Why are my mashed potatoes always bland?

The only way to know what you are doing to make them bland is to know how you cook them. My mother uses lots and lots and lots of butter, and hers are not bland at all. danes use lots of butter in things, and maybe even a pinch of salt. Then they are served with meat and lots of gravy. Yummy! Now all of a sudden I want some mashed potatoes. You made me hungry.

I normally add milk, butter, salt and pepper to mine. Sometimes I will make them like a loaded baked potato and add sour cream, chives, bacon, and shredded cheese. This one sounds really good to me. I might try it tomorrow night with dinner. CHEESY BBQ GARLIC MASHED POTATOES 1 lb potatoes, peeled 3 tablespoons butter or spread 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 cup bbq sauce 2 tablespoon vinegar 1/2 cup sharp cheese, shredded Cut potatoes and cook in boiling water until tender. Mix BBQ sauce with Vinegar. Drain potatoes, and place in large bowl with butter or spread and BBQ sauce mixture. Mix to desired consistancy, then fold in garlic powder and cheese.

Try adding things like cheese, herbs, pepper, garlic to them.

If you like ranch dressing, (Hidden Valley is the best), after you make your potatoes, add some of that in the potatoes. It gives it a great flavor, I also add a little lemon pepper and garlic salt as well. It is really good!

I'm a huge fan of Idahoan instant mashed potatoes. You only need water and they are great! My favorite homemade mashed potato recipe was passed down from my dad. He used 4 different kinds of cheeses and even added shrimp to his, but mine is a bit simpler. Just 8 oz of cheddar cheese, a pint of sour cream, and a couple handfuls of bacon pieces.

When I make mased potatoes from scratch I always add lots of butter. Then I add Garlic salt and Seasoning salt. This gives them a nice flavor and they aren't bland. They always seem to turn out super yummy!

I do whatever strikes my fancy. #1 I like little red potatoes, and mash them skin on. #2 Ranch dressing, either the powder, or some bottled dressing. #3 Blue cheese crumbles. #4 White cheddar #5 Parmesan #6 Garlic powder #7 Use chicken broth to cook them in. #8 Use horseradish sauce, and bacon bits.#9 Powdered onion soup mix instead of salt. #10 The original, butter, salt, black pepper, milk.

I always boil mine with salt, that adds flavour, or flabours I like is, finly chopped raw onions, or fresh parley chopped fine mashed through it...

When I'm boiling them I add a few beef bullion cubes to the water. After they are cooked, I add enough butter to make mash them, I think most people will add milk first. I add the butter till they are creamy, then add some salt and pepper, maybe a little bit of garlic powder, and then put in enough milk to whip them up so they are whipped and creamy. I usually leave about half of the peel on them too.

My dad always made mashed potatos with canned milk instead of regular milk. They always taste much better that way. He's more of an experimenter than mom is and that's how he learned this. The kind we all buy is the boxed kind called Idaho Spuds and they taste great! Try that, I bet you'll like it too!

You said you're not sure what you're doing wrong, but you haven't mentioned what it is you're doing. I usually just use butter and salt, and maybe a dab of milk. I often use garlic powder too. If I have sour cream on hand, a little sour cream can sometimes find it's way in there. I taste as I go and add more of whatever I think it needs. So, what are you doing?

Garlic Powder and a bit of salt with butter will spice the flavor up. I usually buy the seasoned mashed potatoes.. These are very delicious! You should try these, that way you won't have to seasoned it by hand..

all i put in mine are alot of butter, salt,pepper & milk. tates good to me.

I always cook my potatoes together with a cube of bouillon. When I mash the potatoes I put the bouillon into a cup and add it slowly while mashing. I like the flavour although its not as creamy as mashed potatoes with butter.

I always put butter and salt and pepper in mine. I like real creamy mashed potatoes. I've also added sour cream and shredded cheese to mine before and that was good too.

add either sour cream instead of butter or maybe just a bit of powdered garlic. either makes it a bit fancier without much effort.and it tastes good :)

I no longer bother with real mashed potatoes for meals. Instead I buy the "Betty Crocker" instant mashed potatoes. They come in plain, butter and herb, or garlic. They're all fantastic too! And oh so easy! (which is my favourite part lol). I'm sure you could add a package of them to real mashed spuds, as long as you added enough extra water and milk of course. One thing I know about potatoes, is that the best flavour is nearest the skin. Perhaps you should try mashing them with the skins still on? They taste phenomenal that way! I've heard of people adding chicken broth (such as from a can of Campbell's soup), and that intensifies the flavour as well. You could also add sour cream to give them a thicker and richer taste.

I find that sometimes its the kind of potatoes you use. I think red potatoes are more mushy and don't have as much flavor as white potatoes. I always use white potatoes. I mash all the potatoes before adding anything, because if they aren't completely mashed and you add milk and butter, they will turn out lumpy. I actually prefer to use the instant mashed potatoes. They are easy to make and have a good flavor. You can't go wrong. Sometimes I have added a few instant potatoe flakes while mashing the real ones. It seems to make the real ones better - (Maybe thats all in my head)! Good luck!

Try this : add real butter ( Food Lion has a inexpensive sweet cream butter) and a dash of garlic powder to them. Or, if you prefer a bit of zest to them- use malabar pepper in them. This works for baked potatoes and most types of noodles too!

I put sour cream in mine instead of milk. Don't forget a little salt and pepper. Sometimes I even use chip dip if I don't have sour cream.