Yea. I rarely buy a bag of russets, I usually only cook with baby yellow taters and store in the fridge.
First, don't refridgerate uncooked potatoes.
The rule is simple: Cool (not cold), dry, dark. Like Dr. Frankenstein's assembled man, potatoes are
alive! (So are many other veggies, btw, but that's an aside.) But definitely no exposure to light. That causes them to sprout.
Cool, dry and dark is what caused pioneers to create root cellars for winter storage of potatoes, turnips, carrots and a variety of other veggies. And if they've sprouted very much, with greening of the potato flesh, you shouldn't eat them. Aside from the tubers, potato plants are seriously poisonous, and that greening is a signal that they have begun to produce the alkali organic chemicals that ain't good for you.
Properly stored, potatoes can last numerous weeks, but unless you grow your own, why bother? They are ubiquitously available year-round at the grocery in most places, and I've never noticed much variation in prices. Buy them as you need them, within a week or two at most. They'll be fresher and better that way, too.
caw
