ANYA

What I love about this spud is the fact it looks a bit like a long knobbly finger. Not the most fun to peel (so don’t bother) but they’re kinda cute. They can also have a bit of a pinkish hue, so this should help you identify one.

Due to its white waxy quality and nutty flavour, they work well boiled and are lovely in a salad. We need the potato salad to have a proper comeback, too long has it been dismissed as a ‘bland’ and ‘boring’ potato side, and I’m just not having it anymore. Plus, who couldn’t love a salad that’s mainly carbs and mayo?

Check out my fave way to prepare a knobbly Anya here. Probs should have shown a potato salad here…

BABY POTATOES

As these spuds are harvested earlier, they’re smaller and have a more delicate skin so you don’t typically need to peel. After I did my ’24 Days of Christmas Potatoes’ series, I really wish I’d used more baby potatoes because I had to have a peeler detox by the end. I lived in a sea of beige for the full of December (did still kinda love it though).

These are great for salads, roasting and boiling. Make the viral parmesan crusted potatoes with your babies here.

CHARLOTTE POTATOES 

Charlotte potatoes are waxy yet buttery, making them great for potato salads because they hold their shape. This also makes them ideal for something like a Lancashire hotpot topping or used within a Spanish omelette.

If you do opt to use them in a salad, make sure you chop them into smaller pieces as they’re larger than you typical salad spud so they do take longer to boil and I’m impatient.

Sadly, these spuds are not named after the voice of an angel and all round crazy chick, Charlotte Church but named ‘Charlotte’ because it’s easy to pronounce across different languages. That’s right, I’d sharing some potato knowledge with you, shame this knowledge didn’t make an appearance when I was a contestant on a show where my specialist topic was spuds…

RED SKIN POTATOES

These babies are relatively waxy but also a good all-rounder. They make a great roastie and a beautifully fluffy baked potato. We love a team player in the spud world.

I personally like to use red skin potatoes for big fat CHUNKEH CHIPS. If you want a veggie version, try my non beef-fat chunky chips here.

I find that as they’re not as starchy as a maris piper, they work better for this kind of chip. If you’re making french/skinny fries they may not crisp up quite as much.

JERSEY ROYALS

On my list of places to travel is Jersey, purely for these distinctive spuds. Not quite sure what else goes on over there tbh. These are perfect simply boiled and buttered with fresh herbs, you don’t need to do much for the sweet and nutty flavour to shine.

I’ve even seen Jersey Royals used within brownie recipes so you know what, just do what you want with these. It’s bound to be lovely.

KING EDWARD 

Delish when used for mash as they’re creamy and super buttery. I often find people like to question why my go-to spud is a Maris Piper and not a King Edward and ngl, it gets heated. There are some die hard King Edward fans out there and I love the passion. Basically, I find Maris Pipers easily to come by and they’re better for chips, but this spud will work equally well for your roasties, jackets and mash.

To all the super fans, I will admit they make an absolutely bangin jacket potato.

MARIS PIPER

My FAVOURITE spud. This is the best friend of potatoes, the one that you can always count on. Want a smooth, velvety mash – sorted. Want a fluffy and crispy roastie – done. Want a deliciously decadent 15 hour potato – absolutely.

What makes a Maris Piper special is the abundance of natural sugars that help caramelise and add to the crunch. They have the perfect balance of starch and moisture, which helps to produce crispy fries.

Due to it their floury nature, these work amazingly well for Potato Scones. For anyone gluten intolerant, just switch out the flour for gluten-free.

The reason this is my go-to potato is that it’s typically the most accessible and abundant. You’ll likely find these babies in your closest supermarket, making it even easier to recreate my recipes 👀