Think of a potato like a snowball. A tiny snowball melts in seconds; a giant one takes forever. Cut your potatoes into even, 1-to-2-inch chunks. I usually chop them the size of a walnut—rough, uneven, but roughly the same.
Why? Because if you toss in a whole russet next to a quarter-sized piece, one will be soup while the other is still raw. Fair fighting in the pot starts with consistent knife cuts.
Whole Potatoes (For Baking or Salad)
If you’re boiling small new potatoes or fingerlings whole, keep them about the size of a golf ball. Tiny ones? Just scrub, don’t peel, and drop them in. Larger spuds should stay whole only if you want jacket potatoes, and even then, prick them with a fork first.
For whole potatoes, start in cold, salted water. Yes, cold. This lets the heat gently cook through, so the inside is fluffy before the outside falls apart. No one wants potato skin that’s shredding like old wallpaper.
