The phrase potatoes and point involves a family tradition from times of scarcity when eaters would point to an imaginary food and ask for it to be passed when there was clearly no such food to be had. Irish sources trace potatoes and point to the...
What are jo-jo potatoes? Starting in the 1960s, fried potato wedges took that name in some of the Northern states. Jo-jos were often served in restaurants that also made a type of chicken which requires a special type of deep-fat fryer. Jo-jos are...
“You really love peeled potatoes.” That’s a translation of a Venezuelan idiom describing someone who’s lazy. Grant and Martha share other idioms from South America. This is part of a complete episode.
What do you call the crust that forms in the corners of your eyes when you sleep? Sleepy dust, sleepy sand, eyejam, eye boogers, eye potatoes, sleep sugar, eye crusties, sleepyjacks. An Indiana man wonders if anyone else uses his family’s term...
If a restaurant menu states, “We cook off our potatoes,” what in the heck does that mean? A truck driver who encountered such an announcement at a roadside cafe is still puzzling over what it means to “cook off” a tuber. He...
chitting n.— «Then sprout the potatoes before you plant them. This time-honored process, known as “chitting,” gives them a head start and often increases your eventual yield.» —“How to Spur On Early Spuds” by...

