Wild potato species can be found from the southern United States to southern Chile. Genetic studies show that the cultivated potato has a single origin, in the area of present-day southern Peru and extreme northwestern Bolivia. Potatoes were domesticated there about 7,000–10,000 years ago from a species in the S. brevicaule complex. Many varieties of the potato are cultivated in the Andes region of South America, where the species is indigenous.

The Spanish introduced potatoes to Europe in the second half of the 16th century from the Americas. They are a staple food in many parts of the world and an integral part of much of the world's food supply. Following millennia of selective breeding, there are now over 5,000 different varieties of potatoes. The potato remains an essential crop in Europe, especially Northern and Eastern Europe, where per capita production is still the highest in the world, while the most rapid expansion in production during the 21st century was in southern and eastern Asia, with China and India leading the world production as of 2023.

Like the tomato and the nightshades, the potato is in the genus Solanum; the aerial parts of the potato contain the toxin solanine. Normal potato tubers that have been grown and stored properly produce glycoalkaloids in negligible amounts, but if sprouts and potato skins are exposed to light, tubers can become toxic.

The English word "potato" comes from Spanish patata, in turn from Taíno batata, which means "sweet potato", not the plant now known as simply "potato".

The name "spud" for a potato is from the 15th century spudde, a short and stout knife or dagger, probably related to Danish spyd, "spear". Through semantic change, the general sense of short and thick was transferred to the tuber from around 1840.

At least seven languages: Afrikaans, Dutch, Low Saxon, French, (West) Frisian, Hebrew, Persian and some variants of German, use a term for "potato" that means "earth apple" or "ground apple", from an earlier sense of both pome and apple, referring in general to a (apple-shaped) fruit or vegetable.



There are two major subspecies of S. tuberosum. The Andean potato, S. tuberosum andigena, is adapted to the short-day conditions prevalent in the mountainous equatorial and tropical regions where it originated. The Chilean potato S. tuberosum tuberosum, native to the Chiloé Archipelago, is in contrast adapted to the long-day conditions prevalent in the higher latitude region of southern Chile.

Following the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, the Spanish introduced the potato to Europe in the second half of the 16th century as part of the Columbian exchange. The staple was subsequently conveyed by European mariners (possibly including the Russian-American Company) to territories and ports throughout the world, especially their colonies. European and colonial farmers were slow to adopt farming potatoes. However, after 1750, they became an important food staple and field crop and played a major role in the European 19th century population boom. According to conservative estimates, the introduction of the potato was responsible for a quarter of the growth in Old World population and urbanization between 1700 and 1900. However, lack of genetic diversity, due to the very limited number of varieties initially introduced, left the crop vulnerable to disease. In 1845, a plant disease known as late blight, caused by the fungus-like oomycete Phytophthora infestans, spread rapidly through the poorer communities of western Ireland as well as parts of the Scottish Highlands, resulting in the crop failures that led to the Great Irish Famine.

It had been thought that most potato cultivars derived from a single origin in southern Peru and extreme Northwestern Bolivia, from a species in the S. brevicaule complex. DNA analysis however shows that more than 99% of all current varieties of potatoes are direct descendants of a subspecies that once grew in the lowlands of south-central Chile.

There are some 5,000 potato varieties worldwide, 3,000 of them in the Andes alone — mainly in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, and Colombia. Over 100 cultivars might be found in a single valley, and a dozen or more might be maintained by a single agricultural household. The European Cultivated Potato Database is an online collaborative database of potato variety descriptions updated and maintained by the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency within the framework of the European Cooperative Programme for Crop Genetic Resources Networks—which is run by the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute. Around 80 varieties are commercially available in the UK.

For culinary purposes, varieties are often differentiated by their waxiness: floury or mealy baking potatoes have more starch (20–22%) than waxy boiling potatoes (16–18%). The distinction may also arise from variation in the comparative ratio of two different potato starch compounds: amylose and amylopectin. Amylose, a long-chain molecule, diffuses from the starch granule when cooked in water, and lends itself to dishes where the potato is mashed. Varieties that contain a slightly higher amylopectin content, which is a highly branched molecule, help the potato retain its shape after being boiled in water. Potatoes that are good for making potato chips or potato crisps are sometimes called "chipping potatoes", which means they meet the basic requirements of similar varietal characteristics, being firm, fairly clean, and fairly well-shaped.

Immature potatoes may be sold fresh from the field as "creamer" or "new" potatoes and are particularly valued for their taste. They are typically small in size and tender, with a loose skin, and flesh containing a lower level of starch than other potatoes. In the United States they are generally either a Yukon Gold potato or a red potato, called gold creamers or red creamers respectively. In the UK, the Jersey Royal is a famous type of new potato.

Potato dishes vary around the world. Peruvian cuisine naturally contains the potato as a primary ingredient in many dishes, as around 3,000 varieties of the tuber are grown there. Chuño is a freeze-dried potato product traditionally made by Quechua and Aymara communities of Peru and Bolivia. In the UK, potatoes form part of the traditional dish fish and chips. Roast potatoes are commonly served as part of a Sunday roast dinner and mashed potatoes form a major component of several other traditional dishes, such as shepherd's pie, bubble and squeak, and bangers and mash. New potatoes may be cooked with mint and are often served with butter. In Germany, Northern Europe (Finland, Latvia and especially Scandinavian countries), Eastern Europe (Russia, Belarus and Ukraine) and Poland, newly harvested, early ripening varieties are considered a special delicacy. Boiled whole and served un-peeled with dill, these "new potatoes" are traditionally consumed with Baltic herring. Puddings made from grated potatoes (kugel, kugelis, and potato babka) are popular items of Ashkenazi, Lithuanian, and Belarusian cuisine. Cepelinai, the national dish of Lithuania, are dumplings made from boiled grated potatoes, usually stuffed with minced meat. In Italy, in the Friuli region, potatoes serve to make a type of pasta called gnocchi. Potato is used in northern China where rice is not easily grown, a popular dish being 青椒土豆丝 (qīng jiāo tǔ dòu sī), made with green pepper, vinegar and thin slices of potato. In the winter, roadside sellers in northern China sell roasted potatoes.

The alphabetical list of all the potato-based recipes on this site follows, (limited to 100 recipes per page). There are 873 recipes in total:

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Classic Potato Salad      Origin: Ireland	Croquetas de Papa y Quinoa (Chilean Quinoa Croquettes)      Origin: Chile	East African Prawn Curry      Origin: East Africa
Colcannon      Origin: Ireland	Croquettes de Pommes de Terre Dauphine (Dauphine Potato Croquettes)      Origin: France	East African Shrimp Curry      Origin: East Africa
Colcannon II      Origin: Ireland	Crusty Garlic Potatoes      Origin: Ireland	East African Vegetable Soup      Origin: East Africa
Colcannon Soup      Origin: Ireland	Cullen Broth      Origin: Scotland	Egg Masala      Origin: India
Colombo de Porc (Pork Colombo Curry)      Origin: Sint Maarten	Cullen Skink      Origin: Scotland	El Cocido      Origin: Spain
Colombo de Porc (Pork Colombo Curry)      Origin: Saint-Martin	Cumin Potatoes with Peas      Origin: Ireland	English Cottage Pie      Origin: England
Colombo de Poulet (Colombo Chicken Curry)      Origin: Martinique	Curried Alexanders Leaves      Origin: Britain	Eog wedi ei Bobi gyda Thatws a Teim (Salmon Baked with Potatoes and Thyme)      Origin: Welsh
Comfrey Aloo      Origin: Fusion	Curried Beef in Red Wine      Origin: Britain	Estofado (Chilean Beef Stew)      Origin: Chile
Congre à la bretonne (Breton-style Conger Eel)      Origin: France	Curried Gazelle      Origin: Zambia	Fah-Fah (Soupe Djiboutienne)      Origin: Djibouti
Corn and Potato Chowder      Origin: Ireland	Curried Goat      Origin: Jamaica	Fat Hen and Potato Gratin      Origin: British
Cornish Cauliflower and Cheese Soup      Origin: England	Curried Neck of Mutton Potjie      Origin: Namibia	Fava Pure e Cicorielle (Mashed Broad Beans with Potatoes and Chicory)      Origin: Italy
Cornish Crab Chowder      Origin: England	Curried Vegetables      Origin: East Africa	Fettat Adis      Origin: Sudan
Cornish Cutting Pie      Origin: England	Curry Chicken with Potatoes      Origin: Trinidad	Fig, Walnut and Orange Cake      Origin: Ireland
Cornish Fish Cakes      Origin: Britain	Curry Mouan (Chicken Curry)      Origin: Cambodia	Fijian Chicken and Potato Curry      Origin: Fiji
Cornish Fish Pie      Origin: England	Curry Udon      Origin: Japan	Filipino Chicken Curry      Origin: Philippines
Cornish Pasty Pie      Origin: England	Cuspajz (Croatian Cabbage and Potato Soup)      Origin: Croatia	Filipino Chicken Curry 2      Origin: Philippines
Cornish Potato Cakes      Origin: England	Cybolfa Bryn Teg (Bryn Teg Hash)      Origin: Welsh	Fish and Fennel Sauté      Origin: Britain
Cornish Seaside Chowder with Saffron      Origin: England	Dakbungalow Chicken Curry      Origin: Anglo-Indian	Fish Breyani      Origin: South Africa
Cornish Under-roast      Origin: England	Dama be Potaatas (Beef and Potato Stew)      Origin: Sudan	Fish Pie with Dulse      Origin: Scotland
Cottage Pie      Origin: Britain	Dandelion Potato Gratin      Origin: Britain	Fish Puffs      Origin: Britain
Country Style Guinea Fowl Potje      Origin: Southern Africa	Dhan Saag Dhal      Origin: India	Fish Stew      Origin: Guinea-Bissau
County Cork Irish Stew      Origin: Ireland	Dippy      Origin: England	Fiskibollur (Icelandic Fish Balls with Curry Sauce)      Origin: Iceland
Crab and Potato Soup      Origin: Scotland	Dirty Fries      Origin: American	Fläskfilé med sås och ugnsstekta grönsaker (Pork Fillet with Sauce and Roast Vegetables)      Origin: Sweden
Creamed Garlicky Potatoes      Origin: France	Dominica Red Beans Soup      Origin: Dominica	Flødekartofler (Scalloped Potatoes)      Origin: Denmark
Creamy Garlic Mash      Origin: Britain	Dopiazeh      Origin: Iran	Fluffy Mashed Swedes      Origin: Britain
Creamy Monkfish and Shellfish Potpie      Origin: British	Draenog y Môr o'r Badell gyda Tatws Newydd wedi Malu a Saets (Pan-fried Sea Bass with Garlic and Sage Smashed New Potatoes)      Origin: Welsh	Focaccia Barese      Origin: Italy
Creamy Potato and Vegetable Pie      Origin: Ireland	Draniki      Origin: Belarus	Fonio Bread      Origin: Fusion
Creamy Potato Gratin      Origin: Britain	Dublin Coddle      Origin: Ireland	Fricase de Pollo (Cuban Chicken Fricassee)      Origin: Cuba
Cregyn Bylchog wedi Gradellu (Grilled Scallops)      Origin: Welsh	Dublin Coddle      Origin: Ireland	Fried Camel      Origin: UAE
Cregyn Cylchog wedi Grilio (Grilled Scallops)      Origin: Welsh	Duck Curry with Aubergine and Bamboo      Origin: Vietnam	Fried Potatoes with Rosemary and Garlic      Origin: Ireland
Crockpot Brunswick Stew      Origin: American	Dulse Potato Cakes      Origin: Ireland	Frikadelu Zupa (Meatball Soup)      Origin: Latvia
Crockpot Corned Beef and Cabbage      Origin: Ireland	Durban Bunny Chow      Origin: South Africa	Frites Belges (Belgian Fries)      Origin: Belgium
Crockpot Curry Hotpot      Origin: Fusion	Durban Cornish Hen Curry      Origin: South Africa
Crofter Broth      Origin: Scotland	Durban-style Mutton Curry with Potatoes and Dumplings      Origin: South Africa

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