15 Tasty and Inexpensive Ways To Use Up Potatoes

by Andrea Norris-McKnight

Potatoes can easily reduce the grocery budget if you buy those big bags when they’re on sale. But only if you use them up before they go bad.

My family loves potatoes but certainly doesn’t want to eat mashed or baked potatoes every meal. I use a wide variety of potato recipes, so eating these money-saving spuds never gets old.

So, how many different ways do you know to prepare potatoes?

15 Inexpensive Ways To Use Up Potatoes

We’ve compiled a list of inexpensive, tasty ways to use up potatoes. Many of these can be prepared in large batches and frozen for quick meal prep for busy days. And all of them are typically cheaper and healthier to make from scratch than buying their store-bought counterparts.

You’ll also find some great potato tips from our frugal readers.

1. Mashed Potatoes

Boil and mash potatoes with butter, milk, and seasonings for a creamy side dish.

Reader Tip: If you love real mashed potatoes, those flakes just don’t cut it, but it takes time to make the real thing. I’ve found that I can make a big batch at once and freeze portions that are perfect for my wife and me. I take the frozen potatoes and pop them in the microwave. They taste like I just made them!
Mike

2. Potato Soup

Make a comforting soup using potatoes, vegetables and broth. You can save even more by making your own broth to use as your soup base.

3. Potato Salad

Combine boiled potatoes with mayonnaise, mustard and vegetables for a cold side dish. I love to create different flavor combinations by using various mustards and spices (smoked paprika is my favorite!).

4. Baked Potatoes

Bake whole potatoes in the oven or microwave, then top with your favorite fixings.

Reader Tip: If I have potatoes that I am afraid may go bad, I bake them in the oven in foil and then throw them in the freezer. When I want a baked potato, I unwrap it and throw it in the microwave. It has that great oven-baked potato taste, and all my potatoes are used before they begin to sprout. This is also a good way to use a large bag (10 pounds or more) economically when you either live alone or have a small family.
Janet M.

5. Potato Wedges

Potato wedges are similar to French fries but quicker to prepare if you’re short on time.

Simply cut potatoes into thick wedges, season and bake or fry until crispy.

6. French Fries

If you have the time, you can slice potatoes into thin strips and prepare them just like the potato wedges above. Or you can throw them in an air fryer if you have one.

Get creative with your seasonings to create a different taste each time.

Reader Tip: I make a large batch of French fries and cook them until done but not brown. Then, I drain them and place them into a resealable bag in the freezer. When we are ready to eat them, we deep-fry them for the second time until brown but don’t thaw them first. They are delicious!
Caye H.

7. Hash Browns

Grate potatoes and cook in a skillet until golden brown and crispy.

Hash browns and French fries can be prepared ahead and stored in the freezer.

8. Scalloped Potatoes

Scalloped potatoes are just sliced potatoes baked in a sauce until bubbly. The inexpensive sauce is usually made from butter, milk, flour and a few spices. See this Betty Crocker recipe.

9. Au Gratin Potatoes

Au gratin potatoes are similar to scalloped potatoes but with some added cheesiness.

Layer thinly sliced potatoes with cream, cheese and seasonings, then bake until golden and tender.

10. Potato Pancakes

Mix grated potatoes with egg, flour, and seasonings, and then pan fry each pancake until golden brown.

11. Gnocchi

Create an Italian dish by making small potato dumplings and serving them with your favorite sauce.

12. Spanish Tortilla

A Spanish tortilla is another tasty potato and egg concoction described as an open-faced omelet. Combine sliced potatoes, onions, and eggs in a skillet, then cook until set.

If you’ve never prepared one, try this tasty Spanish tortilla recipe from the New York Times.

13. Potato Curry

If you’re a curry lover, cook potatoes with onions, tomatoes and spices for a flavorful Indian dish.

14. Twice-Baked Potatoes

Also called stuffed potatoes, these tasty baked potatoes have endless possibilities for how you can prepare them.

Scoop out the insides of baked potatoes, mix with your favorite fillings, and bake again.

Reader Tip: We pick through and find the best baking potatoes and bake them. We then make them into twice-baked potatoes and wrap them individually for easy heating in the microwave. Use your favorite recipe, but make them extra wet as they tend to dry out some while frozen. They are great, and for unexpected company, they are the best.
Caye H.

15. Potato Bread

Use mashed potatoes as an ingredient in homemade bread or rolls for a tender, moist texture.

Additional Potato Tips From Readers

Here are a few additional potato tips from our frugal readers:

Quicker Potatoes

I have found that by boiling several potatoes with their skins on at one time and keeping them in the refrigerator for a few days, I am able to quickly make potato salad, fried potatoes, potatoes to mash with gravy, etc. It saves money on cooking energy and saves a lot of time. They are also much easier and faster to peel.
M.

Potato Storage

I am of Irish descent, and potatoes were a way of life for us growing up. Here is what I’ve learned about storing potatoes and my potatoes last a long time.

First, take care in selecting potatoes at the store. Make sure there is no moisture. Check the eyes for beginning sprouts. And make sure that there are absolutely no soft or damaged spots. Also, make sure there is no green tint, as that means too much sun exposure, which produces a harmful substance that can be toxic.

Always take the potatoes out of the plastic bag. The plastic keeps moisture in, which promotes mold. If possible, I keep them on a shelf in a cool dark place with a tiny amount of space between each potato. Therefore, if one starts to go bad, it doesn’t spoil the others. If space is at a minimum, then a wire basket will do. It allows the circulation of air.

The basement or cellar is best if the temperature stays a consistent 55 degrees.

Never store near or beside onions, as they have significant moisture. Potatoes need to be stored in a dry atmosphere.
Now, bake, stuff, mash, fry or scallop and enjoy your potatoes anytime!
Nora

Related: Storage Tips To Prolong the Shelf Life of Potatoes

Cheap Potato Meals

On more than one occasion when money was tight, I ended up using what was in my cupboards. My family loves fried potatoes. I scramble up some eggs and a dash of milk and add it to the potatoes and onions after they soften. For added taste, I might add some imitation bacon bits that I usually have on hand. This is a hearty meal, and everyone goes away full.

Another favorite around here is Potato Cakes. Use mashed potatoes that are cool. Beat in one egg. Add flour to thicken, and then fry by the spoonful. Eat these with ketchup, applesauce or syrup. They are just like pancakes, except that they are made with potatoes. My kids love these!

Necessity is the mother of invention. There is always something you can make from almost nothing. And most of the time, you will save big bucks by simply making something from scratch that you would normally buy already done. Use your imagination and enjoy the results!
Dawn

Homemade Hashbrowns

Hashbrowns found in the freezer section of the grocery store are a ripoff. When baking in the oven, I throw in a few extra potatoes wrapped in foil and bake for an hour. When they’re done, I let them cool down and put them in the refrigerator. I use the potatoes within a week of baking. I put oil in my skillet and grate the cold potato into the oil. One average size potato easily serves two adults. Because they are not frozen, they cook faster, and they have a better flavor.

If you have overnight guests or know you’ll be having a large breakfast, bake the potatoes the night before, and they’ll be cooled down by morning. I don’t heat up my oven just for a couple of potatoes, but if you love potatoes, you can use them up quickly for meals. I also like to cut them into slices, add onions, margarine and garlic, wrap them in foil and throw them on the grill while we’re grilling. They’re already cooked, so you’re basically just heating them up. It’s so fast.
Lori

Handy Breakfast Potatoes

I cook my potatoes whole in my double-deck vegetable steamer. When done, I cube them and put them in large zipper bags in one layer. As I am filling the bags, I stack them all on a cookie sheet. Then I put them in the freezer. When frozen, I remove the cookie sheet.

This way, my potatoes are loose and easy to put into a pan or, as I prefer, an oblong glass dish to make oven potatoes for breakfast or dinner. Seasonings are added when they go in the oven. My potatoes taste just fine, and I do this all the time.
Ann in California

Related:

• How Potatoes Can Reduce Grocery Bills
• 14 Ways To Buy Produce for Less
• How Dry Beans Can Stretch Food Dollars Further

Reviewed October 2024

About the Author

Andrea Norris-McKnight took over as the editor of The Dollar Stretcher and After 50 Finances after working under the site founder and previous editor for almost 15 years. She has also written for Money.com, GOBankingRates.com, HavenLife.com and The Sacramento Bee.