Preparing Stir-Fry Potatoes

• In traditional recipes such as soups and stews, potatoes are typically cooked slowly on relatively low heat. It is tricky to fully cook potatoes using the hot, fast stir-fry cooking technique. Cutting them into small cubes of less than an inch speeds up the cooking process, making it easier for the heat to penetrate the pieces. Alternately, parboil prepped potatoes for about a minute by precooking them in boiling water and then draining them well. This method gives them a head start, allowing them to cook more quickly and fully in the stir-fry.

Seasoning Stir-Fry Potatoes

• Potatoes don't go well with traditional stir-fry seasonings such as soy sauce and toasted sesame oil. They do, however, work well in nontraditional stir-fries, especially recipes influenced by East Indian curries. Season stir-fried potatoes with curry powder, or with spices typically used in curry such as cumin, turmeric, coriander, cardamom and brown mustard seed. Use plenty of onion, ginger and garlic, and top stir-fried potatoes with yogurt, mint and cilantro.

Complementing Stir-Fry Potatoes

• Complement the dense starchiness of potatoes with lighter vegetables such as leafy greens, cabbage, zucchini and bell peppers. Cook the potatoes first, once the garlic is soft and the onion is translucent, and then add the quicker cooking vegetables once the potato is almost fully cooked. A stir-fry with potatoes is most appealing when the potatoes are fully tender and the other vegetables are cooked through but still colorful and full of vitality.

Stir-Fry Potato Varieties

• The best potato varieties for stir-fries are firm fleshed, able to retain their shape without getting mushy. Avoid russets, also known as baking potatoes, which quickly become mushy and mealy. Red potatoes work well, as do Yellow Finns and Yukon Golds. Red potatoes offer the added advantage of colorful skins, and purple potatoes add color from both their flesh and their peels.