The Best Thanksgiving Mashed Potatoes

Name: Thanksgiving Mashed Potatoes Recipe Guidelines
Prep time: 8 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 53 min
Ingredients: 3 pounds potatoes of your choice - yukon gold, russet, reds, etc.; 1 4 ounce stick butter; 1/2 cup heavy cream (Do NOT wuss out here and use half and half!); 4 cloves garlic, (roasted and mashed); 1/2 tsp sea salt; 4 ounces butter ( I usually settle in around 2 sticks per 3 pounds of potatoes. Do not be afraid to add more than that!); heavy cream - about a 1/4 cup. ( I find about one cup total is about right. More than that can make the potatoes too runny.); garlic - 2 cloves. ( I find 8 total cloves to be the garlicky sweet spot.); sea salt (Just keep drizzling it in and tasting as you go.)

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Want to wow your family and make the best Thanksgiving mashed potatoes ever? All you need to know are 4 essential ingredients and one key secret.

The four essential ingredients (besides the potatoes) are butter, heavy cream, roasted garlic and salt.

Now for the key secret.

Drum roll please….

Ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum-CYMBAL CRASH!

You MUST let your taste buds tell you the exact amounts to use.

In other words, DO NOT USE A RECIPE!

I cannot overemphasize this.

99.99% of recipes do not use enough butter, enough cream, enough garlic or enough salt.

And when it comes to Thanksgiving mashed potatoes, you want to impress your family, right? Well if you follow a recipe, you are sure to make very average mashed potatoes. Millions of Americans will be doing that this Thanksgiving.

So I want to help you stand out this Thanksgiving and make a mashed potato so delicious and creamy, that it may just live in family lore for decades to come.

Best Thanksgiving Mashed Potatoes Guidelines

Now for the most part, what you’ll find is you need to add more butter, more cream, more garlic and more salt to create the best Thanksgiving mashed potatoes.

Now I can’t tell you exactly how of each to add. But I’ll give you a framework from which to start. After that, it’s up to you how much more of each ingredient to add.

Here’s my recommendation: TRUST YOUR TASTE BUDS.

For the most part, they will tell you to ADD MORE.

Now if you have a fat and cholesterol phobic-family from Long Island like I do, it’s best to make these out of view so as to prevent comments like, “Oh my gawd yaw gonna clawg my awteries!” Because that will surely be the reaction as more and more butter and cream gets added.

If someone asks how much butter you added, for the sake of keeping the peace, just do what I do.

Lie and casually say, “not much, maybe a few tablespoons.”

Trust me on this one. I have tons of experience.

Thanksgiving Mashed Potatoes Recipe Guidelines

Remember this is not a recipe to be followed exactly but a set of guidelines for you to follow. Use your taste buds and intuition!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 8 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 53 minutes

Servings 8 servings

Author Craig Fear

Ingredients

3 pounds potatoes of your choice - yukon gold, russet, reds, etc.
1 4 ounce stick butter
1/2 cup heavy cream Do NOT wuss out here and use half and half!
4 cloves garlic, roasted and mashed
1/2 tsp sea salt

Add more of each ingredient in the following increments

4 ounces butter I usually settle in around 2 sticks per 3 pounds of potatoes. Do not be afraid to add more than that!
heavy cream - about a 1/4 cup. I find about one cup total is about right. More than that can make the potatoes too runny.
garlic - 2 cloves. I find 8 total cloves to be the garlicky sweet spot.
sea salt Just keep drizzling it in and tasting as you go.

Instructions

First, roast the garlic. To roast, peel the outer papery skin away from a whole head and then slice a half inch off the top. Drizzle the top with a little olive oil, wrap in foil and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes. The cloves will easily separate from the skins and will be very soft and creamy. If you have any extra cloves, you can refrigerate them.
Place potatoes in a saucepan and add water or better yet, for some added depth of flavor, homemade chicken stock, if you have it. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes, until potatoes are fork tender.
Drain potatoes in a colander, add them back to to the pot, mash with a potato masher or a hand-held blender. Be careful not to blend too aggressively. Personally, I prefer a masher to get the consistency just right.
Add in the starting ingredient amounts of butter, cream, garlic and salt. Taste. You'll almost certainly realize you need to add MORE of each ingredient!
Now continue to add in more butter, more cream, more garlic and more salt until you find your personal preference.
Enjoy!

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About the Author

Craig Fear is the creator of Fearless Eating and the author of three books, The 30-Day Heartburn Solution, Fearless Broths and Soups and The Thai Soup Secret. After years helping clients with digestive issues, Craig decided to pursue writing full-time. He intends to write many more books on broths and soups from around the world! Click here to learn more about Craig.