Topping Potatoes
The what do you put on corn-on-the-cob topic made me wonder... On potatoes, I will order loaded at a restaurant, but if I am the one fixing it, I like sour cream or mild cheddar for white potatoes and a tiny dab of butter for sweet potatoes.
What do you like on top? And do you eat the peel?
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28 Comments:
Oh yes, I eat the peel. I rub mine with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt so that may be my favorite part. I have baked potatoes for lunch often with whatever meat we had leftover chopped up on them, chopped tomatoes, onions, cheese and maybe a little barbeque sauce depending on the meat.
ocarol at 9:58PM on 08/18/09
In high school I used to work at the 1 Potato 2 at the mall (do they have those anymore?). Anyway, I used to make the best potato after hours, and when I get in a mood, I recreate it:
Like ocarol, I oil it and salt it up. When it's ready I split it open and fluff it. I ladle on about 3 T of melted butter, and hit it with some Lawry's. Then I sprinkle some finely chopped raw onion, sauteed diced mushrooms, lightly sauteed chopped broccoli, chunked up grilled chicken breast, and a mixture of mozzarella and swiss. Then I microwave it til the cheese is melted.
It makes a HUGE baked potato, but I can always eat it all. Brings me back to saving up for that prom dress.
BangieB at 10:29PM on 08/18/09
@bangieB - now that's a story ... i hope you got the prom dress that you wanted ....
pooch at 10:39PM on 08/18/09
The peel is the best part! We eat a lot of potatoes around our place, and virtually anything is a good topping. I micro mine for about 10 minutes, then half an hour in a really hot oven, wrapped in foil and covered with salted butter. Tuna and mayo, cheese, baked beans, Bolognese sauce, ham, bacon...they all work well in almost any combination. I like to pop them back in for about ten minutes once topped to make sure they're hot.
For something lighter and diet-approved, try salad dressing. A mustard vinaigrette or something similar.
NotAmerican at 8:09AM on 08/19/09
I love love LOVE potato skins.
I like to bake'em with nacho toppings: diced peppers, jalepenos, green onion, cheddar-jack, and dip in salsa. Oh god I want some.
Actually love potatoes.
All forms; especially français fries! and poutine. Poutine rules.
hungrychristel at 11:00AM on 08/19/09
Potatoes are my favorite... maybe because my grand-dad used to be a potato farmer. So sometimes I am in the mood for the peel, sometimes I am not. I like them baked, but I make them steamed or roasted most of the time.
I love topping my potatoes with a grain mustard or a horseradish vinaigrette. I also top them with a soy picadillo mix, especially when I have some leftovers around or with some raclette cheese warmed up under a raclette grill. Lately I have been making this carrot/cheese sauce that's really good. But to be honest, my favorite way to have them is just fork-smashed with garlic salt and a healthy drizzle of spanish olive oil.
MadelynRodriguez at 11:15AM on 08/19/09
Chili/onions/cheese! Brocolli, mushrooms, cheese! Butter, sour cream and roasted garlic! Baked potato bar is one of my families favourite meals - and a super way to clean out the fridge of a "bit of this and a bit of that"!
Maureen at 11:38AM on 08/19/09
Love the skins and love even more crisp. It depends on my mood and what I have, if I had everything that I like around then butter, mayo, cheese, sour cream, green onions or chives, pepper and bacon.
pjracz10 at 9:37PM on 08/19/09
I love eating the skins on baked potatoes. To save me the albeit delicious trouble of oiling, salting and wrapping in foil to get a tasty tater skin, I like to take the potatoes out of the oven mid-bake and run them under the tap. That way the skins get crispy without getting tough or burnt. Sour cream, greek yougurt and chives (sometimes garlic too) is my favourite topping....
moonlyt at 5:24AM on 08/20/09
@moonlyt: do you mix the greek yogurt and chives with the sourcream?
hungrychristel at 9:47AM on 08/20/09
@mconly - thanks for the tip. I will try it.
@NotAmerican - I could never figure out why people waste time and money putting foil on their potatoes - is it because you want the skins to be soft?
bareneed at 10:06AM on 08/20/09
In undergrad, when I was broke and lazy, I often ate baked potatoes with salsa and cheese. I still eat these (with the skin, always!) when I'm feeling nostalgic.
psychsarah at 12:52PM on 08/20/09
Charmoula on sweet potatoes or yams. I got the recipe from our newspaper's weekly foodie section and it's fantastic.
pearce77 at 12:56PM on 08/20/09
I love the skins nice and crispy. I like them topped with chili & cheese (cheddar, jack) with just a little bit of shredded cabbage...yummy! But everything mentioned above sounds wonderful too!
Tconrastas at 1:52PM on 08/20/09
Yes to the skin. My favorite lately is a sprinkle of adobo seasoning, a bit of Smart Balance spread, some dried dill and a dollop of cottage cheese.
I Sony at 3:12PM on 08/20/09
Yes to the skin! Bake 'em skin on, salted and oiled, and then ... just butter, salt and pepper. Oooh yeah!
Though the chili idea sounds good - I'll have to try that sometime!
minstrel at 11:31PM on 08/20/09
I love mine baked, salt, pepper, a poached or fried over easy egg and some bearnaise on top. its so good! especially with steaks. I mash it all up and eat it together.
sousvide at 3:54AM on 08/21/09
definite yes on the skins, washed, oiled, salted, baked in the oven for an hour or so. I usually top with some butter, kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper although recently my wife introduced me to the idea of putting canned chicken ala king on them. This is surprisingly good.
cjpenfield at 9:18AM on 08/21/09
I just eat my baked potato with lashings of good butter; and I always eat the skin. The skin is my favorite part - I eat the potato meat (?) first, and eat the skin last. When I was a child, my father often made pork chops, baked potato, and Heinz vegetarian beans for dinner - when I was done eating my pork chop and potato meat, I would fill the skin with beans, and eat it like a taco.
Why do people oil the skins? I have never done that, and I always get crispy skins. I think the earthy flavor of the skin is delicious.
pauljcummins at 9:34AM on 08/21/09
I love potato skins, but not the ones on sweet potatoes. For the sweets I just put butter and sometimes a squirt of orange juice on them. For Irish potatoes (what we call them down here in NC), I wash the potato, put holes in it and bake for about an hour. On top? Sour cream, scallions, crumbled bacon and cheddar cheese just like I had down in Texas years ago.
I like all the other ideas as well and might try them when I get into a potato mood again.
queenbleu at 10:18AM on 08/21/09
Bacon and guacamole. And an over-easy egg if I want to get really serious. Lord, I need it to be lunch-break.
aguacate at 1:38PM on 08/21/09
Butter Butter and more Butter. I'm the Paula Dean of baked potatoes. And the skin is the best part. I finish off the inside of the potato saving the skin for last. Then I butter the skin (yep, more butter), add some salt and pepper and...heaven.
hkydiva at 3:27PM on 08/21/09
I love the skin, too. Recently, I've become addicted to harissa, a spicy moroccan condiment. I tried a baked potato with greek yogurt mixed with harissa, sliced scallions and lots of salt and pepper. YUM!
And after that admission--which probably made a few of you gag...
The idea of tuna&mayo on a baked potato is worse, though, I think.
TheKitchenWitch at 10:08AM on 08/23/09
What is the point of baking a potato if you're not going to eat the skin! Yummy! I love to cook up ground beef and mushrooms split the potato and fill with the mixture then top with Worcestershire sauce... Sometimes I like to fill the potato with queso fresco and salsa verde... Or just some good ole pulled pork and bbq sauce!
Pavlov at 10:28AM on 08/23/09
I love baked potatoes, skin and all. But I keep the toppings simple, don't want to overpower the potato itself. Butter, salt, maybe sour cream.
I'll also take a refrigerated left over baked potato, tear off a chunk, sprinkle it with salt, and eat it cold.
schmonsequences at 12:08PM on 08/24/09
sounds weird, but i think they are the best with cottage cheese, salt and pepper. mm.
trepidatiousbaker at 4:51PM on 08/24/09
I coat the potato with olive oil, then add kosher salt to the top. Leftover pot roast and cheese make the best easy meal--and it uses up leftovers.
beth1 at 6:58PM on 08/24/09
I'm with y'all: the skin is the best part.
My favorite baked potato is simple: just a pat of butter, kosher salt, and ground white pepper mashed into the potato flesh. When I'm in the mood I substitute truffle oil for the butter. Always save the skin for last.
In grad school a frequent dinner for me was a microwave-"baked" potato, which I'd top with a soft fried egg, salt, and pepper. The yolk made a lovely sauce for the fluffed potato.
piglet at 7:18PM on 08/24/09