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Twice-Baked Potatoes are fancy enough for a special occasion but simple enough for any family dinner. Top these potatoes with cheese and your favorite toppings for a delicious twist on baked potatoes.
Back in the early 2000’s I had a bit of an obsession with twice baked potatoes.
I’m talking making them once a week and eating leftovers all week long kind of obsessed.
I have no idea what recipe I used, but given the timeframe, I’m going to guess it was from RecipeZaar or Allrecipes. And let me tell you, they were delicious.
Then one day I made them and didn’t make them again for 15 years or so.
And here we are.
A recipe for twice baked potatoes that happened because my Instacart shopper delivered a 15-pound bag on potatoes on my front porch instead of the 5-pound bag I ordered.
LOADED TWICE-BAKED POTATOES
I don’t know about you, but I used to think making Twice-Baked Potatoes was A Thing.
You know, an ordeal. A whole project.
I mean, they look fancy, so they must be hard to make, right? WRONG!
The first time I made these potatoes all those years ago, I realized that even though they have a few steps, none of the steps are actually hard:
- Cook the potatoes
- Make the filling (similar to making mashed potatoes)
- Assemble the potatoes
- Bake!
Like, when you see it listed out like that, it seems totally doable, right?
My version of Twice-Baked Potatoes is loaded with cheese and sour cream in the filling, topped with more cheese before baking, and loaded with your favorite baked potato toppings to serve. I love mine with a dollop of sour cream, some bacon, and a sprinkling of chives.
If your family loves loaded baked potatoes, these Twice-Baked Potatoes are a nice twist for everything from a special occasion to a random Tuesday. Just like Baked Macaroni & Cheese or Parker House Rolls, they’re special enough for a celebration dinner, but you could totally make these for any family meal.
After all, any meal with your family can be a special meal!
CAN THIS RECIPE BE MADE AHEAD?
If you want to make these potatoes ahead of time, you totally can make them up to a day ahead.
Just bake the potatoes, scoop out the flesh, and mix together the filling. Then pop the hollowed-out potato halves and the filling into separate airtight containers and store them in the refrigerator for up to a day.
When you’re ready to eat, just spoon or pipe the filling into the hollowed-out potato halves, top with cheese, and bake according to the recipe instructions.
HOW TO REHEAT TWICE-BAKED POTATOES
This recipe makes 4 servings, but if you only have a family of 2 or 3, you might be wondering the best way to reheat any leftover Twice-Baked Potatoes the next day.
If you want to use a conventional oven to reheat them, place any leftover potatoes on a baking sheet and over with foil. Bake at 425 degrees Farenheit for about 15 minutes.
My favorite way to reheat them, though, is in the air fryer. I like to pop the potatoes in the air fryer basket and cook them at 400 degrees for 5 to 10 minutes.
Not only does reheating them in the air fryer take a bit less time, but I like that it helps the skins to crisp back up after being in the refrigerator overnight.
Whether you’re making these potatoes alongside Ritz Cracker Chicken on a weeknight or with glazed ham for the holidays, your family will love this alternative to the standard baked potato.
Twice-Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
For the baked potatoes:
- 3 large russet potatoes washed and patted dry
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or melted unsalted butter
- Sea salt
For the filling:
- 3 cups baked potato flesh
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter softened, cut into small pieces
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 oz finely grated sharp cheddar cheese
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Black pepper to taste
Toppings:
- Grated cheddar cheese
- Cooked and crumbled bacon
- Finely minced chives
- Sour cream
Instructions
Bake the potatoes:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Drizzle the olive oil or melted butter over the washed and dried potatoes. Sprinkle each potato generously with salt and massage to cover the entire surface of the potatoes.
- Place the potatoes on a wire rack set over a baking sheet and bake for 45-60 minutes, or until a fork or skewer goes through the center of the potatoes with no resistance.
Make the filling:
- Remove the potatoes from the oven and carefully cut in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, remove the flesh of the potatoes, leaving about ⅛ to ¼ inch of potato flesh all the way around the sides of the potatoes.
- Run the scooped-out potato flesh through a potato ricer or food mill on the finest setting. Stir in the butter and sour cream, followed by the cheese and egg yolk. Add salt and black pepper to taste.
- Transfer filling into a piping bag with a star tip and pipe the filling (or alternately, spoon the filling) into 4 of the hollowed-out potato halves.
- Place the filled potato halves on a rimmed baking sheet and broil on high about 5 minutes or until the filling is golden brown. Watch carefully as it can go from golden brown to burnt very quickly under the broiler. If desired, sprinkle with additional grated cheese and return to the broiler for another 1-2 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
- Top as desired and serve.
Notes
- If you don’t have a potato ricer or food mill, a stand mixer with a whisk attachment or a hand mixer will work. If you use this method, add the butter, sour cream, and cheese before whipping with the mixer until combined. Continue as above by stirring in the egg yolk by hand.
- The texture of the final filling should resemble very, very smooth mashed potatoes, much like a potato mousse. Add additional sour cream if needed for flavor or to achieve this texture.
- If you have any leftover filling after refilling the potato halves, spoon or pipe it into an oven-safe ramekin and cook with the potato halves.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Excellent instructions. So easy to follow and the results are delicious!
So happy to hear you enjoyed the potatoes, Susan! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback. Happy baking!
-Jamie