Don't Let Mashed Potatoes Get Cold – Use This Perfect Method To Keep Them Warm And Ready

The act of cooking a full holiday feast can make you feel like a circus performer, trying to keep all your plates in the air, as task after task piles up. There's the turkey to worry about, and the stuffing, the green beans, the gravy, and, of course, everyone's favorite: the mashed potatoes. The trouble is, you want to get all of these dishes to the table nice and warm, but trying to coordinate their cooking to be done all at the same time creates a nearly impossible traffic jam in the kitchen. That's where a slow cooker can be your best friend.

More than many of the other holiday dishes, it is crucial to serve mashed potatoes hot. When allowed to cool down, even the creamiest, fluffiest mash can turn to cement — and no one wants a plate of stodgy mashed potatoes. But by transferring your mashed potatoes to a slow cooker on the "warm" setting after they are finished, you not only ensure that they reach your guests' plates at the perfect temperature and consistency, but you also open the door to preparing them well in advance.

The greatest beauty of the slow cooker method is that it lets you prep the potatoes while you have a bit of free time earlier in the day — once the turkey is in the oven, for example. During a relative lull in the kitchen, you can whip up Grandma's creamy garlic mashed red potatoes recipe and then transfer them straight to the crock pot, where they will stay warm until dinnertime without drying out, thanks to the lid and low heat. You can even mash the potatoes straight in the slow cooker to make cleanup easier.

If you have other plans for your slow cooker on the day of the feast, however, you needn't worry. It is a perfect method for keeping them table-ready, but there are plenty of other techniques that you can use. For shorter periods of time, all it takes is a damp towel to keep mashed potatoes warm. Covering the potatoes with a moistened towel will trap the steam and warmth in the container with the mash, keeping them from cooling or drying out. This is doubly effective if they are stored in a pre-warmed vessel made from a material that will hold heat, such as a ceramic or glass serving dish.

Another technique you can use is to place your potatoes in a covered bowl over a water bath on the stove, bain-marie-style. The gentle indirect heat of the water will keep them nice and warm. So long as the top is covered with a lid or a piece of cling wrap, they won't dry out either.

The simplest method is just to toss the serving dish into a warm oven. This can be an effective technique, but the dry heat of the oven can quickly pull out moisture and throw that perfectly balanced mash texture out the window. If you are relying on the oven, you may want to increase the moisture level in your mashed potatoes — just add a bit of extra cream, butter, sour cream, or whatever you prefer in your potatoes. This way, any moisture lost just brings them right back where you want them.