Skip this step for the best possible spuds.
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Something about the winter months brings on a baked potato craving, or at least that’s the case for me. If I’m honest with myself, though, a childhood of top-notch baked taters at my grandma’s house set an incredibly high bar for potato prep. My own spuds just couldn’t measure up.
Sick of digging into a disappointingly soft or dispiritingly bland homemade baked potato, I decided to recruit some experts and figure out exactly what it is I’ve been doing wrong. After consulting them, it became clear that there’s one easily breakable habit to avoid when baking potatoes.
The Baked Potato Experts I Asked
- Ann Ziata: chef at the Institute of Culinary Education’s New York City campus
- Chef Neil Doherty: Senior Director of Global Culinary Development at Sysco
- Jessica Randhawa: chef, recipe creator, photographer, and writer behind The Forked Spoon
- Meathead: Barbecue Hall of Famer, cookbook author, and publisher of AmazingRibs.com
- Chef Steve Chiappetti: Executive Chef at theWit Hotel
- Michelle Williams: Recipe developer and founder of Coffee And Champagne
- Erin Clarke: Creator of Well Plated and author of the Well Plated Cookbook and Well Plated Every Day
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The One Habit To Break if You Want the Best Baked Potatoes
“For years, chain restaurants have served baked potatoes wrapped in foil,” says Doherty, explaining that home cooks learned to emulate the method. But, like the other experts, he insists that this method is wrong.
“If you want the perfect baked potatoes, the one habit to break is wrapping them in foil before baking,” says Randhawa. “It might seem like a good idea to keep moisture in, but it actually steams the potatoes.”
Why does it steam them? Ziata explains, “Potatoes have a very high water content. When baking, the water heats up and evaporates into steam. Foil traps the steam inside the potato, creating a soggy texture and soft skin.” In order to achieve a crispy skin and fluffy interior, you simply need to ditch the foil.
But since foil can concentrate heat, won’t losing it mean the potatoes will take longer to cook? Not at all, says Chiapetti. “There’s a common misconception that wrapping potatoes in foil will allow them to cook more quickly, he explains. “But the opposite is true. The foil just adds another layer that also needs to heat up in addition to the potato itself.”
The Pros’ Advice for a Better Baked Potato
The better alternative to wrapping the spuds? “Rub them with a bit of oil or butter, a generous sprinkle of salt, and any additional seasonings you want to toss on. Then bake them naked,” advises Williams.
Clarke goes further. After oiling and seasoning, she suggests baking the unwrapped potatoes on a rack “for maximum airflow.” All the experts also agree it is essential to poke holes in your potato before baking. So go ahead and stab them up to 30 times! This helps moisture escape the spud as it roasts to perfection.
And if you want to get technical with your spud, suggests Meathead, use a digital thermometer to check its temperature. “I have tested the optimum doneness for baking potatoes, and I find 205°F is the low end, al dente, a bit crunchy,” he says. “At 210°F the potatoes are moist, crumbly, fluffy.”
