Since I have now developed an appetite for potatoes just by reading this — not your fault!! – I looked this up. Have never thought much one way or the other about them, Christy.
According to the site somethingnewfordinner.com — see the article on potatoes — the glycemic index of a potato can be lowered by eating them in combination with fat (olive oil, sour cream, avocade [a new one!!]), acids, proteins, fiber, other lower GI foods.
Also, eat the skin (adds fiber, which helps lower GI) …the article lists your cook and cool method…boil waxy potatoes rather than the russet variety …and pick sweet potatoes instead.
The glycemic index that we read for potatoes is “based on eating food in isolation” – interesting…OK … serving them with black beans as you do and with avocado probably fixes the problem.
I’m still not so sure the glycemic index is all that big a deal. It basically is a measure of how quickly the glucose level peaks after eating something. Eating fiber or something else with it does not alter the amount of glucose absorbed in the long run, but just slows it down blunting the peak but extending it lengthwise. Fats slow how fast the stomach empties. Glycemic index is used in marketing a lot. Agave syrup for example is touted as as low glycemic index sweetener, but that is because it is very high in fructose and just does not have as much glucose in it as table sugar. If fact, it is a lot higher in fructose than high fructose corn syrup.
That is an interesting set of points. You are right and the term is good for marketing. It at least alerts us to an aspect of the dietary process…And possibly a good thing for diabetics. There always seems to be more to the story though, such as the high fructose in agave syrup…