Optimal Spuds for Baking in the Oven
Hey there! Want to know what's the top-notch spud for baking perfection? BBC Gardeners' World Magazine ran a trial to discover just that, consulting breeders, growers, suppliers, and chefs along the way.
Let's learn how to slay your jacket potato game!
Ten potato varieties were grown, including the famous 'King Edward' and the blight-resistant 'Sarpo Mira'. After planting in mid-April, they were frequently earthed up and watered during dry spells. Despite preventive sprays with Bordeaux mixture, some varieties (like 'Estima' and 'King Edward') fell victim to potato blight in late summer.
Tasty Tips
Avoiding potato blight hassles is a must for a successful harvest. Spraying with eco-friendly fungicides can help prevent infection.
The potatoes were assessed based on yield, jacket-size tubers, and taste. Following cooking, testers evaluated texture and flavor.
Top-ranked Taters
The best variety? 'Vivaldi' took the crown with an outstanding flavor, creamy texture, appetizing skin, and heavy crop of large, uniform tubers.
Coming close behind was 'Sante' – delivering outstanding yield, good flavor, and edible skin, albeit with a less fluffy texture than 'Vivaldi'.
'Sarpo Mira', known for its blight resistance, showed a strong harvest – though irregularly shaped and with some scab - and earned a middling flavor and texture grade.
Other Options
'Innovator' boasted an attractive, high-yielding crop with a good number of jacket-sized tubers but was let down by less-than-impressive taste.
'Carolus', resistant to blight, looked enticing, but fell short on taste due to its dense, waxy texture.
'Melody' ranked third for taste but produced a moderate yield with fewer jacket-sized tubers.
The Rest
'Marfona', 'Estima', and 'King Edward' delivered decent flavor yet lower yields. 'Isle of Jura' had poor performance in both yield and taste.
Cooking Perfection
For the best jacket potato experience, dry the spud well after washing, pierce the skin, rub with olive oil and salt, and bake at 190°C for 1 hour 45 minutes to two hours. Enjoy your culinary conquest!
- Transform your home-and-garden into a kitchen of excellence by growing 'Vivaldi' potatoes, declared as the top-notch spud for baking perfection in a recent trial by BBC Gardeners' World Magazine.
- Elevate your food-and-drink selection with a lifestyle that embraces cooking, as 'Vivaldi' potatoes offer an outstanding flavor, creamy texture, appetizing skin, and heavy crop of large, uniform tubers, perfect for baking luscious jacket potatoes.
- Incorporate 'Vivaldi' potatoes and impressive baking techniques into your recipes collection, and share your tasty creations with others, promoting a life enriched by both gardening and cooking.
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