Types: What is a creamer potato?

Subject: What is a creamer potato?
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: Robin Cowdrey (rcowdrey at REMOVEtelusplanet.net)
Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2001 05:49:41 GMT
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These things have been in our stores for several years now. In my quest to find out what makes a potato a creamer, all I've found out so far is that it's small:
http://active.cfia-acia.agr.ca/veg_e/potatoes/potatoes_1.asp?s=y [archive.org]

Is that all that makes a potato a creamer? Seems to me there has to be more to it than that. Will anybody help?
From: Siobhan Perricone (morgannalefey at starband.net)
Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2001 12:07:04 GMT
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It should be a waxy variety of potato, rather than a mealy (not a denigrating term, it's a valid descriptor for potatoes) variety. Waxy potatoes hold together more after they're cooked, mealy ones tend to fall apart. Yukon golds are waxy, Russets are mealy. Any potato you'd use in a soup and expect to still be "solid" once it's done cooking is waxy, any potato you'd expect to fall apart and thicken the soup is mealy. :)

Hope that helps.
From: cryambers at aol.com (Pat)
Date: 22 Apr 2001 12:56:54 GMT
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Cowdrey wrote:
>These things have been in our stores for several years now. In my quest to
>find out what makes a potato a creamer, all I've found out so far is that
>it's small:

I'm glad someone else has this question!:) When I did a web search, I found more about red creamer potatoes than white, but I've only ever seen white ones labeled as creamer potatoes in the store.

My impressionistic conclusion is that they are related to fingerlings in some way. The ones I've been seeing are just slightly larger and more rounded than fingerlings. Looking in the Food Lover's Companion, I see that fingerlings are a variety of long white potatoes, which can be baked, boiled or fried.

I love fingerling potatoes, but the cost is somewhat prohibitive. I've been buying creamer potatoes as a substitute. The flavor is great.

I'd be interested in anything authoritative anybody else knows.
From: Jill McQuown
Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2001 07:58:36 -0500
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Don't know if this helps at all, but where my parents live (in SC) they call small new potatoes "creamers". They prepare a dish with boiled potates and green beans in a basic white sauce and that's creamers. (shrug) I just call that new potatoes with beans in white sauce.
From: lurline4 at earthlink.net
Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2001 22:11:15 GMT
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It is a tiny little white rose potato that is cooked in salted water and added to a cream sauce with peas and pearl onions.
That is the way it is done in our area. Your area may differ.
From: Robin Cowdrey (rcowdrey at REMOVEtelusplanet.net)
Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2001 07:10:09 GMT
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lurline4 wrote:
> It is a tiny little white rose potato that is cooked in salted water and added
> to a cream sauce with peas and pearl onions.
> That is the way it is done in our area.
> Your area may differ.

White rose potato? What is it? I suspect it's a 'new' potato. No problem with cream sauce, peas and pearl onions, but what's being sold around here as a creamer potato looks and tastes like an 'old' but small one.
Subject: About Creamer potatoes
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: nancree at aol.com (Nancree)
Date: 22 Apr 2001 21:40:20 GMT
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In Google, under "Creamer Potatoes" there are many recipes with creamer potatles. They then refer to them as "very small red potatoes".

Also, the Potatoe Board gave a sizing chart:
Size Description Variety Size Range Pack Size (lbs.)

Large Potatoes
(Canada #1) Large Round White 3 to 4 1/2" 50
Large Yellow 3 to 4 1/2" 50
Large Red 3 to 4 1/2" 50
10 ounce minimum 10 ounce 50

Chef Potatoes
(Canada #1) Chef Round White 2 3/4 to 4 1/2" 50
Chef Yellow 2 3/4 to 4 1/2" 50
Chef Red 2 3/4 to 4 1/2" 50

Small Potatoes
(Canada #1) Small Round White 1 1/2 to 2 1/4" 50
Small Yellow 1 1/2 to 2 1/4" 50
Small Red 1 1/2 to 2 1/4" 50

Creamer Potatoes
(Canada #1) Creamer Round White 3/4 to 1 5/8" 50
Creamer Yellow 3/4 to 1 5/8" 50
Creamer Red 3/4 to 1 5/8" 50

Usage:
Creamer potatoes are a waxy variety, of uniform shape and size, and have light reddish to red skin, with creamy white flesh. Small and round to oval in shape, red creamer potatoes are often about the size of a chicken egg. skin. The creamy flesh offers a delicious fresh almost nutty taste.
From: cryambers at aol.com (Pat)
Date: 23 Apr 2001 12:09:42 GMT
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Nancree wrote:
>In Google, under "Creamer Potatoes" there are many recipes with creamer
>potatoes. They then refer to them as "very small red potatoes".

I found this when I searched too. I thought it was odd, as the only potatoes I've actually seen labeled as creamer potatoes in the store are white (or maybe they could be called yellow). I see really small red potatoes sometimes, but I seem to recall they're labeled as new potatoes, not creamers.
From: malan6 at qwest.net (Alan)
Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2001 12:08:36 -0500
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In my life "new potatoes" means those small reddish ones, which are creamers, too.

It just depends on where you're from and what they call them there.