The Trusty Tactic To Keep Reheated Mashed Potatoes Moist

Few things are more tempting than a steaming, creamy bowl of mashed potatoes. When covered with a thick, savory gravy there's no better accompaniment to roast meats. The only real challenge to making a big, buttery batch of mashed potatoes is how you'll reheat the leftovers without drying it out to a starchy block? There are several options for doing this very thing, as we've already described. Whichever reheating strategy you choose, keep this cardinal rule in mind: do it slowly over low heat. Do that, and your mashed potatoes will never dry out.

Starch is a tricky thing. Overworking the potatoes will gelatinize the starch and make them gluey (and here's how to avoid that). The same thing will happen if you reheat potatoes over high heat, with the added downside that it will quickly eliminate the moisture that keeps the dish creamy. Now that we have the tactic of temperature, what are the strategies for reheating?

Extended time in the refrigerator will also tend to dry out your mashed potatoes, so don't be shy about stirring a touch of cream or butter into the leftovers before reheating. If you've stored the potatoes in a heat-proof bowl, you can reheat them in the double boiler method by placing the bowl over a pot of simmering water. (You can functionally do the same thing in an instant pot by putting a little water in the pot, placing the bowl of potatoes on a trivet, and using the "steam" setting.)

Reheating in the stove or microwave also works well as long as you're careful about the temperature. Keep the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit or below, and the microwave power at 50% for intermittent bursts with thorough stirring in between. In any case, keep the potatoes covered. The oven method will require more time, naturally — bring the potatoes up to room temperature before reheating, top with butter and cream (without incorporating) before covering them, allowing at least 15 minutes in the oven. No matter what you decide, just remember: low and slow is the way to go.