I love potatoes. Aside from a brief hiatus in the 90's due to some lingering guilt from my Mr. Potato Head toy (that was a confusing time), they've been a staple in my diet for years. Not only are they one of the most versatile vegetables to eat, it turns out potatoes are also pretty handy. You might even say they're real "spuds" around the house (Ugh, I had to). Besides the ubiquitous broken light bulb removal tip, here are five other ways to use a potato.
Flower arrangements--Want your flowers to stay upright without flower foam? Cut a large potato in half and place the flat side on the bottom of the vase. Use a skewer or ice pick to poke some holes for the stems and arrange away!
Stamp--My favorite elementary school activity was recently revived when I needed to make some quick wrapping paper over the holidays. I cut a potato in half, scraped out a quick pattern and dipped it in paint to turn plain brown paper into artistic (albeit rustic) wrapping.
Remove rust--A cut potato is the perfect texture for scrubbing rust off cast iron, baking pans or gardening tools. Acid in the potato dissolves the rust, and adding soap or salt increases the cleaning power. This is especially great for kitchen jobs where using toxic rust removers are a definite no no. Check out this post for more details.
Hot/cold compress--I remember reading how olden-day ladies would slip hot baked potatoes into their cloak pockets to keep their hands warm on long winter carriage rides. Turns out, potatoes hold their temperature (hot or cold) for a really long time so, in a pinch, a frozen potato can be a great icepack alternative.
Remove tarnish--Potato water contains a residue that can get rid of tarnish. After boiling your dinner, try soaking tarnished silverware in the water for an hour, and then simply wash as usual to make it good as new.
(Image: Shutterstock)
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A spoonful of grated raw potato is fantastic for heartburn and acid reflux.
A little slice of potato will actually get rid of a wart too! I don't remember where I heard about it, but I put a little bit under a bandaid and wrapped it around my daughter's finger - within 10 days the wart was gone.
Grated potato will also help with hemorrhoids!
Some art restorers use a potato as a gentle way to remove grunge from oil paintings.
Ah, sadness... since potatoes are high on the glycemic index table, I'm not eating them any more until I lose the weight I need to lose, and after that only rarely. (They convert to sugars in your system too fast and spike your blood sugar levels fast, you know...)
I miss them...
@katieblackden: I'm not even going to ask.
Cut potato is good on a burn too.
sliced potatoes can be placed under any furniture for easy move, no matter how heavy the piece is!
@rexrayfan: I'm a midwifery apprentice. Least of the squeamish things I see everyday. :P
To add to the above, you can also use potato as a temp lubricant for a squeaky part, just mash it into it and it will help. not saying that if i had the choice of wd 40 and a potato id reach for the spud, but in a pinch.
You can slice it and use it as a way to reduce puffiness around your eyes, same as a cucumber slice
you can also use it to keep goggles and glasses from fogging up, rub raw potato on the lenses and wipe off. You can get a similar effect by using saliva, but for the sake of this article...
Potato can also help with erectile dysfunction. take a potato and slice it in half, use gorilla glue to adhere it underneath your legs and use a couple of chop sticks stuck into the half and some clear scotch tape to attach it. nobody will ever notice it.
Btw, how do you use a potato to move furniture? I would think that you put a potato under the legs of a heavy item and it would just smear and mush apart? Id think you would wind up dragging a streak of mashed potato across your living room floor. ;-)
Remove a busted lightbulb from its socket!! (with the switch off of course!)
Rust tip is really good,..:)
I had never heard the rust tip! I agree, that's a good one.
When attempting to root flowers, especially woody ones, I make a slit in a potato and immediately after taking the cutting, put it in the potato. The moisture in the potato keeps the cutting from wilting, and the nutrition in it helps the cutting to thrive. I use this, especially when taking a cutting from my house to somebody else who lives a distance away.
@katieblackden: Oh, I heard stories that have made my skin crawl! :)