Saturday, December 15, 2012

Twice Baked Potatoes - They Take Longer, But At Least They’re More Complicated

I don’t do a lot of things in the kitchen purely for esthetic reasons, but these twice baked potatoes are one of my more beautiful exceptions to that rule. You can get almost the exact same flavors by just adding stuff to a regular baked potato, but what you won’t get in that scenario is the impressive, over-stuffed height, and gorgeous, golden-browned crust seen here.

Is it worth it? Only you can answer that. For me, once in a while, for those extra fancy dinners, the answer is a resounding yes. Taste is, and always will be, the most important aspect of cooking, but when entertaining guests on special occasions, don’t forget that you’re putting on a show with the food. And when it comes to starchy side dishes, this is a great way to express that flair for the dramatic.

Like I said in the video, this is a demonstration of technique, and not necessarily a recipe I want you to follow verbatim. I will list what I used below, since I’m required to by food blogger common law, but if there was ever a recipe that you’d want to experiment with, this is the one.

By the way, since there's a certain amount of prep involved here, you can make these ahead of time, up to the point of the second baking, and then just finish when it gets closer to service. I hope you give this show stopping side dish a try soon. Enjoy!


Ingredients for 4 Twice Baked Potatoes:
4 large russet potatoes
3 tbsp butter
1 or 2 tbsp minced green onion
salt, pepper, cayenne to taste
1/2 cup shredded white cheddar cheese
1/2 cup cream or milk
1 egg yolk
Bake at 400 degrees F. for an hour to cook potatoes, and then 20-30 to brown after stuffing.

View the complete recipe

41 comments:

Chase Saunders said...

Why? Human nature.

Chef John said...

Doing things just to do them ;)

PJ said...

There is no use dieting with you around... OMG I can't wait to taste these!

Howard said...

I made these tonight and as directed used what I had. I dont know if it was the double layer at the bottom or the grease on the pan, but the top was baked and the bottom fried! WOW...epic! I haven't had them like that before. You are like the"I know how how to cook" Chef dude that can cook stuff!

Michael Minasian said...

I love doing them with Bacon, cream cheese and a few shreds of cheddar cheese on top in addition to the green onions. Delish!

Michael Minasian said...

I like doing these with cream cheese, bacon, and cheddar cheese on top in addition to the green onions.

paula o said...

Love this! I did mine with shrimp- delish!

Unknown said...

I have a million recipes what to do with patota, but this one is new. Taste is really good + looks godness. Thanks.

Garry Morera said...

hi chef john,
i read in many places that we are supposed to prick the potatoes before we bake them or it will explode. i have never baked potatoes. so i would be thankful if you could clarify this for me

Chef John said...

I've seen fingerling potatoes explored before but never a russet. People prick to release water vapor. Not a big deal.

Devilham said...

made these last night with roasted brussel sprouts and a pork belly porchetta....it was outstanding! Forgot the egg though, but didn't seem to affect anything...is the egg for lift?

Cold.dinner said...

Hi Chef John,
What does the egg add to the baked potatoes (in terms of texture/ taste)? Can I skip it?

Chef John said...

Just adds a little extra richness. Of course you can skip!

Tracy said...

Yes! Now I know what to make with our Beef Wellington for Christmas dinner.

BrianC said...

Try brie as an alternative to the cheddar sometime - and sour cream as alternative to the cream/milk. Interesting contrast that's really rich, really creamy and, most people say, delightful. We've been doing them this way for a few times and everyone seems to want a second! Thanks for the technique - will have to try the egg yolk - great tips! Happy holidays!

natanoja said...

I love your videos Chef John, so worth to follow. You must be a tall person. haha.

Fire House Chef said...

I love potatoes...cooked in just about any fashion. Twice baked spuds are up towards the top. I used my own filling recipe, but they've crept a little more towards the top with your vid. The egg yolk adds more to the mix than I thought. Drizzling butter on the textured top before the second baking adds that crisp top...and the 1/3 top added to the bottom puffing up the filling gives a really nice presentation. Thanks !

kit yan said...

i challenged my boyfriend to make these as it's his job to make the mashed potatoes for christmas dinner! so looking forward to it. these will definitely wow my guests :D

Chris said...

I like doing mine with just nooks and crannies on top. Crevices are just too pretentious, I think ;)

Another GREAT video, Chef John. The egg yolk and potato foreskin tricks are two that will definitely stay in my repertoire thanks to you.

Dragonflyte said...

I love baked potatoes with sour cream and chives and was wondering ifI could do that with these or would baking the sour cream mess it up? Oh Hell, maybe I'll just add some bacon bits to go with the cheddar!

Chef John said...

Sour cream is great!

dabambic said...

Wit and humour make people tall. "Dud spud vs uber tuber"! That's great. You must be a very tall chef. I can't wait to try these.

KarenK said...

I made this tonight as a project with my son, home from college. I needed it to be parve (no milk), so used soy milk and margarine, no sour cream or cheese. We wanted to make the. Really pretty, so filled them 3/4 way then piped the rest on with decorating tip- great fun and delicious

KarenK said...

I made these tonight with my son who was home from college. I needed them to be parve (no milk), so made them with soy milk and margarine, and no sour cream or cheese. We also decided to get fancy, so we filled 3/4 and then piped the rest on with a cupcake decorating tip. Was fun and looked (and tasted) wonderful!

Unknown said...

I've never made twice baked potatoes but I'm making this tonight for a BIG family Christmas Eve dinner. We'll see how it goes! Thanks for the great videos and ideas Chef John.

Unknown said...

i just tried this recipe for christmas dinner and it was awesome! yes a little time consuming but definitely worth it! the egg yolk just gives the extra richness and yellow color to the the mash! added some cream cheese in as well and it was divine! oh, and the crispy bacon!! heavenly!

Cc_ home said...

Are we supposed to stab the fork in the potatoes before baking?

KrIsTa B. said...

Happy holidays Chef John. These were awesome. I did goat cheese, parm cheese, colby jack, sour cream and half and half (cuz that's what I had). I put some shallot salt in from penzeys. Yum! I love your YouTube videos, you make me LOL!

Ashley Iman said...

I made these for Christmas dinner and they were a hit! They outshined the lobster!

like2cook said...

On twice baked potatoes, I'd like to add some chives...

Russell Lewis said...

So, I'm thinking again about adding crème fraîche instead of the cream, since I would add it to a baked potato anyway. And since it doesn't heat well, at the end, adding a drizzle of black truffle oil for pizazz.

Lizna Liisu A. said...

Chef John, this reminds me of 'Kumpir', stuffed baked potato a la turc! We stuff them with olives, sausage slices, butter, russian salad and whatnot! Google Kumpir and you'll see what I mean! :D

Ariana said...

Chef John you're just the best. :)

Matt said...

As directed, I didn't follow the recipe exactly. I used sour cream instead of milk. I didn't have green onions so I finely diced 1/4 of a large yellow onion. I included several garlic cloves. They came out great!

Unknown said...

I absolutely love this video!! SO hilarious, and my "uber tubers" came out amazing!

Unknown said...

Can I steam the potatoes first and then bake them? So I don't need to bake an hour?

Unknown said...

Esther, I've made them by steaming first in the past. I think that the only downside is that the skin is a bit soggier.

Pratch said...

LOVE them! I made these many times now, including a version for my 1 year old toddler and she LOVED it! I even tried with sweet potatoes (healthiee option, i was told) and was yum too! (They just cooks faster and don't keep their shapes as well, but tasted great!)

Thank you so much ched John... this is one of many of your recipes that we frequented at home 😊😊😊

Unknown said...

I did your recipe with a little twist as suggested. I added habanero cheese with white cheddar and crumbled bacon. My wife and son really liked it, which they made me promise to make again. I was surprised at how much potato mixture I had, which really made it look big. This went well with my smoked chuck roast. Thanks again.

scenicsouth said...

Hi Chef John,
I plan to make these next week, but need the oven @ 350* for other things. Would the last bake of the potatoes once they're stuffed brown as nicely at 350? Wish I had 2 ovens for times like this!!
Have used many of your recipes, everyone a winner! Thank you, thank you! ��

scenicsouth said...

Hi Chef John,
Am going to make the Twice Baked Potatoes for company next week. Would the last bake to brown tops be OK @ 350* instead of 400*?
I need the oven at 350 for other things I'm making . . . wish I had 2 ovens!
Have used many of your recipes, all came out great, thank you, thank you