Peeling or not peeling potato before cooking?

[Copepod]

For reasons I won't explain, I spend a considerable amount of time considering how people with health problems prepare food before cooking. This includes potato.
I was surprised that many people report that they peel potato, and even more surprised to learn that they peel new potato.
Although I don't eat potato very often, I always prefer to eat the skin, whether new potato hot with butter, chives and porridge oats or cold with salad, baked potato, roasties, mashed etc.
Am I really odd?!? I could peel skin, but why would I want to remove the best bit?!?

 

[Kaylz]

No your not odd at all, I leave the skin on too
We were watching celebrity master chef a few months ago and Tyger made a fish and left the skin on for the mashed potato topping, john torode then criticised him for it asking why he would do such a thing as nobody wants potato skin stuck in their teeth! I have more of a problem with flakes of fish getting stuck not potato skin! Haha x

 

[Mark Parrott]

I never bothered peeling tatties either, when I used to eat them.

 

[khskel]

Peel new potatoes? No way!

 

[Dave W]

New tatties, just washed and lightly scrubbed.
Old tatties baked, skins on.
Chips and roasted, peeled.

And the annoying thing is I can't, or shouldn't eat them as they spike my BG.

 

[trophywench]

As Dave, me.

Not sure I want to eat 'old' potato skins when I'm boiling them - and obviously not for mash - but I would scrub and leave on for wedges.

Think its going to depend on other people in the house we have to cater for, as well. My DH would probably live on great mounds of mash - whereas it's my least favourite way of serving a spud!

 

[Ljc]

I used to peel spuds and scrape new ones as that’s how Mum taught me. Now I only peel them if I’m doing roast pots or on the very rare occasions I do mash.

 

[Robin]

Agree with Lin, only peel them for proper roasties or mash.

 

[Northerner]

I peel for mash. Wouldn't peel for baked but would want fairly fresh spuds 🙂 New potatoes, never peel, just rub under cold water 🙂 Chips and wedges come in frozen form for me! 🙂

 

[Matt Cycle]

Skin on for all spud related preparations for me. I agree it's the best bit. Very rarely have mash - unpleasant reminders of school dinners 😱but if we do it's made with the skins on.

 

[SB2015]

Skins left on whatever I am diong with the potatoes.
Life is too short to bother peeling them.

 

[Northerner]

Skins left on whatever I am diong with the potatoes.
Life is too short to bother peeling them.

When I think back to my childhood though, potatoes came in a big sack and were encrusted with mud - quicker to peel and rinse than try and scrub all the muck off. Also, by the time your got near to the bottom of the sack the skins were often a bit manky 😱 Nowadays, they are much cleaner generally when you buy them.

 

[SB2015]

.. and think how many have been wasted in order for us to receive the pristine veg nowadays!