These crispy, golden potato skins are the ultimate crowd-pleasing appetizer that brings restaurant-quality indulgence right to your home table. Ready in just 90 minutes, these perfectly baked potato shells deliver a satisfying crunch on the outside while keeping their fluffy interior intact.
With 9g of protein and only 258 calories per serving, they make a sensible yet utterly satisfying snack or side dish that’s sure to disappear fast at your next gathering.
Ingredient Section
- Russet Potatoes: 6 medium-sized, washed and dried – choose firm potatoes with smooth skin
- Cheddar Cheese: 8 ounces, freshly shredded for best melting
- Bacon: 8 slices, cooked until crispy and crumbled
- Butter: 1/4 cup unsalted, melted for brushing
- Sour Cream: For topping, at room temperature
- Chives: Freshly chopped for garnish
- Seasonings: Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Instructions Section
- Initial Bake: Preheat to 400°F, poke potatoes with fork and bake for 1 hour until tender
- Cool Down: Let potatoes rest for 15 minutes until handleable
- Slice: Cut larger potatoes into thirds lengthwise, smaller ones in half
- Shape: Create boat-like cavities by carefully scooping potato flesh, leaving thick edges
- Season: Brush inside and outside with melted butter, add salt and pepper
- First Broil: Place under high broiler for 7-8 minutes until edges turn crispy
- Top: Fill each skin with generous cheese and crumbled bacon
- Final Broil: Return to broiler for 3-4 minutes until cheese bubbles
- Garnish: Top with sour cream and fresh chives before serving
Make-Ahead Tips
You can bake the potatoes up to 2 days before you need them! Just wrap the baked and cooled potatoes in foil and pop them in the fridge. When you’re ready to make the skins, simply cut and continue with the recipe. This makes party prep so much easier!
Cooking Tips
Want extra-crispy skins? After you brush them with butter, sprinkle a tiny pinch of salt on the outside of each potato skin. The salt helps draw out extra moisture, giving you that amazing crunch! Also, don’t skip poking holes in your potatoes – this lets steam escape and keeps them from exploding in your oven.
Fun Variations
Love mixing things up? Try these tasty twists:
- Switch cheddar for pepper jack cheese and add sliced jalapeños
- Use BBQ sauce and shredded chicken instead of bacon
- Go veggie by topping with broccoli and cheese
- Add ranch seasoning to the butter before brushing
Serving Ideas
These potato skins shine as game day snacks or party appetizers! Set up a topping bar with extra cheese, bacon, sour cream, and chopped green onions so everyone can dress up their own. They’re perfect paired with cold drinks and other finger foods like wings or sliders.
Storage and Reheating
Keep leftover potato skins in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, pop them in a 350°F oven for 10-15 minutes until hot and crispy. The air fryer works great too – just 3-4 minutes at 350°F will bring back that perfect crunch!
Potato Skins
Equipment
- Baking sheet
Ingredients
- 6 small to medium sized Russet potatoes washed and pat dry
- 8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
- 8 slices bacon cooked and crumbled
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter half of a stick, melted
- sour cream for topping
- chives or green onion chopped, for topping
- salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Poke potatoes with a fork, place on a baking sheet and cook for 1 hour. Remove from the baking sheet, and allow to cool for about 15 minutes or until cool enough to handle.
- For large potatoes, cut each potato lengthwise, into three sections, creating three long slices. (So each potato should yield two skins, plus a middle section that you can discard or use to make baked potato salad :). For small potatoes, just cut in half.
- Use a small spoon to scoop out some of the potato flesh in the center, leaving a thick layer near the skin, but hollowing it out slightly to create a “boat”.
- Turn your oven on to a high broil. Brush the potatoes with butter on the inside and outside and place them back onto the baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Broil for 7-8 minutes until the insides get a bit crispy from the melted butter.
- Remove from the oven and add a generous amount of shredded cheese into each skin, topping with bacon pieces.
- Place back under the broiler for about 3-4 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Remove from oven and top with sour cream, chives or green onion. Serve warm.
