OF all the things you might want to unwrap this Christmas, a golden potato is perhaps low on the list.

But Tesco has urged its customers to do just that by launching a very special brand of spuds... and they come in a box.

The “Mayan Gold” potato, grown by Fenland-based Greenvale AP, will be available exclusively at the supermarket from early December.

The spuds are said to be “almost identical” to the variety Sir Walter Raleigh brought back with him for Queen Elizabeth I more than 400 years ago.

Greenvale, the country’s leading potato supplier, has bred the Mayan Golds from an ancient species grown in the wilds of Peru - some of which are more than 7,000 years old.

The potatoes, which mature later than many other varieties, have a golden coloured flesh due to unusually high levels of carotene.

They are said to have a buttery taste and they require just half the cooking time needed for other potatoes.

Andrew Blackett, a potato buyer at Tesco, said: “Mayan Gold make a really great roast potato and are an essential accompaniment for that special family Christmas dinner.”