How to get fluffy baked potatoes

[Edge]

Hi guys,
I'm coming to the experts for advice on how restaurant baked potatoes are so fluffy inside and home potatoes don't seem to come out that way.
is there a method to cooking them?

This question applies to both regular and sweet potatoes.

Thanks in advance.

 

[stringer]

Cook them well ahead of time so they have time to rest is the most important thing. Reheat a little to serve.

Idaho potatoes get rubbed in oil and then hit with coarse salt. Roast at high heat to start (400 plus) and turn the heat down gradually over half an hour to about 300. Finish at 300. Done when soft when squeezed. Let rest at least 15 minutes. 30 minutes for really giant steakhouse ones. Failure to rest properly means no fluffy.

For sweets. Cut a "window". Just cut one side off like you are starting to peel it with the knife. You want to roast it with the peel on, but this will make it easier to peel later. Rub with oil and coarse salt. Wrap with aluminum foil. Cook until soft when squeezed. Temperature is largely irrelevant. If it starts to ooze out it is done. Let it cool off for a bit in the foil and skin. Remove foil and skin before serving. Reheat a bit if desired.

 

[Edge]

Thank you so much. I will have to try both of these.

 

[More_Gyutos]

Also, and I wish I had known this earlier in my career but cook them to about 210 degrees Fahrenheit.

 

[BazookaJoe]

Been doing them this way for about a year... best I've had (including restaurants):

https://www.thekitchn.com/jacket-potato-22943799

 

[boomchakabowwow]

i do it as suggested by ATK, and it is flawless. i dont do it often, so i have to look it up all the time, but it is great. doesnt not apply to the sweet variety.

 

[Rangen]

The Idaho part is important. You want that Made in Idaho logo with a silhouette of the state. There is at least one company that is based in Idaho that sells both Idaho and non-Idaho potatoes, and I suspect them of hoping to deceive people about which is which, hoping they'll flip the bag, see the company location in Idaho, and figure that's where the potatoes were grown. Nope. The Idaho logo is the differentiator.

Idaho potatoes are not best for everything, but for fluffy and flavorful baked potatoes, they are vastly superior to anything else.

 

[Michi]

King Edward make for fantastic baked potatoes, if you can get your hands on them.

 

[rob]

Been doing them this way for about a year... best I've had (including restaurants):

The Secret to Better Baked Potatoes? Cook Them Like the British Do.

Been doing them this way for about a year... best I've had (including restaurants):

The Secret to Better Baked Potatoes? Cook Them Like the British Do.

these look good, going to give it a try.
Thanks for link.

 

[Rangen]

King Edward make for fantastic baked potatoes, if you can get your hands on them.

Interesting. Where are they grown?

 

[Gshep91]

Cook them well ahead of time so they have time to rest is the most important thing. Reheat a little to serve.

Idaho potatoes get rubbed in oil and then hit with coarse salt. Roast at high heat to start (400 plus) and turn the heat down gradually over half an hour to about 300. Finish at 300. Done when soft when squeezed. Let rest at least 15 minutes. 30 minutes for really giant steakhouse ones. Failure to rest properly means no fluffy.

For sweets. Cut a "window". Just cut one side off like you are starting to peel it with the knife. You want to roast it with the peel on, but this will make it easier to peel later. Rub with oil and coarse salt. Wrap with aluminum foil. Cook until soft when squeezed. Temperature is largely irrelevant. If it starts to ooze out it is done. Let it cool off for a bit in the foil and skin. Remove foil and skin before serving. Reheat a bit if desired.

Worth wrapping in foil? I’m doing a batch of 40 potatoes in the oven and the plan was to follow these instructions but individually wrap each potato in foil first.

Also - if I oil/salt and pepper/wrap tonight, can I bake tomorrow? Or should I not leave them uncooked and wrapped

 

[Rangen]

I can see the foil for sweet potatoes, but I'd think foil would wreck the wonderful dry crunchiness of the skin on a regular potato.

 

[Michi]

Interesting. Where are they grown?

It's one of the old UK varieties, where it's been grown for well over a hundred years. The ones here are grown in Tasmania. I'm not sure where else they are cultivated, but I would expect that they are grown in other countries, too.

 

[stringer]

Worth wrapping in foil? I’m doing a batch of 40 potatoes in the oven and the plan was to follow these instructions but individually wrap each potato in foil first.

Also - if I oil/salt and pepper/wrap tonight, can I bake tomorrow? Or should I not leave them uncooked and wrapped

I don't wrap russets generally. And if you season them too much before all the salt will just dissolve.

 

[Gshep91]

I don't wrap russets generally. And if you season them too much before all the salt will just dissolve.

Just season and bake in the morning then? A bunch on a few sheet trays should be fine?

Stupid questions I know, just a ton to do by tomorrow for my sons first birthday

 

[bsfsu]

The type of potato makes a big difference, a waxy potato like a Nadine will never be "fluffy" like an Agria.

The cooking method will have an impact on the potato but the type of potato is more important in my mind.

If we go back to the Nadine vs Agria they look the same but cook completely differently. Nadine will make a sloppy mash and Agria will make a fluffy mash.

Baked Agria get a little to dry for my liking and baked Nadine are not as dry, I'm with @Michi and I think the King Edward's make great baking potato's.

What variety to use changes with what is grown and available in your part of the world.

 

[sumis]

It's one of the old UK varieties, where it's been grown for well over a hundred years. The ones here are grown in Tasmania. I'm not sure where else they are cultivated, but I would expect that they are grown in other countries, too.

in sweden it is sometimes hard to find anything but KE.

indeed great for baked potatoes, but since i grew up on eating them (being used for any kind of potato dish) i now automatically look for alternatives

.

 

[MarcelNL]

problem IMO is that the varieties are often named different, and nowadays use fancy names that are meaningless.

In my country plenty of potatoes are being grown, yet supermarkets seem to have a developed a knack of selling one variety under different names, at different prices. 'baking potatoes' 'mash potatoes' etc all one variety, at different prices

And that is leading to the disappearance of variety names on the bags.

 

[Michi]

And that is leading to the disappearance of variety names on the bags.

Same problem here. It pisses me off no end that it is impossible to know what potatoes I’m buying.

 

[Jovidah]

Actually over here the actual variety name can almost always be found on the bag somewhere if you're buying whole potatoes. It's just that if you're in the supermarket they take quite a lot of liberty with what they sell and under what name they sell it.
Just another reason to not buy potatoes at supermarkets anymore...

What's most problematic from an enthusiast perspective is that you don't see the same breeds of potato worldwide. So American recommendations are next to useless because you just can't find yukon gold, idaho, russet or whatever here.

My go to is usually Charlotte, or derivatives of it like Laurette / Gourmandine. They really shine in something that really gets neglected in most discussion about potato preparations: flavor.
For some reason the talk is always only about texture (crispy, fluffy, crunchy, etc).

My least favorite is also clear: Chinois. While I have no love for all the tasteless bland supermarket / high volume crap potatoes... Chinois stands out for looking very gastronomical, while tasting like you're just eating a floury bulb of dirt. That earthyness really isn't for me. Really don't like floury either.

 

[MarcelNL]

my main issue is that greengrocers are being driven out of business, 15 miles away there is a specialist only selling potato's.

My goto also is Charlotte, yet increasingly hard to find...agree it should be about flavor!

AH (supermarket chain), 'somewhat fluffy' potatoes says; "varieties packed are a.o. Milva, Melody, Vivaldi, Frieslander, Danique'

How about that for fluffy information?

( I do appreciate they inform that potatoes are lactose free, vegan and gluten free)

Extra informatie​

De rassen die worden verpakt, zijn o.a. Milva, melody, vivaldi, frieslander, danique.

 

[Jovidah]

I'm really blessed in that regard; I live in the city center of a decent city, so twice a week I can go out to the market and go to the market guy who specializes in potatoes... then there's the 3 restaurant wholesalers in my city (Hanos, Makro, Sligro)...

Normally the supermarket packages should have small black print somewhere that indicates the exact breed. But you have to go and look for it, and you need to have the package physically in hand to be able to see it.
But the issue is that they'll just throw in whatever they feel like (Jazzy everywhere!), and it's exceedingly rare to find any potatoes in a supermarket with actual flavor.

 

[simona]

King Edward make for fantastic baked potatoes, if you can get your hands on them.

Ed's are the best, also for roasties and chips!

 

[Edge]

This is such a good thread. Thank you all for all the information.

 

[Steve56]

If you’re in a US supermarket looking at the Russett potatoes, which are a good baker, avoid the ones with greenish skins - those will never bake properly to a fluffy consistency.

 

[rickbern]

Been doing them this way for about a year... best I've had (including restaurants):

The Secret to Better Baked Potatoes? Cook Them Like the British Do.

Bazooka, thanks for this. Pregamed thanksgiving on Wednesday, these were terrific!

 

[Michi]

Used that method tonight. The potatoes definitely came out nice. Crisp on the outside and very fluffy and soft on the inside, with just the right (low) amount of moisture.

 

[boomchakabowwow]

I made the best baked potatoes just now. so easy.

I washed some russets. I went to great lengths to make sure they were all the same smallish sized. poked them with a fork some. then I dipped them in the saltiest brine ever. I just did maybe half a cup of salt just enough boiling water to dissolve it. once it cooled some so I don't burn myself. I dipped them in quickly, rolled them around and set them out to dry a bit.

into a 400 deg oven, straight on the oven grate. I put a pan underneath incase anything oozed. nothing did. once they were soft to the touch, the skin was like super crispy!! super crispy!! I took them out and did that football laces cut and opened them immediately so the steam can escape. it was like eating a potato cloud. and the skin was delish!!