According to VLAM, the Flanders Agricultural Marketing Board, there is currently a revival of interest in exclusive potatoes, such as Vitelotte, a truffle potato with a long, oval shape and thick dark purple skin, and Ratte, a small, elongated, yellow-skinned potato. Both varieties are included in the Flandria Specialty Street range.
“When it comes to the Flandria quality mark, the peel quality of Vitelotte is very important,” said Luc Van Ootegem, a grower from Assenede. “This truffle potato lends itself brilliantly to being cooked in its skin. So it needs to look very attractive on the plate. This means that an undamaged skin is a major quality criterion. For our Flandria Vitelotte potatoes, we hand-grade the potatoes with an unblemished skin.”
Vitelotte is an old French potato variety, and a late one, available from November until April or May. According to VLAM, no specialist vegetable section is complete without the Vitelotte and Ratte in its festive range.
