If you do one thing this week . . . eat a serving of seasonal spuds

The humble spud has been hanging around our national plate for so long it’s easy to overlook it.

But if you eat potatoes freshly boiled, steamed or baked in their skins, they offer useful doses of fibre as well as B vitamins, vitamin C and potassium.

To help ensure you get the most health benefit from the tubers, try to avoid peeling, cubing or shredding potatoes before cooking as this can reduce the nutrient content.

Potatoes contain negligible amounts of fat, but processed versions such as frozen chips or waffles can contain more. And when adding fats to spuds during cooking or on the plate, bear in mind that a drizzle of olive oil can offer a more heart-friendly alternative to piling on the saturated or processed fats. The potato has pride of

place this month in a campaign by Bord Bia to encourage us to eat fresh, seasonal produce. The website offers a calendar of fruits and vegetables in season, see bestinseason.ie

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