Green potatoes

[BilboWaggins]

OK, this is difficult . . . advice please. This afternoon a neighbour proudly gave me a bag of home grown new potatoes as a thank you for a favour I had done him.

Upon cleaning them for supper, out of 26 pots, 18 are thoroughly green, 2 are suspect and 6 made it into a saucepan.

He's a lovely chap, new to veg growing, how the heck do I tell him?

[rustylady]

Oh lord, this is a difficult one. I would be tempted to say nothing except thankyou, but there is always the risk that if you don't say anything he may be eating green potatoes himself.

[teakdesk]

He's a lovely chap,...

Are you sure?????


If it were me I'd tell him they were lovely and you really enjoyed them, then just say you had to peel a bit off green of a couple but then they were lovely.

If he asks why you peeled the green off you can tell him, otherwise just let it ride.



BTW you do know you can just peel the green bits off - although not something you'd want to do with new potatoes if you could avoid it? And eating the green just gives you a bit of belly ache.

[Flummery]

It's better not to peel the green off - the toxin is in all of the potato once the green is showing. They taste rather bitter if you eat them. You won't die of it but don't eat any that have had the slightest greeny look if you are pregnant.
(Which lets me out!)

[susiewoosie]

It's better not to peel the green off - the toxin is in all of the potato once the green is showing. They taste rather bitter if you eat them. You won't die of it but don't eat any that have had the slightest greeny look if you are pregnant.
(Which lets me out!)

Wow Flum I didn't know that the toxin is all through the potato. I've always just cut the green off. Learn something new everyday.

[teakdesk]

Wow Flum I didn't know that the toxin is all through the potato. I've always just cut the green off. Learn something new everyday.

The Food Standard Agency says you can just cut the green bits off and eat the rest - it does qualify that saying if they still taste bitter after removing the green then perhaps you should bin them.

My Mum always just cut the green off and I've always done the same - unless the potato is so green there would only be a little "good" potato left.

[SarzWix]

Flum's right though. Although the most concentrated toxin is in the green bit, once it's started going green it is present in the whole tuber to a certain extent. I don't use any of a tuber that's started going green, it goes in the bin.

Bilbo, I'd find some straightforward info about green potatoes, print it off, and give him the print out after you've mentioned it. Say something about earthing up so he knows how to avoid it. Tis a tough one...