The Almighty Potato: A History and Recipes (2024)

The potato isn't native to Ireland—it originated from the Andes mountain region in South America, specifically from the modern-day countries of Peru and Bolivia, where about 3,000 different varieties of the potato can still be found. After enjoying so many types of potatoes for thousands of years, the people of the region have developed a nearly endless collection of recipes that showcase the tuber's versatility.

Recipe: Peruvian Steak and Potato Stir-Fry

While the peoples of South America had been cultivating and enjoying potatoes for several thousand years, it wasn't until the Spanish arrived in the 16th century that the rest of the world was exposed to this delicious crop.

Recipe: Fingerling Potatoes with Pumpkin Seed Romesco

After the Spanish came to the Americas, they took many things they found there back to Europe, including the potato, and started a craze on most of the continent. The potato is still used in much of Spanish cooking. One of the country's signature dishes, an omelet filled with tender potatoes, or a tortilla, is an easy way to enjoy this now-common root vegetable.

Recipe: Spanish Tortilla with Chorizo and Peppers

While the rest of Europe was going mad over the potato — some fans going so far as to wear crowns of potato blossoms in their hair — the British took longer to catch on. Unsure about this new food, some very pious Brits saw the potato as belonging to the domain of Satan, since it grew underground. To test out the tuber's culinary possibilities without actually having to ingest this potentially dangerous new food themselves, the English decided to pass it on to one of the earliest populations they colonized—the Irish.

Recipe: Buttermilk-Boursin Mashed Potatoes

Potatoes quickly became a staple crop in Ireland. Though we often think of them as a starch, and perhaps not as the lightest or healthiest of vegetables, the truth is that the potato contains almost every vitamin humans need to survive healthily. Adding butter and milk, to get vitamins A and D into the mix, actually rounds out their nutritional profile.

Recipe: Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

By the start of the 18th century, potatoes were an essential foodstuff in Ireland, and they were cultivated throughout the country. The nations' rainy, cool climate was perfect for producing spuds by the thousands, and the Irish people ate them almost as fast as they could grow them. Because the vegetable is so high in vitamins and minerals and grew so well there, Irish farmers and workers could afford to feed their families on them, and their families grew healthier and heartier as a result. Infant mortality rates went down, life expectancy went up, and the population boomed — between the late 1700s and mid-1800s, the Irish population nearly doubled in size.

Recipe: Potato Leek Soup

Though potatoes are so often associated with Ireland and the Americas, they also became a beloved staple across Asia. After they were brought across the Atlantic by the Spanish, potatoes were introduced to China near the end of the Ming dynasty. Unlike in parts of Europe, the potato immediately caught on in China, and even began to be considered a delicacy by the ruling family. And it's no wonder. By incorporating traditional Chinese spices, like star anise, into basic potato dishes, the tuber immediately becomes an exotic and alluring option.

Recipe: Puréed Sweet Potatoes with Ginger, Star Anise, and Cinnamon

Though native to their neighboring countries in the Southern Hemisphere, these root vegetables weren't known to settlers in North America until they were taken to Europe. Potatoes were becoming popular in North America just as they were across the Atlantic. The tubers were first planted in Idaho — still a major potato-producing state today — in the early 1800s.

Recipe: Roasted Sweet Potato Frittata

In the 1840s, the Irish Potato Famine hit the country hard. A fungus, which caused mildew to overtake entire plants, spread and destroyed potato crops. Starting in 1845 and on into the early 1850s, potato plants rotted in the fields, and Irish citizens who had become dependent on the potato to sustain them and supply most of their necessary nutrients were starving while also in danger of losing their farms and their livelihoods. Farms blackened by blight began to take over the usually green Irish landscape, and basic, nutrient-rich meals, like a classic meat and potato-filled stew, become much harder for the average working man to come by.

Recipe: Guinness Beef Stew

Potato crops began to come back only after agricultural experts across England and Europe came together to study the plants that survived and find a solution to the crisis. Savory pies were popular in the British Isles back in the middle ages, but shepherd's pie, now considered an iconic dish, didn't become a traditional item in the region's culinary canon until after the end of the Potato Famine. It's speculated that the dish was created by housewives looking for an innovative way to use up leftover meat.

Recipe: Skillet Shepherd's Pie

Since the potato's recovery, it's only become even more popular, in Ireland and around the world. Now widely available across the globe, potatoes are still associated with Ireland. A classic dish of baked potatoes topped with arugula and roasted tomatoes are sure to be a hit at any kind of gathering.

Recipe: Twice-Baked Potatoes with Arugula and Roasted Tomato Topping

From its early days in the Andes to its scarcity during the notorious Potato Famine and beyond, the potato has made a comeback, and gone so far as to become a staple in pantries around the world. Affordable, filling, and nutritious, home cooks and chefs alike are constantly coming up with new and inventive ways to enjoy the beloved spud.

Recipe: Foil Pack Potato Hash with Fried Egg