Nicole Enayati’s Microwaveable Thanksgiving Shortcut

Welcome to Mythical Kitchen Picks, the series in which the culinary experts from Mythical Kitchen tell you all about their favorite foods and ingredients. Since Thanksgiving (aka the biggest grocery store-centric holiday of the year) is just around the corner, we asked the Mythical Kitchen team for their top time-saving products for prepping Thanksgiving dinner. Today, Nicole Enayati is giving you permission to delegate mashed potato duty to a brand that knows what they’re doing when it comes to packaged comfort food.

Nicole’s Thanksgiving Pick: Bob Evans Mashed Potatoes

nicole enayati mythical kitchen mashed potatoes — Credit: Liv Averett / Mythical Entertainment / Walmart

When I was just starting out at Mythical entertainment as a kitchen assistant, we had to get our hands on mashed potatoes for one reason or another. Maybe we were making Link into a Thanksgiving plate or something? Who knows. Anyway, I didn’t have the time or the bandwidth to make my own mashed potatoes. So, I asked a runner to get whatever premade mashed potatoes were available at the grocery store—none of that instant potato flake stuff, though; we had some standards.

As soon as this box of frozen mashed potatoes came in, I threw ‘em in the microwave and heated it per the instructions on the box. I gave them a little finger swipe and tasted them. WOAH. I never knew pre-packaged mashed potatoes could taste THIS good. Bless the runner who picked them up, because I would’ve never known they existed if it wasn’t for them. They are perfectly seasoned—not too much salt and not too little. The potatoes are never mealy, either. There is also a slight butteriness that I absolutely adore; it’s not even a bit overpowering. If you are strapped for time this Thanksgiving, I highly recommend buying these mashed potatoes. The original ones are the best of the whole lot, too. You can keep them as is or alter them however you like! Some goat cheese and chives mixed in make this feel super special and classy for your Thanksgiving tablescape.

Buy from Kroger

Want to see how the Sporked team ranked Nicole’s favorite mashed potatoes? Check out their ranking of the best premade mashed potatoes.

About the Author

The Sporked Staff tastes everything and anything. They are obsessive about groceries and finding the best of any type of food or drink, from frozen fried shrimp to Dijon mustard to gummy candy. And they're always on a hunt for the best new products. When they aren't eating professionally, they're eating recreationally. And often they're browsing grocery store aisles, just for fun.