HOW TO COOK
The Art of the Perfect Baked Potato
How to put a spud in the oven — or not.
My idea of heaven is a great big baked potato and someone to share it with.
— Oprah Winfrey
You know, PO-TA-TOES! Boil ‘em, mash ‘em, stick ‘em in a stew?!
— Samwise Gamgee
Despite being arguably the real hero of Lord of the Rings, Sam Gamgee forgot to mention the king of potato dishes: the baked potato.
Oh well. We can forgive him for that.
Arguably the easiest way to cook one of the world’s favorite (and cheapest) veggies, baking a potato is still an art.
Baked potatoes are like eggs.
They’re one of the hallmarks of a solid cook. If you can bake a potato the right way, you can bake just about any vegetable, from the humble Brussels sprout to the weirdo Watermelon radish.
And you don’t need much:
Ingredients
- Something to bake in*
- Taters, Precious
- Foil (aluminum, but I guess you could try gold foil if you’re feeling extra. Let me know how that goes)
- Butter. 1Tbsp per potato.
- To push it real good, Salt N Peppa. Kosher salt, though, if you plan on brining (highly recommend)
- (Optional) Garlic salt
- A good knife
- Water
We’re sticking to the basics.
*notice I didn’t say an oven. You’re sharp.
You can bake just about any potato this way. Some may take longer than others, so we’ll stick to the classic Russets and baking potatoes.
What do we need water for though?
Brining
Technically optional if you’re feeling lazy (no shade), but for restaurant quality baked potatoes, brining is a must. You can do this the night before if you (unlike me) can plan ahead.
Brine is easy. It’s just salt water.
Warm up 8 cups of water. You don’t have to, but it makes the salt dissolve much easier. It doesn’t have to be boiling. Just warm.
- For 8 cups of water, dissolve 1 cup Kosher salt.
- Submerge your precious spuds.
- Leave them in the brine for 2–8 hours.
- When you’re ready to use them, drain.
Prep
Prep is easy too.
- Lightly coat the potatoes in salt, pepper, and garlic salt.
- Take your knife, and cut into the potato about halfway. Do this 3–4 times, evenly spaced.
- Take 1 Tbsp butter, divide by numbers of holes you just cut, and press onto the potato, where the holes are.
- Season the butter pats.
The reason we’re using the butter pats — coating the potato only seasons the outside. We want flavor inside. As it melts, the butter will seep into the nice warm potato.
The fat in the butter will also make the inside fluffier. This is one of the secrets of good restaurant baked potatoes. Butter or oil.
Cooking (Oven)
- Preheat oven to 400F/205C.
- Wrap each potato individually in foil.
- Bake on sheet pan 45 minutes.
- Remove, and let cook on wire rack for 3–4 minutes.
Want to know the trick to getting the potato opened nice and pretty like in restaurants?
Open only the top of the foil. Wrap it down around the potato. Yes, it’ll be hot. The things we do for beauty.
You can use a towel (or my own kitchen panacea for anything needing a towel, Scott’s Shop Towels), and pull from the edges, to save your fingertips.
Now grab your knife.
Gently make a cut lengthwise along the potato’s top. Press in the ends of the foil, and the inside will become visible. Fluff that up with a fork. It’s like magic.
Alternative 1: Microwave
Heresy! You might say.
To that, I say: sorry you don’t like fun.
Prep for microwave baking is similar. You’ll want to leave off the oil or butter though.
- Moisten (preferably with your brine) one potato, wrap in a damp paper towel/Shop Towel.
- Microwave on high 5 minutes.
- Flip, microwave another 5.
- Dress it up however you want.
Alternative 2: Grill
This one takes a little more effort, but the results are worth it.
- Preheat grill to 350F/177C
- While you’re doing this, parboil the potatoes. Dunk the potatoes in a pot of water. Bring to a boil, and let them boil for 5 minutes. Remove, drain.
- Prep as you would for the oven, but giving the potatoes another layer of foil (it keeps them from burning on the grate, and butter/oil fire).
- Place potatoes on grate.
- Close the lid.
- No really, close the damn lid. You’re letting all the heat out.
- Once you’ve closed the grate, grill for 30–40 minutes.
- If you decided to be contrary and open the grill again, it’ll take longer each time you do that.
- They’re done when a fork or skewer passes all the way through with no resistance.
And now — you are a master of the potato.
Tell your friends! Tell your boss you’re King of the Tubers and he can’t tell you shit anymore.
(Let me know how that goes too. I’m rooting for ya!)
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