After a few days of soft, pillowy servings of the stuff morning, noon, and night, I even turned them into fried potato pancakes. It didn’t take long for my mother to give up peeling and mashing ...

Add about a 1/4 cup at a time and mash the mixture around until the potatoes have the consistency of Play-Doh, or clay. I used 1 cup of hot water for 1 1/3 cups of potato flakes.

Instant mashed potatoes are "richer" if you add more of one ingredient, a social media user claims. Mash is a comforting British side dish, perfect for cold winter nights.