What Is Potato water and How Can I Use It?
If potato water has turned up in a recipe or caught your eye at the store, here's what you need to use it with confidence and how to choose it, cook it, store it, what to substitute, and 10 recipes to try it in.
Key Points
- Potato water is the starchy liquid from boiling potatoes, saved instead of poured out.
- Its dissolved starch feeds yeast and gives bread a softer crumb and longer shelf life.
- It is a traditional base for wild sourdough starters, giving the yeast plenty to eat.
- Stir it into soups and gravies to add body without flour or cornstarch.
- Refrigerate covered and use within a day or two, since it sours quickly.
What is potato water?
Potato water is the starchy liquid left after boiling potatoes. Instead of pouring it down the drain, cooks save it for baking and thickening, where the dissolved starch and potato flavor do real work.
It is a humble byproduct with a long history in home kitchens, especially bread baking.
Using Potato Water in Bread
This is its classic home. The dissolved starch feeds yeast and gives bread a softer, moister crumb and a longer shelf life before it goes stale. Recipes like Sourdough Potato-Rye Bread and Irish Potato Bread call for it directly in place of some or all of the water.
It is also a traditional base for wild sourdough starters. The starch gives the yeast plenty to eat, which is why Sourdough Starter with Potato Water and Old-Time Potato Sourdough Starter use it to get a culture going.
Thickening and Other Uses
The same starch that helps bread also thickens. Stir leftover potato water into soups, stews, and gravies to give them a little body without flour or cornstarch.
It adds a mild potato taste along the way, so it suits savory pots more than delicate ones.
Use it unsalted, or account for the salt if you boiled the potatoes in well-seasoned water, since that seasoning carries straight into whatever you add it to.
Storing
Let it cool, then keep potato water covered in the fridge and use it within a day or two. It is starchy and unpreserved, so it sours quickly.
If it smells off or looks cloudy beyond its normal slight murkiness, pour it out. For longer storage, freeze it in a jar with headroom and thaw when you next bake.
Quick facts
- In Chinese
- 土豆的水
- British (UK) term
- Potato water
- en français
- l'eau de pomme de terre
- en español
- agua de patata
Recipes using potato water
There are 10 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Sourdough Starter #12
Wild yeast sourdough starter made from just potato water and unbleached flour. No commercial yeast needed. A campfire-friendly method that captures natural yeast from the air.
Sourdough Potato-Rye Bread
Two-day sourdough potato rye bread with molasses, cornmeal, mace, and poppy seeds. A dense, earthy loaf with an overnight starter and old-world European baking technique.
Sourdough Potato-Rye Bread
Two-day sourdough potato rye bread with molasses, cornmeal, mace, and poppy seeds. A dense, earthy loaf with an overnight starter and old-world European baking technique.
Old-Time Potato Sourdough Starter
Old-time potato sourdough starter made with just four ingredients: unbleached flour, potato water, sugar, and salt. No commercial yeast needed for this traditional wild-fermented starter.
Demi's Sourdough Starter
Old-fashioned potato sourdough starter built on potato water, flour, sugar, and a pinch of yeast. The starches feed wild and added yeasts together for a tangy, vigorous base for breads, pancakes, and biscuits.
Madeleine's Neighborly Bread
Whole wheat potato bread for the bread machine with mashed potatoes, potato water, applesauce, and honey. Extra-soft crumb from the potato starch with a subtle sweetness.
Wholesome Potato Bread
Wholesome potato bread builds a hearty 100% whole wheat loaf with mashed red potatoes, starchy potato water, dried chives, and sesame seeds. A bread machine recipe with savory backbone and a tender, never-dense crumb.
Irish Freckle Bread
Irish freckle bread is a soft potato yeast bread studded with raisins. Made with mashed potatoes and potato water for an incredibly tender, moist crumb.
Irish Potato Bread
Irish potato bread made easy in the bread machine. Mashed potato and potato water give this soft, moist loaf a tender crumb that stays fresh for days. A simple, comforting everyday bread.
Sourdough Starter with Potato Water
Mix flour, salt, sugar, and starchy potato water in a crock, then let wild yeasts work their magic over several days for a rustic sourdough starter with earthy depth.
