Growing underground from the roots of their mother plant, potatoes are a type of tuber.
Although from a family comparable to tomatoes and tobacco, their taste and usage are vastly dissimilar.
With so many different ways to prepare them, potatoes truly are one of the world’s most versatile foods.
You may even find yourself eating potato multiple times per day in many of its different forms.
As such, it is important to keep an eye on how many calories there are in a small potato, so that you don’t go over your recommended daily intake.
What To Use A Small Potato For?
In this context, a small potato refers to any potato that is around two inches in diameter.
You can get smaller ones, like baby potatoes or new potatoes, that have different nutritional values.
Fried, baked, boiled. Cut into chips and sprinkled with delicious powder. There are so many ways to prepare a small potato.
Keep in mind that different methods of preparation will have varying results on the final calorie count.
One small potato is large enough to be used as a portion in a meal, to create several bags of chips, or a serving of french fries.
More can be used according to your personal preference, but the nutritional value of a small potato should be taken into consideration.
Nutritional Information
Potatoes are a staple of world cuisine, filling the need for carbs in many different meals. As they are so versatile, you can find them in any number of different forms.
Be it mashed, fried, or boiled, there is bound to be some differences in the nutritional content of a potato depending on how it is prepared.
However, disregarding these elements of preparation, what is in a normal, small, potato? The nutritional values are as follows:
Per one small, two inch (2”) diameter potato, there are:
130 calories
317 mg of sodium
3 grams of fat
24.2 grams of carbs
2.1 grams of which are fiber
1.03 grams of which are sugar
2.07 grams of protein
Calories
To answer the main question at hand, there are 130 calories in a regular small potato. This doesn’t take into account any toppings you add to it, or things you cook it in.
For example, cooking your potato in butter or oil will add a lot of calories to its total, as these things can contain up to over 100 calories per tablespoon.
On the other hand, boiling or poaching a potato is likely to result in little to no increase in its calorie content.
This is because there aren’t any oils being used in these types of cooking.
As 130 calories are equivalent to six percent of your RDI, it is important to make sure that you don’t consume too many potatoes.
Even if they are small, they can still add up.
Sodium
With a sodium content of 317 mg per small potato, this is definitely something to be concerned about. Especially when it comes to over-salting your food.
Salting your potatoes is a great way to improve their flavor, but when it already comes with such a high concentration of sodium, adding more could be dangerous.
Salt in large enough quantities can lead to heart disease, so this is always something to watch out for when balancing your diet.
At fourteen percent of your daily intake of sodium each, even small potatoes still can present quite a sizable threat in this regard.
Carbohydrates
Small potatoes are primarily made up of carbohydrates, which constitute 73% of their nutrition. This makes them great for long-term release of slow-burn energy.
They are also a great source of fiber, with 2.1 grams per potato.
This makes up eight percent of your daily intake, giving you an easy and tasty way to help hit your fiber goals.
Despite this, only 1.03 grams of the carbohydrates are sugars. This means that you eat a lot of them without having to worry about your sugar intake.
At the same time, their amount of general carbs is quite high, so that should still be taken into consideration.
Fat And Protein
Although they are known mostly for their salt and carbohydrate content, potatoes still contain a fair amount of fat and protein.
In fact, one small potato will contain approximately 3 grams of fat and 2 grams of protein.
This doesn’t make up a large percentage of your daily intake, but it can still be a surprising number to some.
Fats and proteins have many benefits and are both part of a balanced, healthy diet.
As such, it should be no cause for alarm to find that small potatoes contain a small amount of each of them.
How Many Small Potatoes Should You Eat?
When it comes to serving your potatoes, keeping an eye on the number you eat is important.
Even if you are only using small potatoes, their calories can add up if you eat too many. More importantly, their salt content is quite high.
In a normal meal, you should only eat two or three small potatoes.
Any more than that can result in too much sodium intake when combined with the rest of your diet.
Without going over your daily intake of sodium, which is the highest proportion of the daily intakes in a potato’s nutritional values, you can eat up to seven small potatoes a day.
This is not recommended, as it won’t leave any room for other types of food.
Final Thoughts
Potatoes really are one of the best foods in the world. Since you can make them shine in so many different ways, you will always find one that you like.
A small potato will have up to 130 calories in it, giving a sizable meal that won’t be too unhealthy for you. They have plenty of nutrients, and taste great as well.
By keeping an eye on your overall calorie intake, you should be able to enjoy a small potato without worrying about its calories.
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