Do you eat white potatoes often?

[sweetnlow28]

I am wondering how many people regularly eat white potatoes as part of their diet? I have been doing well to avoid anything white and refined but I am not sure if potatoes fall into this category. In the beginning I avoided white potatoes and only ate sweet potatoes. Lately I have been eating regular potatoes again in the form of homemade baked fries and boiled potatoes with skin. I usually eat about 200g as a serving. We are going to be on a very limited budget soon and potatoes are fairly inexpensive so I plan to eat them at least every other day. Does anyone see a problem with eating them that often?

P.S.
I just posted my recipe for baked french fries as well. They are great with ketchup

Baked French Fries

[DeJNow]

REAL potatoes aren't bad for you as long as you don't overdo it. Usually it's how they are prepared and the toppings put on them that make them unhealthy. I generally only eat whole wheat carbs and not much of a potatoe eater but a baked potato without butter has a lot of health benefits, especially if you eat the skin.

[gailr42]

In my opinion, it is all about portion control and what you put on the potato. I cook a small potato (3 - 4 oz)and dress it with non-fat plain yogurt or low fat sour cream. I bought a pot of growing chives and use a few cut up chives on top. I have also used the "50% less fat" Hormels real bacon bits. You really need very little of this to get the flavor. I think the bacon bits are a bit high priced, but they are good.

I like potatoes and I like yogurt, so using yogurt for the topping is not a sacrifice! LOL!!

[sweetnlow28]

The yogurt sounds good. I usually only use 1 tsp of RSF Becel which is 12.5 calories, a little sprinkle of salt and lots of black pepper. I will have to try the plain yogurt sometime too

Thanks for the replies

[nelie]

I don't care for potatoes much but a while ago I got some potatoes on sale and was using half of one as a snack. I'd microwave it and then sprinkle it with garlic powder and black pepper and it wasn't bad. I'll also sometimes roast potatoes in the oven but potatoes certainly aren't my favorite carb so I don't eat them often.

[caryesings]

Yes. I am a person who tries to get as much potassium in my diet as I can and potatoes are a good source.

[artic123]

Once a year.

[stella1609]

I LOVE baked potatoes. A baked potato is one of my favorite things to order when I go out for an unplanned lunch and don't have a lot of extra calories.

[8675309]

I love potatoes.

I don't quite get why people consider them unhealthy, I think it must be more about the preparation than the actual potato because a medium potato (173g) has 160 calories, 4g fiber and 4g protein which is comparable to brown rice at the same weight (cooked) coming to 190 calories, 3g fiber, 4g protein. Also in comparison a sweet potato has SLIGHTLY less calories, slightly less protein and about 2 grams more fiber.

(nutrition information by caloriecount.about.com).

[zibsca]

I recently spent five months in mid Wales and learned to love the spud. Unless we were doing whole baked potatoes, first we'd cut them up and soak them for a few minutes in water to remove excess starch. It doesn't remove all the starch, mind you, and it does remove some potassium, in case you are using them as your main source of potassium. They are quite versatile and can be a nice addition to meals. That being said, I do not prepare them more than once a week since there are so many other seasonal veggies available here at the same cost to experiment with.

[lora m]

Yes, I eat potatoes very regularly, and am having them tonight on a turkey shepherd's pie. If anything I'm likely to have them more often since I'm trying to get more potassium in my husband's diet, although I don't want to have them baked every single time. I'm wondering if steaming will leach out less potassium than boiling but I'm not sure. Whatever way I cook them, I have always left the skin on ever since I was in a houseshare many years ago with a wholefood devotee.

[Cherry in STL]

White potatoes are nutrient-dense, they contain vitamins B6, C, potassium, iron and copper and both soluable and insoluable fiber as well as phytochemicals that help to eliminate free radicals in the body. A good sized, 10 oz baked potato, plain is about 270 calories. You can make a hearty meal with around 400 calories by adding some low fat chili and a dollop of light sour cream. Potatoes are only made unhealthy when eaten in excessive portions or prepared with lots of fat.

[Taurie]

It depends what kind of white potato. Most potatoes (e.g. russet potato) cause spikes in insulin which makes it hard to lose weight. But new potatoes are okay.

You should try home baking sweet potato fries with some herbs and spices. They are amazingly tasty.

[JerseyGyrl]

Haven't eaten white potatoes in 6+ years now

[yoyoma]

Potatoes do have some good nutrients but I generally avoid them as I don't feel they have a lot of flavor or nutrients for the calories they pack. Also, I lose better when I avoid starchy foods.