Get a great deal on potatoes? Have extras that you won’t use up before they sprout? Freezing potatoes is a great way to maximize your savings.
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Potatoes are ultimate comfort food. So good that you never want to run out. And what about when there’s a killer sale? You want to stock your kitchen and take advantage of a good deal, right?
So you need to learn how you can stash potatoes away for another time.
But, here’s the million dollar question:
Can you freeze potatoes?
You can freeze potatoes. Surely, you’ve purchased frozen potatoes at the grocery store. You know you can freeze potatoes.
However, the potatoes you buy in the freezer section have been treated in a special way that’s not usually available to us home cooks.
You can freeze potatoes at home, but there are some strategies to ensure success. I’ve tried many methods, some that the internet swore would work, and I came up with differing results from those folks. Your mileage may vary.
In my experience, potatoes can go funny in the freezer. I’ve seen all kinds of recipes circling on Pinterest that show folks just chopping potatoes to toss in the freezer. This is a bad move. Trust me. Raw potatoes will get gross. Even cooked potatoes can be fickle beasts.
I’ve tested soups and stews with potatoes in the freezer, and the spuds generally develop a funny texture. The texture change just isn’t worth it for me.
Furthermore, russets aren’t always friendly to freezer cooking. As a general rule, yukon gold and red potatoes freeze the best, but there are ways to make russets work as well.
The trick to freezing potatoes
Freeze cooked potatoes that have been mixed with a good portion of fat, like butter, cream, or olive oil. This is typically done in mashed potatoes or stuffed potatoes.
These methods will ensure potatoes that have great texture before and after freezer storage.
You can freeze mashed potatoes.
Potatoes mixed with a hearty portion of fat, like cream, sour cream, cheese, or cream cheese, freeze very well. There’s something about the combination of cooked potato with these creamy elements that helps them retain a nice texture after thawing.
Try these recipes:
- Easy Alfredo Mashed Potatoes Recipe
- Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes
- The Mashed Potato Casserole My Kids Go Nuts For
- Shepherd’s Pie with Cheddar Mash ($1.23/serving)
How to freeze mashed potatoes: Prepare the recipe according to the directions. Spoon the mashed potatoes into freezer-safe containers. Chill the potatoes completely before storing in the freezer.
How to serve the mashed potatoes: Thaw the potatoes completely in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or in the oven. Stir to recombine and fluff the potatoes before serving.
You can freeze stuffed potatoes.
Again, with the fat. It seems that this same rule applies to stuffed potatoes. While it does require a bit of extra work before tossing your potatoes in the freezer, the advantage is that your potatoes are all ready to serve once frozen.
Keep a batch of stuffed potatoes in the freezer for quick lunches, snacks, and dinner time sides.
Try my favorite: Ultimate Cheesy Stuffed Potatoes Recipe—they’re only 51 cents/serving!
To freeze stuffed potatoes: Prepare your stuffed potatoes. Chill completely. Wrap in foil or plastic wrap. Place the potatoes in a ziptop freezer bag and freeze.
To reheat frozen stuffed potatoes: Thawed or frozen, the potatoes can be reheated in the microwave, toaster oven, or regular oven.
Other ideas
One source recommends blanching potatoes. That has always seemed like too much work to me. If I’m going to do that work, I’d rather have a freezer meal all ready to go.
How long can potatoes be frozen?
Frozen food is good indefinitely below zero, however time can ravage its tastes and texture. The USDA freezer storage chart recommends 3-4 months for TV dinners and casseroles, in essence what we’re talking about when prepping stuffed or mashed potatoes for the freezer.
So if you see a sale on potatoes, prep these recipes and stock up your freezer for some great savings, but be sure to use it up in the next few months.
Kitchen equipment
These recipes really couldn’t be easier, but having the right kitchen tools can make your time in the kitchen more enjoyable. Over time, I’ve honed my collection so that they are perfect for my needs.
Here are the tools that I use for making mashed or stuffed potatoes for the freezer:
- vegetable brush
- potato masher
- Pyrex baking dishes with lids
- sheet pan
- Ziplock gallon freezer bags
- Rubber spatula
- stainless steel mixing bowls
How ’bout you? Have you had good success with freezing potatoes? What’s been your experience? Share in the comments what’s worked well for you.
This post was originally published on December 4, 2010. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Ray Powell
I use mashed russets for freezing. I do let them dry out a bit by returning them to the element. I only add butter and pepper (no milk, garlic or cayenne) but they still turn out rather runny upon thawing, but I eat them anyway!
I was hoping to bake a number of potatoes tonight and freeze some for later, but the general opinion seems to be – don’t! So I’ll bake two, one for tonight and one for tomorrow, and the others, well, they’ll just end up being victims of the masher 🙂
Jessica Fisher
Baking is just fine, but I’d recommend stuffing the filling.
Janis
I’m making meals-on-wheels delivery meals from the excess produce we get at our local very small town food bank, so I have a lot of potatoes that need to be used ASAP. The meals go into a freezer. It looks like mashed or twice baked potatoes are the safest bet so the meals are palatable when the recipients re-warm them. Any other suggestions for mixed content meals for freezing? The Shepherd’s Pie on this page looks good. I have potatoes and a lot of butternut squash and a small amount of cabbage, so there will be soups, bread, side dishes, etc. but people get soup all the time. A “real” meal would be a welcome change.
Jessica Fisher
I’ve got LOTS of freezer-friendly meals here on the site. I would recommend doing a search for the ingredient you want to use and see what pops up.
Rachel
Perfect timing. I have a 10 pound bag I was trying to figure out how to use before I had to toss them!! Project for today.
Patti
We buy baker potatoes in bulk on sale. Soak in water and scrub thoroughly with a vegetable brush. Cut potatoes in 1/2 and then scoop out the centers until about 3/4” thick. Lay face down to dry place pieces in water bowl for later. Fry in 350*oil until brown potato will not be completely done. Drain, place in vacuum seal bags and place wax paper between layers. They freeze nicely for later use. Can freeze for up to 6 months. Cook your scooped out parts for the freezer mashed potato recipe. When ready thaw potatoes in refrigerator and place in a 350*oven for 15-20 minutes until done. Take out, put Capps Rub in potato and 1TBSP of real bacon bits, 1TBSP of chopped green onions, & enough grated cheese to top off potato. Place back into oven until cheese is thoroughly melted. Top with ranch dressing or serve on side. Enjoy! We have been making these since before TGI Friday’s did potato skins and like them better. You don’t sacrifice the texture on these!
Cheryl
You wash the potatoes and then scoop them out? How do you manage to scoop a raw potato?
michael
frozen potatoes are not worth the effort. The texture is always terrible. The Cream Cheese trick does not fool my mouth. Yuck! Never again on frozen potatoes.
Jessica Fisher
Ah, sorry you were disappointed, Michael. The texture is definitely changeable.
Kevin D
Problem is air, vacuum bags will somewhat crush the product while sealing if potato batch is super soft. Par boil as a whole spud.
Cut and half. Scoop for TGIF apps. or Make the mash version.
Using parchment or wax. i prefer the P. vacuum with the paper as a barrier, so pump won’t evac the mash from bag.
Refrigerate to cold then Freeze.
Kevin D.
p.s. The idea is to preserve spuds for long storage, later reheat. The fat could just be a butter or bacon- holds up well. Salt and pepper/,spices before the freeze.
To serve: slow defrost in Refrigerator.
And then prep for a re-bake. Any Potato dish, prep oven and add your toppings as such; Cream/ Cheese/ onion/garlic/any meat bits/Sautéed Mushrooms.
Bon Appetite
Cole
I accidentally left potatoes in the vehicle in Alberta at -24C overnight. They froze solid. I scrubbed them clean, wrapped them in tin foil and baked on 350 F for about an hour. They were a bit dry because I didn’t put butter in, just the potato. My homemade garlic butter and some sour cream made them taste pretty good. The long yellow banana potato had a texture like freah. The red potato had a different texture, not bad, but noticable.
Jessica Fisher
Good to know. Did you cook them right away?
Karen
On the freezer mashed potatoes can you put the potatoes directly onto the foil to freeze?
Jessica Fisher
Sorry for the delay in replying. I wouldn’t recommend putting them on foil. Foil tends to disintegrate it spots. I prefer a plastic or glass dish with a lid.
Sharon Hicks
I was my potatoes and cut and bag them meal size as there is only tow of us and then I vacuum seal them they last a long time in the freezer now and a gain I get a pack that turns grey but as soon as I see them start turning I cook them up .