Mashed Potato

Method

1. Peel 300 g of floury potatoes and cut them into even chunks of about 4–5 cm — evenness matters more than size, so everything cooks through at the same moment.
2. Put the chunks in a small saucepan, cover with cold water by 2 cm and add 0.5 tsp of salt. Bring to the boil, then lower to a steady simmer — a hard boil breaks up the outsides before the middles are done — and cook 18–20 minutes, until the tip of a knife slides into a piece with no resistance at all.
3. Drain the potatoes thoroughly in a colander, return them to the dry hot pan and leave off the heat for 2 minutes, shaking once. The surface should look chalky and matte: dry potato takes up butter and milk instead of turning gluey.
4. While they steam, warm 50 ml of whole milk in a small pan over a low heat until it just steams. Cold milk chills the mash and makes it stodgy.