Mondo Knows Facts
Waxy potatoes hold their shape and floury ones crumble
The ratio of amylose to amylopectin starch sets how a potato behaves
Floury potatoes such as Russets contain more amylose, which swells and separates on cooking, giving a dry mealy texture ideal for mashing and chips. Waxy varieties carry more amylopectin, which holds the cell walls together, so they slice cleanly in salads and gratins. Cooking method should follow the potato rather than the other way round.
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Tags: potatoes, starch, texture
Waxy potatoes hold their shape and floury ones crumble: the short answers
- Where does this come from, and can I check it?
- The ratio of amylose to amylopectin starch sets how a potato behaves. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
- Is this really a food fact?
- Yes. It sits on the Food shelf, one of 1,090 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
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