FOOD NEWS
10 Instant Mashed Potato Brands, Ranked Worst To Best
BY JAIMIE MACKEY
10. Great Value
Walmart's Great Value Instant Mashed Potatoes are affordable, easy to find, and available in several varieties, but incredibly bland compared to other brands.
The label calls for ⅛ teaspoon of salt for every ⅔ cup of flakes. When prepared, the potatoes were dry, thick, lumpy, with a doughy mouthfeel, and no noteworthy potato flavor.
9. Amazon Fresh
Amazon Fresh offers great value but also comes with plenty of cons. They come in just one variety and one huge package that eats up space and is also a bit unwieldy.
Following the label's instructions results in a wet, grainy, and relatively flavorless product. Its saving grace is that, compared to Great Value, it has a potato flavor.
8. 365
The 365 by Whole Foods instant mashed potatoes have dehydrated potatoes as their only ingredient, so they make an excellent blank canvas to spruce up your instant potatoes.
Use them to thicken a soup or as a mashed potato ingredient in other recipes. Despite their true potato taste and nice texture, the label instructions lead to a flavorless product.
7. Signature Select
Signature Select has five different mashed potato flavors, but none of them either disappoint or wow. They may taste better topped with gravy or something saucy.
The potatoes appear dry and almost chewy as soon as the ingredients are mixed per instructions, but they surprisingly have a savory flavor and almost chicken-like taste.
6. Kroger
Kroger Instant Mashed Potatoes has a mysterious "natural flavor" among its ingredients and also contains milk, which may be why its flavor slightly edges other brands.
The texture still leaves a lot to be desired and feels a bit goopy and glue-like with a grainy mouthfeel. The prepared potatoes have a nice salt level, though.