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‘Tis The Season For Spud Salad

Rick Bonino Food Editor

You just can’t have a picnic without potatoes.

Cooked, chopped and mixed with mayo and other goodies, they make a tasty, traditional salad. Sliced thin, fried and salted, they make an addictively crispy snack.

In preparation for picnic season, The Spokesman-Review’s reader food panel sampled some deli potato salads along with an assortment of chips.

Somewhat surprisingly, Safeway’s fat-free red potato salad got about as good a grade as anyone for taste (a result I reconfirmed at my own Memorial Day weekend cookout). But the price was pretty hefty - more than $2 a pound, the highest among our salad samples.

Resers was a clear choice over Rosauers’ drier deli offering, from Stone Mill, in the full-fat competition. But given the generally mediocre marks, the message from panel members seemed clear: “Make your own!”

That’s not as much of an option when it comes to potato chips (although you’re certainly welcome to try).

If you’d rather leave the frying to someone else, the panel pegged Lays (“Bet you can’t eat just one”) as the top choice among the three chips they tried.

Not coincidentally, perhaps, Lays also contained the most fat. While the reduced-fat Ruffles (also from Frito-Lay) were deemed decent, there was little enthusiasm for Louise’s melt-in-your-mouth nonfat version - which, again, was pricey, costing about twice as much per ounce as the others. (If you want healthy food, you’ve got to pay for it!)

So, picnic pals, enjoy those spuds. And don’t forget to save the sacks for the big race.

Resers Potato Salad

Price: $1.49 for 14 ounces ($1.70 per pound).

Nutrition: 250 calories (56 percent fat calories); 550 milligrams sodium in 1/2 cup.

Taste: ***

Value: ***

Comments: “Good flavor, solid potato chunks, creamy, lots of pickles and red pepper.” - Jim McGinty.

“Nice red pepper taste but, overall, a bit too sweet for me.” - Maria Ranniger.

“Too sweet, too few seasonings. Kids would like it; it’s bland - definitely not ‘Mom’s.”’ - Stacy Casto.

Safeway Red Potato Salad, Fat Free

Price: $4.45 for 2.03 pounds ($2.19 per pound).

Nutrition: No label provided.

Taste: ***

Value: ***

Comments: “An interesting variation. Red skins left on. Tastes pretty real but has a lot of mayo. Not bad for fat-free.” - Susi Faville.

“Attractive, yet lacking something. Potatoes were hard to find.” - Jim Eggers.

“Lots of stuff in it but not much taste to it. Red potatoes good, but the more I eat, the less I like it.” - Meagan Coffey.

Stone Mill Potato Salad (from Rosauers’ deli)

Price: $2.85 for 2.21 pounds ($1.29 per pound).

Nutrition: No nutrition label provided.

Taste: **

Value: ***

Comments:”Potatoes dry and blah, dressing had a nice taste.” - Mary Aegerter.

“Looks fair, nice flavor, nice texture, good aftertaste.” - Larry Kelly.

“Not much color, bland flavor. Not impressed.” - Mary Lou Crouter.

Lays Potato Chips

Price: $1.43 for 6 ounces.

Nutrition: 150 calories (60 percent fat calories); 180 milligrams sodium in 1 ounce (20 chips).

Taste: ****

Value: ***

Comments: “These are the real thing! Not bad, not too greasy.” - Maria Ranniger.

“Oil stains on the fingers! Good stuff! Crunchy, salt just right - hand me a lemonade.” - Jim McGinty.

“Aaah.” - Mary Aegerter.

Ruffles Reduced Fat Potato Chips

Price: $2.49 for 13 ounces.

Nutrition: 130 calories (42 percent fat calories); 130 milligrams sodium in 1 ounce (16 chips).

Taste: ***

Value: ***

Comments: “Thick, durable, decreased fat and decreased flavor.” - Stacy Casto.

“Just the right amount of oil, not too greasy, but not too bland and dry, either. I usually like chips with more fat, but these are great.” - Paul Norris.

“A little ‘meatier’ than regular chips, similar flavor.” - Susi Faville.

Louise’s Fat-Free Potato Chips

Price: $1.69 for 4 ounces.

Nutrition: 110 calories (no fat); 180 milligrams sodium in 1 ounce (30 chips).

Taste: **

Value: **

Comments: “Are they real potatoes? Smells funny, kind of shiny.” - Mary Lou Crouter.

“Good crunch, but tastes like packing popcorn” - Meagan Coffey.

“Tastes like tissue paper.” - Jan Robison

, DataTimes MEMO: Products sampled by The Spokesman-Review’s reader food panel are bought at a retail store and prepared in a test kitchen according to package instructions. Panelists are not aware of a product’s brand name or price until after they have tasted it. Products are rated for taste and for value, based on quality compared to price.

Products sampled by The Spokesman-Review’s reader food panel are bought at a retail store and prepared in a test kitchen according to package instructions. Panelists are not aware of a product’s brand name or price until after they have tasted it. Products are rated for taste and for value, based on quality compared to price.