Have you ever tried a high-quality loaded baked potato at a restaurant and thought about how incredibly tasty and filling they make them? It just seems like these restaurants’ chefs have some hidden talent or had years of experience making great food. Well, in reality, you can easily make gourmet-style baked potatoes right at home. This recipe will help you recreate this amazing meal from scratch, and with little effort, too.
Baked potatoes are one of the best breakfast side dishes, and for good reason. They are high in soluble fibers and vitamins, which are important for any good breakfast, and people of all diets can eat them. Loaded baked potatoes enhance the bland taste of potatoes and, if you’re creative with them, can even work as a full meal replacement. It is a rather versatile food, giving you plenty of options when it comes to ingredients and baking methods.
Benefits Of Eating Loaded Baked Potatoes (When Done Right!)
Initial Downsides
Loaded baked potatoes have a reputation for being unhealthy, since many recipes call for ingredients such as bacon, cheese, butter, and salt, which can cause heart problems in excess. Additionally, baking previously chilled potatoes may cause a chemical called acrylamide to form, which causes nerve and reproductive damage in high doses (courtesy of Healthline).
To prevent unhealthy side effects from occurring, store your potatoes in a cool, dark place like a pantry, instead of your fridge. Chilled potatoes may cause additional acrylamide to form. Second, make sure you are placing healthy toppings on your baked potatoes like veggies, herbs, and trusted dairy ingredients. These precautions will help you keep your potatoes fresh and suitable for consumption.
Nutrition
Potatoes contain lots of micronutrients, regardless of the type of potato you use. Many potato varieties taste unique, but there is very little difference in their individual nutrition value. In other words, all potatoes tend to have the same vitamins and minerals, with any differences being rather negligible. If you do not include potatoes in your diet, they are worth trying out since they have many health benefits, even when baked.
Firstly, potatoes are high in magnesium and potassium, similar to bananas. Potassium helps your body maintain its metabolism and support a healthy nervous system. It also speeds up the body’s absorption rate in the digestive system. Magnesium is important for maintaining a healthy neuromuscular system and regulating blood sugar.
Potato skins can also be very good for you if you rinse them off with clean water first. The skin contains niacin (Vitamin B3) and iron, which are not found in high amounts inside the potato. B3 is great for white blood cell development and absorption of other nutrients, like potassium.
Iron, which is sorely lacking in most people’s diets, mainly supports red blood cell health and development. Without iron, your blood will not be able to transport oxygen as easily, which could lead to reduced energy and headaches, or worse, strokes and heart disease. Note that it does not matter whether you bake the potato skin or not-you will still be getting all the skin’s great nutrients.
Baked potatoes are filled with other important vitamins and minerals as well. Phosphorus, manganese, folate, fiber, vitamin C, and vitamin B6 are all found in potatoes.
When eating loaded baked potatoes, pair them with foods high in protein and fiber, like scrambled eggs or whole wheat waffles. That way, you can consume a complete and balanced breakfast that will give you all the nutrients your body needs. When served as a side dish to main breakfast meals, baked potatoes become a fantastic way to ward off hunger and maintain high energy throughout the whole day.
As long as you put healthy ingredients in your loaded baked potatoes such as vegetables and herbs, they are a great, nutritious breakfast dish.
Baking vs. Frying Your Loaded Baked Potato
Try not to fry potatoes too much, because that is when potatoes can get unhealthy. The most common ways people fry potatoes are when they are making potato chips or French fries, and both foods have been correlated with unhealthy weight gain, heart disease, and obesity in many Americans. In general, eating too much fried foods is a terrible idea since frying adds lots of unnecessary calories.
Baking your potatoes, however, is good, because the potato retains its essential nutrients during the baking process. Baking also doesn’t add any additional calories. So, if you want to stay healthy, keep away from fried potato sources, as tempting as they are!
Ingredients Required
This recipe uses russet potatoes as the main ingredient, as they are the most reliable and stable potato type for baking. Other potato types are either too small to use, like Yukon gold, or too strong in flavor, like sweet potatoes.
- Russet potatoes. These potatoes are best for baking since they easily come out light and fluffy. Your potatoes should be at least 4 inches long, and the baking tips below will teach you how to open them like a jacket when baked.
- Shredded cheese. We need just enough cheese to make the flavor irresistible, but not so much cheese that it adds unnecessary calories and fat. Mozzarella and swiss are great cheese varieties to use.
- Steamed broccoli. Adds great nutrients, moisture, and savory flavor to your potatoes.
- Sour cream. It’s easy to slather onto your potatoes and helps to hold the cheese shreds together. It also complements the overall taste nicely. If you want to avoid using too much dairy, try using mayonnaise instead.
- Chives. This is the easiest chopped herb to add, although you can add other herbs as well.
- Salt/pepper. Sprinkle as much or as little as you want, either on the potato meat or over all the ingredients at the end.
- Optional: Guacamole. Wow, does guacamole go great with these potatoes! It helps add healthy fat and nutrients to your potatoes.
- Optional: Chili. Thick chilis with ingredients like black beans and ground beef make your potatoes taste even better, but don’t put too much. Leftover chili from previous meals works perfectly.
- Olive oil. We will be using this just to slather on to the baked potatoes with a butter brush. You only need to use as much as necessary to coat the entire potato in a light film.
- Any other toppings you like. They are not mandatory, but there are lots of other options to choose from. Different cheese types like cheddar and parmesan, herbs like oregano and dill, and bacon bits are just a few examples of good toppings to use.
Baking Tips
The key to great baked potatoes is to have a crispy, chewy skin, and a fluffy, mouthwatering interior. You can use either an air fryer or conventional oven.
Make sure to create ventilation holes by stabbing the potato with a fork. Make about 7 stabs, not too hard, and you don’t have to go that deep, either. About a fourth of an inch will do. You can choose to bake a single potato, but it’s much more efficient to do more. You can fit about 4-6 russet potatoes on an average-sized pan.
To bake a loaded baked potato as good as possible, you must bake it for around 60 minutes at 400 F (204 C). This should be done with your oven rack at about medium level. Then, after the 60 minutes have passed, take it out and slather it with your oil basting brush. Top it off with some salt, then place it back in the oven, with the oven rack raised a level or two. This process applies to all of the potatoes in your pan. Bake for an additional 10 minutes.
This is a somewhat long process, but it ensures that your baked potato’s skin will have maximum crispness. An incredibly soft, fluffy inside and a savory, crisp outside is key to a great loaded baked potato. Best of all, it works with as many potatoes as you can fit on your pan, enabling you to batch create them for multiple people.
Open Your Potato Like A Jacket (Jacket Potato)
It is also important to know how to open your baked potatoes like a jacket. The easiest way to do this is to carve a “plus sign” on top of your baked potato with a knife, then gently open it by pushing the sides together with your hands. When done right, the baked potato will open up like a little bowl or pocket, and from there you can add all of your toppings.
These tips are very useful for making your loaded baked potatoes the best they can possibly be. At an absolute minimum, make sure you stab holes in the potatoes and bake them for no less than 45 minutes. Loaded baked potatoes work best as a breakfast side dish and they are incredibly satisfying.
Loaded Baked Potatoes (Restaurant-Style)
Equipment
- 1 fork
- 1 basting brush
- aluminum foil for wrapping the potatoes
- 1 basting brush to help with oil coating
- 1 oven-resistant glove
Ingredients
- 4-6 large russet potatoes
- shredded cheese
- steamed broccoli
- sour cream
- chopped chives or sliced green onions
- salt/pepper for seasoning and coating
- mild guacamole optional
- small amount of black bean chili optional
- olive oil for coating
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400°F (204°C). Make sure your oven's metal rack is in or near the middle level.
- Take out 4-6 large russet potatoes and rinse them with warm water. Carefully poke 7-10 sets of holes on the potatoes with a fork for ventilation.
- Take a basting brush. Use it to coat the potatoes in a thin layer of olive oil, then season them with salt and pepper, and wrap each potato tightly in aluminum foil, but leave a little bit of air out for ventilation. The foil helps the potatoes heat up faster and prevents future cleanup.
- Place all potatoes on a baking sheet, making sure it is large enough to fit all of the potatoes. Place the sheet in your preheated oven,
- Bake for one hour, or until the potatoes are soft. Bigger russet potatoes take around 60 minutes to cook while smaller ones take around 45 minutes.
- When the time has passed, remove the baking sheet from your oven, and coat each potato with olive oil once again. Raise the metal rack in your oven one level up.
- Put the baking sheet in your oven, and bake for another 10 minutes.
- Once finished, take out the baking sheet and cut open the potatoes to add toppings. Put in as much as toppings as your potato will have space for. Wait until the baked potatoes to cool before serving.
- (Alternative Step) Skip steps 4-7 if you are using an air fryer. Instead, bake your potatoes for 45 minutes at 400°F (204°C), making sure to flip the potatoes halfway through. Take them out when they become soft and crispy.
Storing/Reheating Your Loaded Baked Potato
Be sure your potatoes have completely cooled off before storing. When ready, place your potatoes in a container and cover them in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, then place them in your fridge. They will stay fresh for up to a week before they start losing moisture. Avoid freezing your potatoes to ensure they stay high quality.
Reheating Methods
You can reheat your potatoes in one of four ways-microwave, oven, stovetop, or air fryer.
- Microwaving your potatoes is the fastest way to reheat your potatoes. However, it may not always be favorable because there is a chance your potatoes may dry out. To prevent this, cover your potatoes with a damp paper towel before heating them. This way, they will retain as much moisture as possible.
- Placing your potatoes in an oven is a great way to reheat them, since you can gain back a lot of its crispness. Simply bake your potatoes at 350 f for 10-15 minutes and they will be ready again, even with all the ingredients already inside.
- Cooking your potatoes over a stovetop is also a reliable reheating method. Set a skillet over medium-low heat, lubricate with some olive oil, and cut your potato in half. Place your potatoes in and cook for 3-4 minutes. This reheating method is great if you want to add some extra oil taste to your potatoes.
- Finally, we have the high-tech reheating method, which is through an air fryer. After testing it out a lot, I find that it works almost as well as oven-reheating when it comes to moisture retention and crispness. Simply air fry your potatoes at 400 f for 4 minutes and your baked potatoes will be good to go.
