Review: Betty Crocker Simple Recipe Loaded Instant Mashed Potatoes

Since my wife and I both work all week and usually have to catch up on a million things on the weekends, we don't always get a chance to go grocery shopping as often as we used to. So, when we do, we end up stocking up on things we know we will go through quickly. This is especially true when it comes to instant mashed potatoes.

This past weekend, we finally did manage to get to the store and, as always, ended up in that particular aisle. After picking up plain instant mashed potatoes (mostly for the kids), we started looking for something with a bit more of an adult taste and, as a result of this, we bought a packet of loaded mashed potatoes from the Betty Crocker Simple Recipe brand.

As I have mentioned numerous times in other reviews, I'm not a huge instant mashed potato fan and would much rather make them from scratch. But, time constraints pretty much prevent except when it comes to special occasions so, instead, we have to rely on this type of product. However, there is usually a major taste difference and, unfortunately, this product wasn't any different.

As far as making these potatoes is concerned, they were easy enough. All I had to do was add water to the dry potatoes, stir them up and microwave them for a few minutes and they were done. And, to be fair, compared to other instant brands, the taste wasn't as bad.

However, one of the first things I noticed about these potatoes is they were very dry. This is because the 2 cups of water they call for just isn't enough. It was absorbed before I even had the potatoes in the microwave and I imagine a good portion of that evaporated. We ended up having to add milk to the potatoes just to make them edible.

Also, I personally wouldn't describe these as "loaded." There were bits of bacon in them and a bit more flavor than plain instant mashed potatoes. But, it wasn't anything overly special and I probably could have gotten about the same amount of flavor from a couple cheaper brands (or just by buying a plain pack and adding bacon bits).

As a result of all of this, I don't think this was a good purchase for us. I would say they were OK as far as instant potatoes go but they aren't anything that is worth spending a little extra money for.