Y’all Won’t Believe What Folks in Lawrence County Put in Their Mashed Potatoes
If there’s one dish Southerners will fight over at the dinner table, it’s mashed potatoes. Smooth or chunky? Mayo or sour cream? Butter or broth? When we asked y’all to spill the secrets behind your perfect bowl of taters, the responses were as creamy (and opinionated) as the potatoes themselves.
Team Mayo 🥄
If there were an MVP ingredient in Lawrence County kitchens, it’s apparently mayonnaise. From a simple spoonful to a “heaping tablespoon,” folks swear mayo makes mashed potatoes silky and rich. Some keep it classic—just butter, salt, pepper, and a dollop of mayo—while others go all out, mixing in mayo with sour cream, cream cheese, and even ranch.
One follower put it best: “Mayo makes them creamier.”
The Cream Dream 🥛
Heavy cream, evaporated milk, and buttermilk all had their fans. The rule of thumb? Warm it before mixing! As Amy Matheny warned, “Don’t pour in cold milk and butter. It will give them a glue-like consistency.” Smart advice for avoiding potato paste.
Others kept it simple: “Butter and whole milk, nothing else” or “Lots of butter and warm cream.” In other words—no shortcuts here.
Broth is Boss 🍗
A whole crew of cooks swore by boiling potatoes in chicken broth instead of plain water. Some even use the broth for mashing afterward. That trick, paired with butter, cream, and maybe a sprinkle of garlic powder, was called a “game changer.”
Chunky vs. Creamy Wars ⚔️
The texture debate is alive and well. Some say to mash gently and “don’t beat them to death,” keeping a little lumpiness for that old-fashioned, hearty feel. Others argue for smooth, fluffy perfection with mixers or Potato Pearls (yes, instant potatoes even got some love).
Extra Flavor Boosts 🌿🧄🥓
Y’all didn’t stop at the basics—garlic salt, onion powder, chives, scallions, bacon bits, and cheese all made appearances. One local’s daddy even added sour cream, mayo, ranch, and butter—“best taters you ever put in yo mouth.”
And Then… Outsourcing 🤭
Of course, some of you just let mom, grandma, or even KFC handle the hard work. Because honestly, sometimes that’s the real secret ingredient: letting someone else do it!
So, What’s the Secret?
Turns out, there’s no single answer—just like every family recipe, it depends on what you grew up with. But if Lawrence County had to vote, mayo might just take the crown as the most surprising, most Southern, and most argued-about mashed potato add-in.
👉 Now we’ve got to ask: do you swear by mayo in your mashed potatoes, or do you think that’s a culinary crime?
