The earliest origins of the humble potato go back to South America, with cultivation first taking place in Peru somewhere between 8,000 BC and 5,000 BC (1).
Yet not all potatoes are the same; there are many different types of potatoes that each have a unique appearance, taste, and texture. Some of these potatoes are white and fluffy, some are red and firm, and some are even blue.
This guide lists the most popular types of potatoes around the world, their properties, and how to use them.
Main Potato Varieties
First of all, there are five main categories of potatoes, and these include the following:
White potatoes: the most common variety of potatoes has a white to yellow flesh and thin skin. While their texture can vary depending on the specific type, white potatoes are good all-rounders, and they are good options for baking, boiling, frying, mashing, and roasting.
Russet potatoes: Russets are white inside with a thick and chewy skin. These potatoes are usually starchy, and they are soft and fluffy after being cooked. Russets are often used for making baked potatoes.
Red potatoes: these potatoes have red skin but a white flesh. They generally have a firm texture and include cultivars such as Désirée and Laura.
Purple/blue potatoes: there are several varieties of potato that have an attractive blue-to-purple flesh, with Blue Congo and Vitelotte cultivars being notable examples. These potatoes contain many polyphenols known as anthocyanins, and these compounds are responsible for the color (1).
Fingerling potatoes: these potatoes have a long and thin appearance, thin skin, and a firm texture. Fingerling species are often boiled, pan-fried, or roasted.
Despite their name, sweet potatoes (and yams) are botanically distinct from regular potatoes, and they belong to the category of root vegetables.
Waxy vs. Starchy
We can also judge potatoes by how ‘waxy’ they are, which mainly signifies their texture and appropriate culinary uses. In this regard, some potatoes are ‘waxy,’ and they have a lower starch content and a higher moisture level. These potatoes have firmer flesh, and they are suitable for boiling, roasting, and well-suited as an ingredient for soups and stews.
In contrast, ‘starchy’ potatoes contain more starch and less moisture, and they have a fluffy texture that easily crumbles. Such potatoes are well-suited for baking, mashing, and making chips/fries.
Some potatoes are somewhat in between these two classifications, and people usually call them ‘all-rounders.’
Key Point: There are many different types of potato, but there are five distinct varieties: white, red, purple, russet, and fingerling potatoes.
Types of Potatoes
In truth, there are thousands of different types of potatoes native to various countries around the world.
However, here are some of the most famous potatoes you may find (or decide to grow).
The almond potato is popular among Scandinavian countries, and it is also known as the ‘Swedish peanut fingerling.’
It is a type of fingerling potato with a firm texture. Almond potatoes keep their shape well, which makes them suitable for roasting, pan-frying, and boiling.
2) Bamberg
Name: Bamberg potato
Variety: Russet
Country of Origin: Germany
Texture: Firm, waxy
Shape: Long and thin
Color: Light yellow flesh, brown skin
Culinary Uses: pan-frying, boiling, roasting
The Bamberg is a small potato with a long, thin shape, and it has a reasonably firm texture.
As a result, it is commonly used for making boiled, roasted, and steamed potatoes.
Bamberg potatoes have a thin skin and a custard yellow-colored flesh.
3) Belle de Fontenay
Name: Belle de Fontenay
Variety: Fingerling
Country of Origin: France
Texture: Firm, waxy
Shape: Small, long, and oblong-shaped.
Color: Light yellow flesh and skin
Culinary Uses: boiling, roasting, soups, and stews
Belle de Fontenay is a common French potato, and it is usually served whole, either alone or in soups and stews.
4) Bintje
Name: Bintje
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Netherlands
Texture: Soft and fluffy
Shape: Large and thick oval shape
Color: Creamy yellow flesh and similar skin
Culinary Uses: French fries, roast potatoes
Bintje potatoes are famous in the Netherlands, where they are often used for making French fries.
They are seen as a good ‘all-rounder,’ and they are also used for making roasted potatoes.
5) Blue Congo
Name: Blue Congo
Variety: Blue/purple
Country of Origin: Unknown
Texture: Soft and moist
Shape: Large and oval
Color: Deep blue flesh and skin
Culinary Uses: Mashed potato, casseroles
Blue congo potatoes have a unique, deep blue appearance, and they have a flavorful and somewhat nutty taste.
The origin of these potatoes is unknown, but they are closely associated with several types of potatoes from Canada (2).
Blue congo potatoes contain high moisture levels, and they are very soft when cooked. For this reason, they work well for making mashed potatoes to eat alone or as part of a dish.
Désirée potatoes are seen as all-rounders as they are somewhere in between waxy and starchy.
The potatoes have dull red skin and white flesh that is reasonably firm once cooked, so they are quite versatile cooking potatoes.
7) Gala
Name: Gala potato
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Germany
Texture: Firm
Shape: Large and oval
Color: Cream to light yellow
Culinary Uses: Boiling, roasting, steaming
Gala potatoes are a popular German potato with a firm texture, and they are well-suited to dishes calling for whole potatoes.
After boiling or steaming these potatoes, they retain their shape well.
8) Golden Wonder
Name: Golder Wonder
Variety: Russet
Country of Origin: Scotland
Texture: Soft and fluffy
Shape: Large, oblong to oval-shaped
Color: Creamy with a light skin
Culinary Uses: Mashing, chips/fries, roasting
Golden wonder potatoes are incredibly starchy, and this gives them a soft texture that can easily crumble apart.
For this reason, they tend to be used for making mashed or roasted potatoes, and they are not well-suited for boiling.
Golden wonder potatoes are very flavorful and are viewed as one of the best culinary potatoes.
9) Home Guard
Name: Home Guard
Variety: White
Country of Origin: United Kingdom
Texture: Firm
Shape: Small to medium-sized, round to oval
Color: White flesh and thin beige skin
Culinary Uses: Boiling, steaming, pan-frying, soups and stews
Home guard potatoes originated in the UK, and they’re generally small to medium in size and quite firm-fleshed.
The potatoes are a waxy variety, so they won’t disintegrate when used for boiling or in soups and stews.
Home guard potatoes were introduced in 1942 during the Second World War, hence their ‘home guard’ name (3).
10) Irish Lumper
Name: Irish Lumper
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Ireland
Texture: Quite firm
Shape: Medium-sized, lumpy texture
Color: White flesh and pale yellow skin
Culinary Uses: All-rounder
The Irish Lumper is an old potato first introduced in Ireland during the early part of the 19th century (4).
These potatoes are waxy and medium-firm, which makes them an excellent multi-purpose cooking potato.
Regarding their appearance, the Irish Lumper has a bumpy, lumpy texture, which might explain their name.
Interestingly, the Irish Lumper disappeared for many decades after the Irish famine of the 1830s. It has recently started being regrown over recent years (5).
11) Jersey Royal
Name: Jersey Royal
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Jersey
Texture: Firm
Shape: Small to medium, kidney-shaped.
Color: White flesh and pale yellow skin
Culinary Uses: Boiling, steaming, salads, stews
Jersey Royal potatoes have a protected designation of origin (PDO), and they grow on the island of Jersey (6).
These famous potatoes are small to medium in size, and they retain their shape well during cooking.
Jersey potatoes are often pan-fried with a little butter and some herbs, and they have a soft but firm texture and a flavorful taste.
12) Kennebec
Name: Kennebec potatoes
Variety: White
Country of Origin: United States
Texture: Medium-firm
Shape: Medium-sized, oblong to round in shape
Color: White flesh and pale yellow skin
Culinary Uses: All-rounder
Kennebec potatoes are medium in size and almost round-shaped.
The potato was first bred in the first half of the 20th century, and it remains popular to this day (7).
Kennebec potatoes are an all-purpose potato that can be boiled, roasted, mashed, or used in soups and stews. They have a slightly nutty taste.
13) Kerr’s Pink
Name: Kerr’s Pink
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Scotland
Texture: Quite soft
Shape: Round to oval in shape, medium to large
Color: Creamy flesh and a red skin
Culinary Uses: Boiling, mashing, roasting
Kerr’s Pink potatoes are a red-skinned potato with pale creamy flesh, and they are one of the world’s most popular potatoes.
First grown Scotland during 1917, they still account for an estimated 25% of Ireland’s total potato production to this day (8).
The potatoes have a soft texture and a mild flavor.
14) King Edward
Name: King Edward
Variety: White
Country of Origin: England
Texture: Soft and fluffy
Shape: Large-sized and oval
Color: Cream-colored flesh and a thin skin
Culinary Uses: Baking, mashing, roasting,
King Edward potatoes are one of the oldest culinary potatoes, having first been introduced in 1902 (9).
Due to their high-starch levels, these potatoes are very soft and fluffy after cooking, and they work well for making mashed, baked, or roasted potatoes.
As well as this, they are one of the most popular potato varieties for making chips/fries.
15) Kipfler
Name: Kipfler
Variety: Fingerling
Country of Origin: Germany
Texture: Soft and creamy
Shape: Relatively large, long, and thin
Color: Light yellow flesh and a light brown skin
Culinary Uses: Baking, roasting,
Kipfler is a Germany variety of fingerling potatoes that has a long and thin shape.
The potatoes are very soft once cooked, and they have a creamy and slightly nutty taste.
Due to their texture, the potatoes are best-suited for making baked and roasted potatoes.
16) Laura
Name: Laura
Variety: Red
Country of Origin: Austria
Texture: Firm
Shape: Large, long, and oval-shaped
Color: Rich yellow flesh and deep red skin.
Culinary Uses: Boiling, mashing, pan-frying, roasting, soups and stews
The Laura potato is a red-skinned potato variety that was introduced relatively recently. The potato has only been grown since 1998 (10).
It is reasonably versatile as an all-rounder and can be used in a variety of ways.
17) Marcy
Name: Marcy
Variety: White
Country of Origin: United States
Texture: Moderately firm
Shape: Large, thick, and oval-shaped
Color: White flesh and light brown skin
Culinary Uses: Good all-rounder: baking, boiling, frying, and more.
The Marcy potato is a relatively modern species, having first been introduced to the United States in 1990 (11).
The potato is large and almost round-shaped, and it has white flesh and a light beige to brown skin.
Marcy potatoes are quite firm, but as they are somewhere in between waxy and starchy, they are versatile enough for a range of culinary preparations.
18) Marfona
Name: Marfona
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Netherlands
Texture: Medium-soft, slightly fluffy
Shape: Medium-sized and oval to round in shape
Color: Pale yellow flesh with a thin skin
Culinary Uses: Baking, boiling, mashing, and steaming
Like so many other types of potatoes, the Marfona first came from the Netherlands (the Dutch consume significant amounts of potatoes).
The potato has a slightly waxy texture, and it becomes fluffy when cooked. However, it is noted for its all-round versatility, and it is firm enough for boiling.
Marfona potatoes have a creamy and flavorful taste, making them a good choice for boiled potatoes. They are also one of the best potatoes for baking due to their size and light and fluffy texture.
The Maris Piper is the most common type of potatoes that grows within the United Kingdom, with approximately triple the planted area of any other potato (12).
Maris Piper potatoes are noted for their all-round versatility, and their fluffy texture works well for baked and roasted potatoes, as well as for making chips (fries).
However, they are also firm enough to boil while retaining their shape.
20) Melody
Name: Melody
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Netherlands
Texture: Firm
Shape: Long, oval, medium to large
Color: Light yellow flesh and skin
Culinary Uses: Boiling and mashing
Melody potatoes were first grown in the Netherlands.
Since they are quite starchy, they are typically used for making soft boiled potatoes and mashed potatoes.
These potatoes have a long oval shape and a light skin.
21) Nicola
Name: Nicola
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Germany
Texture: Firm
Shape: Long oval to oblong shape
Color: Creamy yellow flesh and skin
Culinary Uses: All-rounder: boiling, mashing, roasting, and more
Nicola potatoes are a popular German species, and they were first recognized as a variety of potato in 1973. Interestingly, the Nicola potato was also recognized in 2016 as German ‘potato of the year’ due to its high-quality flavor (14).
These potatoes are more on the waxy side, so they are firm and keep their texture when boiled. However, they are versatile and also work well for baking and roasting.
22) Ozette
Name: Ozette
Variety: Fingerling
Country of Origin: USA
Texture: Firm, smooth
Shape: Odd-looking: lumpy and no set shape
Color: Creamy white flesh and light brown skin
Culinary Uses: Multi-purpose – baking, boiling, mashing, roasting, and more.
The Ozette potato is a centuries-old potato thought to have first been recognized in Washington, United States (15).
Ozette potatoes belong to the fingerling variety of potato, but they have a highly irregular shape with numerous lumpy bumps. Despite their visual appearance, the Ozette potato is a flavorful option with a slightly nutty taste.
They have a waxy consistency, but they’re considered an all-rounder, and they work well whether mashed, baked, roasted, or pan-fried.
23) Pink Fir Apple
Name: Pink Fir Apple potato
Variety: Fingerling
Country of Origin: France
Texture: Firm
Shape: Long, thin, bumpy, irregular
Color: Creamy white flesh with a pinkish-brown skin
Culinary Uses: Boiled or steamed potatoes, soups, and stews
The Pink Fir Apple potato has a long and knobbly texture, but they are renowned for their rich and nutty flavor (16).
These potatoes tend to be on the more expensive side if you can find them in grocery stores.
24) Ranger Russet
Name: Ranger Russet
Variety: Russet
Country of Origin: United States
Texture: Soft and fluffy
Shape: Large and oval-shaped
Color: White flesh and dusty-brown skin
Culinary Uses: Baked potatoes, fries/chips
Ranger Russet potatoes are large and have a consistent, regular oval shape.
The potatoes are very starchy, and they have a soft and fluffy flesh and a chewy skin once cooked. These characteristics make them perfect for making baked potatoes.
25) Ratte
Name: Ratte
Variety: Fingerling
Country of Origin: Debated: Denmark or France
Texture: Firm
Shape: Small and long
Color: Pale yellow skin and flesh
Culinary Uses: Boiled potatoes, soups, and stews
Ratte potatoes are widely considered to be among the best-tasting types of potatoes.
Due to their rich flavor, they’re one of the best-suited varieties for making boiled potatoes.
Since they are very popular and have low production yields, Ratte potatoes tend to be rather expensive (17).
Red Golds are delicious potatoes from Canada that are good all-rounders: they’re suitable for most cooking methods.
Agriculture Canada developed the potatoes together with the University of Guelph and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food in 1970. They were first recognized/registered in 1987 (18).
Red Gold potatoes have a distinctive yellow flesh and a mild nutty taste.
Rooster potatoes are a popular Irish variety of red potato.
The flesh has a light yellow color and a starchy consistency, but the potato is a good all-rounder.
Rooster potatoes can be used for various purposes in the kitchen, from making boiled, baked, and roasted potatoes to their use in various dishes.
These potatoes were first introduced in 1993 after being developed by the Irish Ministry of Agriculture (19).
28) Russet Burbank
Name: Russet Burbank
Variety: Russet
Country of Origin: United States
Texture: Soft, dry, starchy
Shape: Medium-sized, long oval shape
Color: White flesh and brown skin
Culinary Uses: Baking, mashing, chips/fries
Russet Burbank potatoes are one of the oldest types of potatoes around the world. These famous potatoes were likely first introduced commercially in 1902 (20).
Like other russet varieties, Russet Burbank potatoes have a thick skin and a soft and fluffy flesh once cooked. Such qualities make them perfect for baking or roasting.
29) Superior
Name: Superior
Variety: White potato
Country of Origin: United States
Texture: Moderately firm
Shape: Round to oval shape, consistent size
Color: White flesh and light skin
Culinary Uses: All-rounder – baking, boiling, mashed, making chips/fries
The Superior potato was first released in 1961 after being bred by the University of Wisconsin (21).
It is medium to large, and the size doesn’t generally vary between potatoes.
These potatoes are often used for baking, but they’re a versatile variety that can be used for various purposes.
30) Umatilla Russet
Name: Umatilla Russet
Variety: Russet
Country of Origin: United States
Texture: Soft and fluffy
Shape: Long oblong shape, slightly irregular
Color: Creamy flesh and light brown skin
Culinary Uses: Often used for making French fries
The Umatilla Russet is a popular potato that is frequently used to make fries, and it was released in 1998 (22, 23).
Like other Russet varieties of potato, it has soft and slightly dry flesh, thereby making it a good baked potato option too.
31) Vitelotte
Name: Vitelotte
Variety: Blue/purple potato
Country of Origin: France
Texture: Soft, dry, and floury
Shape: Long to round, lumpy, and not uniform in size
Color: Blue to purple flesh, and dark almost-black skin
Culinary Uses: Baking, boiling, frying, mashing
Vitelotte potatoes are a French variety of blue/purple potatoes with an attractive visual appearance. The cultivation of these potatoes goes back to the year 1815 in France (24).
Since Vitelotte potatoes are so soft and starchy, they can easily be mashed and mixed into various stews and soups.
Also, they are frequently used to make purple potato chips (crisps).
32) Vivaldi
Name: Vivaldi
Variety: White
Country of Origin: Netherlands
Texture: Firm, but soft and creamy
Shape: Small to medium, round to oval shape
Color: Light yellow flesh and skin
Culinary Uses: Boiling, mashing, steaming
The Vivaldi is another popular Dutch potato cultivar that is generally small to medium in size.
These potatoes have a mild and buttery flavor, and they are mainly used for making boiled or mashed potatoes.
Yukon Gold is one of the most popular types of potato, and they are an excellent culinary all-rounder.
Thanks to their texture and starch content, they are soft enough to work well as baked potatoes. However, they’re also firm enough to make great boiled or pan-fried potatoes too.
Yukon Gold potatoes were commercially released in Canada in 1980, and they are still widespread now (25).
Interestingly, as yellow-fleshed vegetables, they appear to have higher vitamin A content than white-flesh potatoes.
Where To Buy These Varieties of Potatoes
It can be challenging to find more than several different potatoes in the local grocery store or supermarket.
However, a quick Google search can easily pull up some local specialized sellers of each specific variety.
Additionally, for gardening enthusiasts and would-be home growers, it’s easy to find seeds for the vast majority of these potatoes online.
Final Thoughts
Most of us just think of potatoes as one thing: potatoes.
However, as this article shows, there are so many different varieties of potato, and each has its distinct properties.
Hopefully, this guide will provide better insight into what to do with each type of potato and offer some interesting new options to try.
In addition to the references linked to in this article, much of the general information was courtesy of a book called ‘The Complete Book of Potatoes’ by Hielke De Jong.
The book is more of a resource for those who are interested in gardening and growing potatoes, but it provides lots of useful information.
For anyone interested, it is available here (disclosure: affiliate link)
Michael works as a nutritionist in a community setting and holds a Master's Degree in Clinical Nutrition. He is a Registered Associate Nutritionist with the Association for Nutrition.
