Mashed potatoes are instantly tastier if you add 1 unusual ingredient

While mashed potatoes are often a comforting and convenient side dish, they can get a little boring. Yet, the popular potato staple can be transformed in a number of simple and delicious ways.

It turns out that while everything from root vegetables to dried tomatoes can elevate your everyday mashed potatoes, this one overlooked kitchen ingredient will add an extra touch of indulgence, is readily found in supermarkets, and can even enrich your diet.

Transforming your humble everyday mashedpotatoesonly requires a handful of crumbled feta. Pairing the feta with black olives will create a completely different kind of taste and a unique pop of colour.

Feta(in moderation, of course) is a good source of calcium, protein, and gut-healthy bacteria, while black olives are rich in antioxidants and Vitamin E.

When it comes to preparing simple, yet nourishing and delicious recipes for her family, recipe creator and mum Anna Baginova, believes that certain ingredients don't need to be avoided. In her quest to transform one of her favourite side dishes she even experiments with spinach, carrots and cheddar cheese.

All her recipes start with her foolproof mashed potato recipe:

How to make the perfect mashed potatoes:

On YouTube, Anna says that she always starts by peeling and cutting the potatoes. She says it's a mindless task that can be done while listening to a podcast.

With mashed potatoes in particular, there's no need to worry about cutting everything to the same shape or size, even. In the end, everything is just going to be mashed together anyway, so it doesn't matter if one potato is a little overcooked.

Another thing Anna says you don't need to worry about when it comes to mashed potatoes is salt. Unlike regular potatoes, which you can't really salt once cooked, Anna says that while she salts the water while boiling, she knows she can always add more salt once her potatoes are mashed.

Once the potatoes are done cooking, she simply drains off the water and, ideally, pops them back on the burner so that any residual water can evaporate from the pot.

She finishes off with a nice chunk of butter, which melts while the potatoes are still hot and mashes her potatoes by hand before adding the milk in gradual amounts.