I've grown Yukon Gold potatoes for the past several years. This year almost all of them had these hollow(?) spots in the center - at least all the larger ones. Usually no visible blemish on the outside, but it almost looks like some of the potatoes skin has formed in the center. (The ones in this pic have been cooked in the microwave.)
According to Michegan State "Black Heart
This is not a disease of any sort, but a physiological condition. Black heart occurs primarily in storage when the tubers are not receiving enough oxygen. The tissue dies from the inside out and turns jet black. A smell is absent. Increasing air flow and decreasing storage density can halt this condition. The tubers will not become healthy once this has occurred". I do know that some years it seems to be much more prevalent than others and I am not yet fully convinced that it is purely a curing problem.
Farmerdill, also, I've heard, it can be caused by too much rain and/or too fast a tuber growth.
Thanks to both of you for your info. This was present from the day they were dug, and we did have more rain than usual this year, so I'm inclined to think that may be the cause in my case. But "black heart"?? The centers don't look black to me - in reality, though they may appear that way in the photo. It really looks as though bits of potato skin are trapped in the center.
MartyJo, yup that what it sounds like, we had a lot of rain here also and I had a few big ones like this. It's not uncommon, we always called it 'hollow heart'.
