From Famine to Feast: How Potatoes Have Transformed Nordic Tables

The potato looks back on a long history: First cultivated in the Andes millennia ago, it came to Europe by coincidence. Christopher Columbus brought it back with him after discovering the “New World”, inadvertently setting off the first wave of globalization in European kitchens along with his other cargo–cocoa, maize and tomatoes. It would take several generations, however, for the potato to gain traction. Initially, Europeans distrusted this member of the famously toxic nightshade family (Solanaceae), proving themselves highly hesitant to cultivate the crop.