fingerling potatoesFingerlings Re-Popularize the Potato

By Dan Avakian


Well, here we are again—the beginning of a New Year with all kinds of promises made to ourselves on how we are going to make changes in our lives.The resolution to lose weight is always one that is well intended, especially after all of the holiday goodies that we munched down during the past few months.

“I’m going to eat healthier, I swear to it,” may be an echo of our own thoughts or statements. Well, that’s fine, but sticking to it can be hard.Trend diets usually make a fortune at the beginning of each New Year. We’ve had the Grapefruit Diet, the Rotation Diet and then the Atkins Diet, in which many fresh produce items received a bad rap. Root vegetables in particular were demonized for their sugar content. The most popular vegetable in the United States, the potato, was perceived as an evil food item that was going to load you up with carbohydrates and keep all that weight on. This caused great economic challenges to potato growers and shippers nationwide. We should all know by now that there is no magic pill, no instant fix, to losing weight. It is all about regular cardiovascular exercise and controlling how much of any food we consume.

Now with the Atkins Diet falling out of favor and newer varieties of potatoes hitting the market in both food-service and retail businesses, the spud king is climbing back to the throne as a new creation. Fingerling potatoes are a hot item, chefs are experimenting with them and many eateries have made them a regular item on the menu as either a side with meat or a feature item roasted with garlic and herbs or Parmesan cheese or with other vegetables such as green beans or Brussels sprouts.

One local grower has caught on to the fingerling craze and has succeeded in producing 17 new varieties of fingerling potatoes. G Ratto Farms in Stockton grows new fingerling varieties for locally owned Thumbs Up Produce Inc. Not only does Thumbs Up grow these special varieties, the company has also transitioned several acres of farmland to organic, and these spuds are smack dab in the middle. Common varieties like the Russian banana potato or the Red Thumb have been favorite fingerling varieties for the past few years, but now there’s the Blossom, which is similar in appearance to a red yam. It is pink-red on the inside, even after it’s cooked. Then there’s the Ozette variety that was brought from Peru by Spanish explorers in the late 1700s and traded with the Ozette Indian tribe in Washington State.The eyes on this spud are so deep that when it is cut in half, it looks almost like a leaf. The thin skin is creamy yellow, and the flesh is cream colored. The ruby Crescent is a rose-to-pink-skinned spud with a pale yellow flesh on the inside.Then there’s my favorite: The Hot Dog potato, long and curved like a Pampered Pup special, it is the exact size and color of a hot dog.This spud’s interior is gorgeous. All of the varieties mentioned here are great baked, boiled or roasted.

Many of these potatoes were harvested for seed late last year, but a decent amount made it out to the fresh market with more to come this spring. Because they are so new to the market, you may have to ask your produce manager to carry them. Chefs who are interested can find these fabulous fingerlings distributed in Oakland by the Leo Cotella Produce Company and in San Francisco by VegiWorks Inc. Retail stores handling these varieties are Oakland’s Village Market at Broadway Terrace, Paul’s Produce on Central Avenue, Oak Street right here in town and Alameda Natural Grocery on Park Street.

When selecting potatoes in the store, look for firm, full-colored spuds. Avoid flabby, green or sprouting potatoes. Most fingerling varieties contain 310 milligrams of potassium and 25 percent vitamin C, but only 4 percent total carbohydrates. They range in size from 2 to 10 inches in length and 1 1/2 inches in diameter— perfect sizing for portion control. So if you are counting your carb intake and you love spuds, the deal is done.A few fingerlings on your plate is a win-win.