Well, these ingredients might not be really secret.
However, these are the ingredients I’ve decided make perfect mashed potatoes (homemade or *gasp* instant).
- salt
- milk
- butter
- parsley flakes
- rosemary
If this seems like a no-brainer to you, I’m sorry. Until recently I really though you couldn’t make incredibly tasty potatoes without adding sour cream or cheese. The right amount of salt, butter, and rosemary combined with the other things on this list (normal mashed potato ingredients) makes perfect mashed potatoes alone or with gravy.
Do you have any secret potato ingredients?
This blog post has me wanting to sing “parsley, sage, rosemary, & thyme…”
haha!
Are you going to Scarborough fair??
My Hungarian mother would be upset if I changed her recipe lol so it’s just potatoes, milk, butter, salt….don’t tell her but I sometimes add roasted garlic, it is so yummy
oh, roasted garlic sounds good!!
Hungarian mother?? My husband is Romanian! 
My lips are sealed.
Really? My goodness, small world I was born in Romania
And roasted garlic is soooo good with mashed potatoes. Just cut a whole head of garlic in half, add some salt and olive oil, wrap well in foil and bake until the potatoes are ready. Squeeze out the cloves into the potatoes and that’s it
Oh, thanks for the tips on the garlic!
My Romanian isn’t too good yet, but I’m learning. 
My husband has perfect English and Romanian.
Whoa, what a small world it is! That is so awesome! Do you speak Romanian? When did you come to the US?
We are having a second wedding (well, just a reception) in Romania next year!
Wow! So cool
Well I was born in Romania in 1974 to Hungarian parents, not sure if you’re aware of how Romania has a lot of Hungarians? Anyway, my family moved to Canada in 1985. We live in Toronto, but my mother moved back to Europe over 12 years ago. My grandmother and other family is in Romania and throughout Europe from Hungary to Germany to Italy. Have you been to Romania? It is a beautiful place and that will be so much fun, a second wedding 
I used to speak Romanian we were taught in school, but just as my Hungarian is very rusty my Romanian is completely gone 
Eva
What an interesting story!
Yes, I know that there are a lot of Hungarians in Romania.
No, I have not been to Romania yet, so next summer will be a first for me. Yea!
My husband’s brother lives in the US, and his parents visited for our wedding last May.
Thank you
So is yours, it is a small world 
You will love Romania, people are super nice and the scenery is so pretty. Congrats on your marriage by the way 
I haven’t done the marriage thing yet, maybe one day soon 
Eva
I can’t believe that I’ve never tried parsley and rosemary in my mashed potatoes! That’s definitely on my to-do list now. About how much do you put in?
mmm… that is a tough question. In enough potatoes for 2-4 people, maybe a 1/2 teaspoon of each? Basically, a few heavy shakes from my spice containers. LOL
I hope that helps!
It does, thank you!
I’ve never had rosemary before in mashed potatoes, have to try! I like finely cut chives or a little garlic would be good too.
For sure!
I am so glad I’m not the only person on this planet who puts rosemary in mashed potatoes. It’s hardly a part of the standard recipe, but it’s ridiculously delicious. I’m also rather fond of using a dash of curry powder on occasion (sans rosemary of course). It’s a different character (you know, curry-ish…), but extremely tasty.
I would never have thought to use curry in mashed potatoes! So not too much? That’s interesting!
Do you eat the mashed potatoes with curry alone or with something in particular?
Usually I use curry powder and a little garlic and cumin. Just enough to make it tasty, really.
That does sound tasty!
Garlic and using Yukon gold potatoes
Yum
These sound like the perfect potatoes!
Sometimes, I simmer my potatoes in the milk or in some good broth/stock–that makes them extra flavorful. (If you simmer in milk, just don’t let it boil or it will curdle!)
And if you like sour cream in your potatoes but want to make them a little healthier, fat-free Greek yogurt will give you the pretty much the same tangy creaminess. We like Greek yogurt + chives.
I’m going to second the roasted garlic suggestion, too. Yum!
Great ideas!
Yes, I am amazed at how much Greek yogurt is similar to sour cream! Yum… Greek yogurt and chives sound really yummy.