Crackly-Skin Loaded Baked Potatoes

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The steakhouse baked potato done right at home: russets scrubbed bone dry, salted, and baked hot and naked on a rack so the skin turns thin, blistered and crackly instead of soft and steamy. Then they get loaded in the correct order — butter first so it melts into the flesh, cheddar next so it melts too, then bacon, cold sour cream and scallions on top.

Ingredients

• 4 large russet potatoes (10–12 oz each)
• 1 tbsp neutral oil, such as canola or grapeseed
• 2 tsp coarse kosher salt

• 6 slices thick-cut bacon
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pats
• 6 oz sharp cheddar, coarsely grated (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 3/4 cup full-fat sour cream, cold
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• freshly ground black pepper
• flaky salt, for finishing

Instructions

1. Set an oven rack in the middle position and place a wire cooling rack on a rimmed baking sheet. Heat the oven to 425°F. Do not use foil at any point — foil steams the skin and you lose the crackle.
2. Scrub the potatoes well under cold water, then dry them aggressively with a towel and let them sit on the counter 5 minutes so the surface is completely dry to the touch. Pierce each potato 6 to 8 times with a fork.
3. Rub each potato with a thin film of oil (about 3/4 teaspoon each), then sprinkle all over with the kosher salt. Set them directly on the wire rack, not touching, so hot air circulates on every side.
4. Bake 60 to 75 minutes, rotating the pan once at the 35-minute mark. They're done when the skin looks dry and slightly wrinkled and a thin knife or skewer slides into the center with no resistance; an instant-read thermometer should read 205 to 210°F.
5. While the potatoes bake, lay the bacon in a cold 12-inch skillet and cook over medium heat, turning occasionally, 10 to 14 minutes, until deeply crisp. Drain on paper towels, then chop or crumble into rough 1/2-inch pieces.
6. Grate the cheddar and slice the scallions while the potatoes finish. Keep the sour cream in the fridge until the moment you serve — the cold-against-hot contrast is the point.
7. As soon as the potatoes come out, slice each one lengthwise about three-quarters of the way through and squeeze the ends gently toward each other to open it up. Immediately fluff the interior with a fork in short strokes; letting steam escape now keeps the flesh light instead of gluey.
8. Load in this order, working fast while the potato is screaming hot: 1 tablespoon butter pushed down into the fluffed flesh, a grind of black pepper, then a heaped 1/3 cup grated cheddar so it melts against the potato, then the bacon.
9. Finish off-heat with a generous spoonful of cold sour cream, a shower of scallions and a pinch of flaky salt. Serve right away, before the cheese sets or the skin softens.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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