Why don’t new potatoes make good mash? And how come you can rub the skin off a new potato but not an ‘old’ one? Tesco graduate trainees should be able to answer these questions (and many more), thanks to the Potato Master Class run by the retailer with assistance from Greenvale AP and two of the UK’s leading Michelin-starred chefs.
The Master Class, which took place on November 19th, 2008 at Tesco head office in Cheshunt, was designed to raise awareness of the diversity of potatoes, particularly looking at how different varieties have different tastes, textures and functions – some are great roasters, others make the creamiest mash. As the UK’s largest supplier of fresh potatoes, Greenvale AP was invited to provide specialist expertise.
Given the popularity of the potato, it’s perhaps no surprise that this was an exceptionally well-attended event. Although Sue Gilbert, marketing manager of Greenvale AP, admitted: "The presence of Michel Roux Jr. of Le Gavroche and Andrew Fairlie from Gleneagles may have helped, of course…" The two chefs treated delegates to some deliciously different recipes: potato gnocchi with butternut squash and mushrooms, followed by pomme dauphine.
Paul Coleman, technical director of Greenvale AP, talked on breeding, growing and harvesting procedures in the UK and then answered technical queries. He covered a wide area and explained, amongst other things, that new potatoes have too much starch to make good mash and old potatoes are left in the ground after their foliage has died down to allow the skins to ‘set’.
Despite the presence of the celebrity chefs, the real stars of the event were the not-so-humble spuds. "The organisers were delighted by the interest in the event," said Sue Gilbert, who was also present. "It drew the highest number of delegates who had ever attended one of their Master Classes."
The picture shows Tim Pratt, technical manager at Tesco, (left) giving a certificate of thanks to Paul Coleman.
For more information visit the Greenvale AP website at www.greenvale.co.uk
Editor’s notes
Greenvale AP is the UK’s leading supplier of fresh potatoes and was awarded the Queens Award for Innovation in 2006. Greenvale AP now supplies the UK’s premier retailers, caterers and processing outlets with quality potatoes, meeting the high standards demanded by the UK market.
Greenvale AP has developed sites in the major potato growing areas across the UK, resulting in three state of the art potato-packing operations situated in Shropshire, Berwickshire and Cambridgeshire. The company also has sales and marketing offices across the UK, including in Norfolk, Suffolk, Somerset, Hereford and Yorkshire. Greenvale AP’s Seed Potato operation is managed from a specialist office at Burrelton near Perth in Scotland.