Upon being exposed to oxygen, these varied fruits and vegetables have a common enzyme known as polyphenol oxidase.
This enzyme, PPO, reacts with oxygen to generate a brown or grayish tinge on peeled potatoes or chopped fruit, according to The Spruce Eats.
Therefore, the crucial question is whether or not it is safe to ingest potatoes with this ugly grayish colour.
The good news is that this reaction does not deteriorate or harm the potatoes' quality, making them completely safe to consume.
Polish gray potatoes are fantastic if your potatoes aren't the right color. If you're cooking for people and care about presentation, you can prevent oxidation.
According to Taste of Home, you must expose enzymes to something cold or acidic in order to deactivate them.
Start by covering your peeled potatoes with around 1 inch of really cold water; this will significantly slow down the oxidation process.
Adding lemon juice or distilled white vinegar to cold water helps protect potatoes from browning overnight.
According to The Spruce Eats, placing peeled potatoes in cold water until the remainder of the batch has been peeled can prevent oxidation.
When shredding potatoes for hash browns or latkes, a small amount of ascorbic acid will magically restore their color by adjusting the pH.