Mary Berry claims correct mashed potatoes recipe needs 9p surprising ingredient

, one of the UK’s favourite bakers and food writers, has a secret ingredient for her mashed potatoes that Brits seem to adore.

Mashed potatoes are the ultimate comfort food – whether they’re creamy, chunky, or even cheesy.

The beauty of mashed potatoes is their simplicity – all you need are potatoes, milk or cream, butter, and a bit of salt and pepper.

But Mary Berry likes to add a little twist to her recipe by including an extra ingredient – one that you probably already have in your kitchen cupboard.

She claimed that mash is “wonderful if made correctly” using her method. Mary uses floury potatoes and urges us to never under- them.

She adds wholegrain mustard to her mash for a spicy, warming kick, and it seems people can’t get enough of it. Her recipe has a five-star rating, reports .

. This works out as 9p per use in this recipe as you only need two tablespoons.

Mary Berry’s mashed potatoes

Ingredients

1.5kg potatoes, peeled
50g butter
100ml milk
salt and pepper
Two tablespoons wholegrain mustard

Method

To make the best mash, use floury potatoes like Desiree, King Edward, or Maris Piper.

First, chop the potatoes into small, even cubes and put them in a pan of cold salted water.

Then, heat the pan until it boils and cook until the potatoes are “really tender”. How long this takes depends on how big you cut your potatoes.

Mary says it’s key to not undercook your potatoes, so keep a close eye on them.

After that, drain the water and put the potato cubes back in the pan. Add butter and milk and mash everything together with a potato masher.

Once everything is mixed together, add some salt and pepper. Then, mix in the wholegrain mustard and voila, you’ve made the perfect mash.

This recipe serves four to six people and takes less than 30 minutes to prepare and between 10 to 30 minutes to cook. It’s a great side dish for a family meal during the week.