MASH

8216;8216;The potato8217;s greatly misunderstood,8217;8217; says Jasleen Dhamija, noted cultural historian and author of two cookbooks. Nutritionist Shikha Sharma agrees, placing much of the responsibility at the door of the low-carb lobby.

Blame it, instead, on the company it keeps. Most chefs, dieticians and thinking foodies agree it8217;s not so much the humble spud itself but what you do with it that gives it a bad name.

8216;8216;Smother a jacket potato in sour cream, or combine it with a wheat and/or rice meal, or have it as French fries and you don8217;t really have a choice but to put on weight,8217;8217; says Dr Sharma. 8216;8216;And the potato gets blacklisted.8217;8217;

It8217;s rather unfair, considering the potato is probably one of the first vegetables most of us ever tasted. Mashed into baby food or shallow-fried in long sallis8212;homesick Bengalis in Delhi have been known to make a beeline for Babumoshai in Chittranjan Park just to wolf down plates of patla alu bhaja8212;or slow-cooked in eastern biryanis so that it absorbs all the flavours and fats, the spud is part of most Indian food memories.

The best part of the potato, says Chef Manav Sharma of Ploof, New Delhi, is that it never imposes its own character on its accompaniments, but rather enhances and complements the whole dish. Consider potatoes in an anda curry or in a vichyssoise: In one, it absorbs all the spices and tomato-onion juices of the gravy, in the other it is a quiet backgrounder to the subtle flavour of leeks and salt-and-pepper seasoning.

But of course, even the most hard core potato fiend would agree ODing on the spud is not going to do anything for the carb count. 8216;8216;Having potatoes is fine, as long as you remember it8217;s the equivalent of wheat or rice,8217;8217; says Dr Sharma. 8216;8216;Also, potatoes and oil/fats is the most fattening combination8212;potatoes can absorb as much as their own weight in fats and the calorie count goes up four times. So French fries shouldn8217;t find place on a health-conscious menu, but roasted or boiled-in-their-jacket potatoes certainly should.8217;8217;

With most nutrients8212;a medium-sized potato contains about 750 mg of potassium, 10 gm sodium, 2710 mg of dietary fibre, 23 gm carbs, 6 gm protein8212;lying close to the skin, peeling the potato is not really an option.

Or do as Chef Bakshish Dean of the Park, New Delhi, does: 8216;8216;If you want to use potatoes in, say, a curry, where the skin would impede absorption of the flavours, it8217;s a good idea to peel and wash the whole potato before cutting it. And never soak cut or diced potatoes8212;it8217;s a surefire way of losing all the water-soluble nutrients.8217;8217;

For a 8216;foreign8217; vegetable8212;a native of Latin America, the potato was introduced in India in the 15th century by the Portuguese8212;the spud has certainly gone desi with a vengeance: From being restricted to plateaus and hillsides, it now grows all over the country. Potatoes are cultivated in two seasons in India; the mealy winter crop, with its thick skin, is infinitely preferred for bakes, fries and mashes.

So go ahead, dig into that potato salad. Believe us, it wouldn8217;t be out of place on a weight-watcher8217;s menu!