Baked potatoes can often turn out soggy and bland if you just stick them in the oven without any preparation, but I have a really easy way to make them crispier and tastier with an ingredient most people have in their kitchen.
Baked potatoes will also turn out perfectly as long as you coat them in one simple ingredient beforehand (Image: Katherine McPhillips)
As September arrives, the dropping temperatures have us yearning for hearty, warming meals, and baked potatoes rank amongst the simplest comfort foods you can rustle up. A weekly staple in many households, they are wonderfully warming, budget-friendly and satisfying — yet all too often they emerge from the oven disappointingly soggy.
Potatoes are notoriously tricky to cook well, as their high water content can transform into steam during cooking, leaving the skin unpleasantly damp. A common error is wrapping potatoes in tin foil, under the mistaken belief it creates crispy skin, when in reality it merely traps moisture, resulting in a thoroughly mushy texture.
However, after preparing baked potatoes on countless occasions, the one ingredient that guarantees a crispier finish and superior flavour turns out to be humble table salt.
Seasoning food may seem like an obvious step, but salt is remarkably absorbent, drawing excess moisture out of the potato effectively.
Salt encourages surface moisture to evaporate rapidly, preventing it from converting to steam, which in turn allows the potato skin to cook correctly in the oven.
It may be a straightforward culinary technique, but it remains the only reliable method for achieving that perfect combination of genuinely crispy, crackling skin.
Potatoes can also be rather bland and uninspiring on their own. A generous salting will enhance their natural flavours, giving the skin a more pronounced and satisfying savoury taste.
Applying salt will also help elevate any additional toppings you choose and transform a baked potato into a far more satisfying dish, ensuring you never have to fret about producing a stodgy result.
How to make better baked potatoes
You will need:
- Two baking potatoes
- One tablespoon of olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- One tablespoon of butter
- Any other toppings you like
Crafting the perfect baked potato actually starts at the supermarket, where you’ll need to select a potato with a high starch content, as these will have considerably drier skin compared to other varieties.
Opt for potatoes that are specifically labelled for baking or roasting, though Maris Piper, King Edward or Rooster varieties are equally suitable choices.
Steer clear of new potatoes, small potatoes or Charlotte varieties, as these are far too waxy and are unlikely to crisp up adequately in the oven.
Method:
Begin by preparing your potatoes. Scrub them thoroughly, use a sheet of kitchen paper to dry the skin completely, then place them on a baking tray.
Next, pierce the potatoes several times with a fork. The steam that accumulates inside potatoes can cause them to burst in the oven, so creating holes allows the moisture to escape.
Drizzle olive oil over each potato and scatter with a generous pinch of salt. Using clean hands, roll them around the tray to ensure every surface of the potato is evenly coated in salt.
Place in the oven at a high temperature, around 200°C or 220°C. In my experience, salting the potatoes speeds up the cooking process, though they will generally require between 40 and 60 minutes, depending on your oven.
Check on the potatoes after 40 minutes and then every 10 minutes to see if they’ve turned golden. Once ready, slice them open and give them a gentle squeeze to let out any remaining steam.
Complete the dish by adding pepper, a generous knob of butter and whatever toppings you fancy. Your jacket potato should be golden, tender and taste far superior to the usual result.
