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Edible
Potato: A Global History
From its obscure pre-Columbian beginnings in South America to its global popularity today, the story of the potato is one of rags to riches. In Potato, esteemed culinary historian Andrew F. Smith reveals the captivating story of a once lowly vegetable that has changed – and continues to change – the world.
First domesticated by prehistoric people in the Andes, the potato has since been adopted by cultures all over the globe. After its discovery by Europeans, governments and monarchs encouraged the people to farm it because it was so nutritious and easy to grow, but its new position as the staple of the poor meant mass starvation in nineteenth-century Ireland when potato blight wiped out the crops. The potato was also adopted by cooks in India and in China, which is now the world’s largest potato producer.
Despite its popularity, in this era of both fast food and health consciousness, the potato is now suffering negative publicity for the very quality for which it was lauded by our forefathers: being a good source of carbohydrate. But is it fair to blame the humble spud for our habit of covering it with butter or sour cream or deep-frying it in oil?
Potato is a captivating account of the history, economy, politics and gastronomy behind this beloved tuber. Like a well-dressed baked potato, this book will both comfort and satisfy the reader.
First domesticated by prehistoric people in the Andes, the potato has since been adopted by cultures all over the globe. After its discovery by Europeans, governments and monarchs encouraged the people to farm it because it was so nutritious and easy to grow, but its new position as the staple of the poor meant mass starvation in nineteenth-century Ireland when potato blight wiped out the crops. The potato was also adopted by cooks in India and in China, which is now the world’s largest potato producer.
Despite its popularity, in this era of both fast food and health consciousness, the potato is now suffering negative publicity for the very quality for which it was lauded by our forefathers: being a good source of carbohydrate. But is it fair to blame the humble spud for our habit of covering it with butter or sour cream or deep-frying it in oil?
Potato is a captivating account of the history, economy, politics and gastronomy behind this beloved tuber. Like a well-dressed baked potato, this book will both comfort and satisfy the reader.
156 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2011
8 people are currently reading
191 people want to read
About the author
Andrew F. Smith
45 books14 followersAndrew Francis Smith teaches food studies at the New School University in Manhattan. He has written more than three hundred articles in academic journals and popular magazines and has authored or edited seventeen books, including The Oxford Encyclopedia on Food and Drink in America, a James Beard finalist in 2005. He has been frequently appeared on several television series, including the History Channel's American Eats, and the Food Network's Heavy Weights.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 17, 2023
Part of Reaktion Books’ very readable Edible Series, Potato: A Global History begins by tracing the history of the potato, from its initial domestication in the Andes to its ‘discovery’ by Spanish conquistadors and the subsequent introduction of the vegetable into the Old World. From there, author Andrew Smith goes on to examine the spreading of potatoes in most of Europe and Asia, the potato blight (and its dreadful impact, especially on Ireland), and the resurgence of the potato.
Smith discusses potatoes in popular culture, from spuds in art (van Gogh’s The Potato Eaters, for instance) to song and cinema, to the Mr Potato Head toys. There’s a good bit about French fries, how they developed and became a mainstay of the fast-food industry. About research into potatoes, and GMO. And, of course, loads of information on potato dishes across the world, including a bunch of recipes at the end of the book.
A mouthwatering, interesting insight into this oft-overlooked tuber.
Smith discusses potatoes in popular culture, from spuds in art (van Gogh’s The Potato Eaters, for instance) to song and cinema, to the Mr Potato Head toys. There’s a good bit about French fries, how they developed and became a mainstay of the fast-food industry. About research into potatoes, and GMO. And, of course, loads of information on potato dishes across the world, including a bunch of recipes at the end of the book.
A mouthwatering, interesting insight into this oft-overlooked tuber.
October 10, 2022
Potato: A Global History
I am fascinated with the global economic impact of trade market commodities that have historically, and continually, shaped our world; be it in our consumable staple foods and drinks; the vast industrial ages of timber and metal; the use of cotton and wool fabrics becoming interwoven within our society; our reliance on the nutrients and healing capabilities from cereals and herbs, and so much more. It is the reason why, when I finally came across a series on these very staples, I was very enthusiastic in picking each small book up. Perhaps it may be stated that The Edible Series is loosely comparable with the Very Short Introduction Series: a short book given a hard task in providing enough relevant information for the reader to come away feeling they are satisfied learning a new field or topic.
With that said, the book on the global staple food that is the potato, was an interesting read. Known since pre-Colombian times, the potato has been favoured over all others, in consumption only behind wheat and rice, for its health and vitamin benefits, its versatility in cooking, and far more importantly, its apparent easiness in cultivating and harvesting for farmers. It has been discussed when the potato that we know today, called solanum tuberosum tuberosum, found its way to Europe. Far unlike the myths spread about Walter Raleigh bringing it to Ireland and Sir Francis Drake bringing it to England, it is likely through the Spanish travels within the 16th century - as the earliest known recipe for the potato harkens to late 16th century within Spain. Thereafter, it spread like wildfire across continental Europe, with farmers discovering they can replace the harder-effort rye and rice or flours for this new phenomenon. The book also discusses the effects of the potato blight in Europe and America, with the Irish Potato Famine being the main topic. This is not a book to expect a lot in it, but one that may introduce and satisfy a delightful curiosity in what makes the potato (and other commodities within the series) special, and even shares with the reader some of the recipes that were used back in the 16th-, 17th- and 18th-centuries.
I am fascinated with the global economic impact of trade market commodities that have historically, and continually, shaped our world; be it in our consumable staple foods and drinks; the vast industrial ages of timber and metal; the use of cotton and wool fabrics becoming interwoven within our society; our reliance on the nutrients and healing capabilities from cereals and herbs, and so much more. It is the reason why, when I finally came across a series on these very staples, I was very enthusiastic in picking each small book up. Perhaps it may be stated that The Edible Series is loosely comparable with the Very Short Introduction Series: a short book given a hard task in providing enough relevant information for the reader to come away feeling they are satisfied learning a new field or topic.
With that said, the book on the global staple food that is the potato, was an interesting read. Known since pre-Colombian times, the potato has been favoured over all others, in consumption only behind wheat and rice, for its health and vitamin benefits, its versatility in cooking, and far more importantly, its apparent easiness in cultivating and harvesting for farmers. It has been discussed when the potato that we know today, called solanum tuberosum tuberosum, found its way to Europe. Far unlike the myths spread about Walter Raleigh bringing it to Ireland and Sir Francis Drake bringing it to England, it is likely through the Spanish travels within the 16th century - as the earliest known recipe for the potato harkens to late 16th century within Spain. Thereafter, it spread like wildfire across continental Europe, with farmers discovering they can replace the harder-effort rye and rice or flours for this new phenomenon. The book also discusses the effects of the potato blight in Europe and America, with the Irish Potato Famine being the main topic. This is not a book to expect a lot in it, but one that may introduce and satisfy a delightful curiosity in what makes the potato (and other commodities within the series) special, and even shares with the reader some of the recipes that were used back in the 16th-, 17th- and 18th-centuries.
September 5, 2015
The humble potato gets some well-deserved praise in another of this great series of little history books. For such a small book, there is a wealth of historical research on the potato, very even-handedly done (at multiple levels, from nutrition to science to history to politics). The recipes alone are worth picking up the book. Maybe not a four star book, but still, everyone ought to read it.
November 14, 2023
Interesting read…
I spent 4 years, 1979-1984, working for Basic American Foods, based in San Francisco…BAF is the largest potato dehydrator in the world with factories in Idaho, Washington, and Wisconsin. It was a very interesting industry.
Messers Jaqueline Hume and Pat Heffernon were so kind to award me a full scholarship to graduate to attend Santa Clara University Food and Agribusiness Institute where I earned my MBA🙏🏻. Thank you to them for their kindness 🙏🏻.
Coincidentally, Mr Hume was one of the three millionaires who backed Ronald Reagan in his bid to become governor of California and eventually president of the USA, whereby Mr Hume was a member of president Reagan’s kitchen cabinet 🤷🏼♂️😱
I spent 4 years, 1979-1984, working for Basic American Foods, based in San Francisco…BAF is the largest potato dehydrator in the world with factories in Idaho, Washington, and Wisconsin. It was a very interesting industry.
Messers Jaqueline Hume and Pat Heffernon were so kind to award me a full scholarship to graduate to attend Santa Clara University Food and Agribusiness Institute where I earned my MBA🙏🏻. Thank you to them for their kindness 🙏🏻.
Coincidentally, Mr Hume was one of the three millionaires who backed Ronald Reagan in his bid to become governor of California and eventually president of the USA, whereby Mr Hume was a member of president Reagan’s kitchen cabinet 🤷🏼♂️😱
October 9, 2019
This was not to my taste. I feel like there were some wilder stories out there that were not included and that many of the aspects that went into more detail were not the interesting parts.
January 21, 2020
Book one of my 3 potato books I'll be reading this year was really more of a crash course on the tater.
January 22, 2022
Just okay. Like average french fries - it could have been a lot better with a little extra effort.
May 9, 2012
The potato is a hopelessly broad foodstuff for a book of barely 100 pages. The author does his best, but it just isn't possible to get anything like comprehensive. It's still a pretty fun read, though, even if it is one of the weakest entries in the Edible series.
March 3, 2021
One of the better volumes in the Reaktion Books Edible Series. Potato contains an excellent chapter summarizing the Irish potato famine. As usual with these books, there is a list of interesting recipes at the back.
August 23, 2013
Pretty succinct, but fascinating read. Includes some recipes including a microwave mashed potato recipe I am going to try. Am really enjoying this series.
October 5, 2014
Not recommended, denies historical facts, it's only historyof the potatoe for usa and europe,
December 27, 2015
An interesting short little book about the origin, domestication, proliferation, and cooking methods of the potato. Did you know that China is today the largest producer of potatoes?
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews