New Age ways with the good old potato

October 24, 2024 | 12:00am

Some of us probably grew up on potatoes — I surely did! Not the French-fry kind churned out by fast-food chains, but the good old-fashioned potato dishes our mommies dearest lovingly cooked for us, never failing to fill our bellies and warm our hearts.

So, you see, our all-consuming love affair with this fine tuber is, well, deeply rooted.

Thus, this lunchtime at the Brittany Hotel, BGC, Potatoes USA-Philippines rekindles our unbreakable bond with the spud.

“Did you know that the Philippines is the biggest consumer of US frozen potatoes in Southeast Asia?” shares Reji Retugal. “That’s because the Philippines has a lot of fast-food chains and it does not grow the variety that’s used particularly for fries.”

More fun facts about potatoes:

For the eighth year in a row, potatoes have been voted as America’s favorite vegetable. Fact is, a whopping 82 percent of Americans eat potatoes every week, with a third having potatoes at least three times per week. (Imagine an average American consuming 124 pounds of potatoes every year.)

Thanks to Potatoes USA, potatoes are available in the Philippines in three formats: fresh (table stock), frozen and instant (dehydrated, used for our well-loved chips).

Here are the many reasons the US is one of the world’s major potato-producing countries: favorable soil, ideal growing conditions, plentiful water, and an industry committed to both advancing research and technology and to sustaining the traditions that made US potato growers so world-renowned in the first place.

US premium frozen potatoes are quick frozen to lock in the flavor and nutrients. The US is the only country in the world with mandatory USDA grading standards for frozen potatoes to ensure the quality of the final frozen product.

Potatoes are more energy-packed (with their complex carbs) than any other popular vegetable. Note: They’re fat-free, gluten-free, cholesterol-free, sodium-free, with only 110 calories per 148-gram skin-on serving. More, potatoes are an excellent source of vitamin C (30 percent of the daily value) and a good source of potassium (15 percent of the daily value).

Potatoes are some of the most versatile veggies that can be enjoyed in countless, unimaginable, delicious ways. Chef Kalel Chan, corporate chef of The Raintree Restaurant Group, with his flair for Asian and Western cuisine, cooks up a couple of potato dishes (Mapo Tofu Potato Cheese Fries and Ramen using handmade potato noodles) at the Chefs’ Table and Kitchen, inspiring press guests to concoct their own recipes.

What a spud-tacular day!