. Pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Andean cultures cultivated around 200 different kinds of potatoes.

Varieties

Potatoes' skins come in the colors brown, yellow, pink, red, and purple (sometimes called "blue"). Their flesh may appear white or may reflect the color of the skin. The market calls small types "fingerlings" or "new" potatoes, larger potatoes may class as "earlies" or "main crop", with the "main crop" referring to varieties that will store well. Potato retailers may label different types as:

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• "boiling", indicating that they retain some shape when boiled
• "baking", indicating that they only hold their shape if baked
• "roasting", indicating good flavor when roasted
• "salad" to indicate suitability for salad use (often firm and waxy-fleshed when boiled)
• "mashing" to indicate that when mashed they form a smooth consistency, neither fibrous nor grainy

Common North American potato varieties include:

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• Russet Burbank — large, brown skin, white-fleshed, developed by Luther Burbank
• Yellow Finn — small, with yellow skin and flesh
• Red Gold — red skin, yellow flesh
• German Butterball — a yellow-fleshed small oval potato. Won first place in Rodale's Organic Gardening "Taste Off"
• Yukon Gold — yellow skin and flesh

In the United States the term "Idaho potato" often refers to the Russet Burbank, the principal variety grown in Idaho, that country's principal potato-growing region. The term also occurs generically for other potatoes grown in Idaho.

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Common British potato varieties include:

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• Maris Piper — a good general purpose white main crop potato, not suitable for salads. The favourite potato of chip shops
• King Edward — the best roasting potato, often served with the Sunday roast, white main crop
• Desiree — a red-skinned main crop potato, a favourite with allotment-holders because of its resistance to disease
• International Kidney — trademarked as Jersey Royal, a salad new potato, grown on the island of Jersey and in Spain
• Pink Fir Apple — a pink-skinned salad potato which grows in irregular shapes
• Golden Wonder — famous Scottish frying potato used to make the eponymous crisps
• Kerrs Pinks — bred in Northern Ireland: an excellent potato for boiling.

Many potato varieties in the U.K. originated on breeding stations which give part of the potato's name. Thus the Maris breeding station developed the above-mentioned Maris piper and the Maris Peer. Another well-known station, Pentland, produced such varieties as Pentland Javelin and Dell.

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Common French varieties include

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• Amandine — a variety of early potato, descended from the varieties Charlotte and Mariana. Bred in Brittany, France, it entered the national list of potato varieties in 1994. Amandine shaws typically produce long tubers with very pale, unblemished skin. Their flesh, firm and also very pale, contains comparatively little starch. Amandine potatoes have become popular in Switzerland.

Other varieties include:

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• Jersey benies
• Red kings
• Kipfler

Countries such as Peru, the native area of origin for potatoes, can offer a wide range of 4000 varieties.

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