What to use instead of potatoes
It depends entirely on what it's doing in the dish. Here's the job, what else does it, and what to skip.
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Starchy body that thickens a soup or stew
Starch granules leach out of the cut faces and swell in the liquid, which gives the pot weight without any flour.
White beans, blendedGluten-free
1 cup drained cooked beans per 1 medium potato
Thicker and creamier than potato and it adds protein. Sweeter, and it can taste chalky if you underblend it.
CeleriacRan out
1:1 by weight
Thickens far less because there is almost no starch, so blend some of it. Clear celery flavour throughout.
ParsnipRan out
1:1 by weight
Breaks down soft and sweetens the whole pot, which suits a curried or spiced soup and fights a simple leek and potato.
Cauliflower, blendedRan out
1:1 by weight
Gives whiteness and volume with very little thickening power. Overcook it and the soup turns sulphurous.
What doesn't work: Sweet potato in a chowder. It carries far more sugar and pectin, so it collapses into an orange purée and the soup drifts toward dessert.
Waxy chunks that keep their edges in a braise or salad
Low-starch varieties hold their cells together as they cook, so the cubes stay square through half an hour in liquid.
New potatoes or fingerlingsRan out
1:1 by weight
Firmer still, and they cook a few minutes faster because they are smaller. Leave the skins on.
TurnipRan out
1:1 by weight
Holds its shape and stays peppery. It leaks water into the braise, so reduce a little longer.
CeleriacRan out
1:1 by weight
Keeps its edges and never goes floury. Strongly of celery, which suits beef and clashes with fish.
What doesn't work: Russets in a potato salad. They are mealy, so the cubes shed starch, round off at the corners and turn the dressing into wallpaper paste by the time it reaches the table.
Fluff and crisp in mash, roasties and fries
High-starch varieties fall into dry, mealy grains that soak up butter and dry out at the surface into a crisp shell.
Sweet potato, for roasting and friesRan out
1:1 by weight, oven 15C lower
Sugars burn earlier so the edges blacken before the middle softens. Never as dry or as crisp as a russet.
Celeriac mashRan out
1:1 by weight, and use half the usual milk
Looser and wetter with no fluff. Dry it in the pan for 2 minutes after draining or it will be soupy.
Parsnip mashRan out
1:1 by weight
Sweet and silky, and it takes butter well. It sets stiff as it cools.
What doesn't work: Waxy potatoes whipped in a mixer or processor. Their cells stay intact under the blade and then rupture all at once, releasing long starch chains, and the mash turns to elastic glue.