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Baked potatoes with various fillings have been around since forever and are still massively popular today. Cheap, easy to make and nutritious - what's not to like?
Prep the potatoes
You need good-sized floury potatoes such as Maris Pipers or King Edwards, although supermarkets frequently sell spuds simply labelled as 'baking potatoes'. Give them a good wash if there's any dirt on them. Stab them all over with a fork, brush them all over with olive oil and sprinkle generously with sea salt or kosher salt.
Bake the potatoes
Heat your oven to 200°C (392°F) for a fan/convection oven or air fryer, 220°C (425°F) conventional, gas 7. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet and cook them for one hour. After this time, test them for doneness - they should feel a bit soft when you squeeze them or insert a skewer. If they are still a bit hard, cook for longer.
Assemble the meal
The great thing about jacket potatoes is the almost unlimited range of fillings that work with them. Here's some ideas:
plain butter and salt
grated cheese and baked beans
ham and cheese
coleslaw
hotdog and onions
coronation chicken
bolognese sauce
tuna mayonnaise
If any of your fillings need to be heated, do that while the potatoes are cooking.
Cut the potatoes in half, insert a large blob of butter and press the two halves together to melt the butter into the flesh. Then stuff the potatoes with as much of the filling as you can manage. Eat the whole lot, including the delicious crispy skin.