There are few foods more comforting than a freshly baked potato pulled right from the oven, its skin crisp and blistered, with an impossibly steamy, fluffy interior. It’s the kind of thing most of us assume we already know, but we dont. This is exactly why America’s Test Kitchen baked potato is so fascinating, so easy yet very hard to master.
When America’s Test Kitchen turned its attention to baked potatoes, it treated them like any other recipe: control the variables, test the assumptions, and strip away habits that don’t actually help. The result is a method that feels almost obvious once you understand it, but noticeably better when you put it into practice.
The Thinking Behind America’s Test Kitchen Baked Potato
What makes America’s Test Kitchen baked potato truly extraordinary isn’t any secret ingredient or a flashy technique. It’s just the basic understanding of how a baked potato should be at its core. The exterior should be dry and crisp, not leathery. The interior should be fluffy, steamy, and fully cooked, with no hint of gumminess. Achieving both simultaneously requires understanding how a potato behaves under heat.
Through repeated testing and experimenting, the team confirmed that russet potatoes are non-negotiable. Their high starch content and low moisture content make them ideal for baking. Potatoes with a waxy variety may roast beautifully, but they simply don’t produce the same airy interior when baked whole. This choice alone accounts for a huge difference in texture, and it’s one of those fundamentals that America’s Test Kitchen baked potato quietly insists you get right.
The Method That Actually Works
The process itself is refreshingly straightforward, no jargon, nothing. That being said, every step is extremely important to nail that perfect America’s Test Kitchen baked potato. First, the potatoes are scrubbed clean and thoroughly dried, as moisture on the skin prevents crispness. Rather than wrapping them in foil, which traps steam and softens the skin, the potatoes are placed directly on the oven rack or on a wire rack over a baking sheet.
One of the most discussed aspects of America’s Test Kitchen’s baked potato is the oil-and-salt treatment. Instead of oiling before baking, which can inhibit moisture loss early on, the potatoes are baked plain for most of the cooking time. Only near the end are they brushed lightly with oil and sprinkled generously with salt, then returned to the oven. This timing allows the skin to dry first and crisp later, producing that deeply satisfying crackle when you cut into it.
Temperature matters too. A hot oven, typically around 450°F, ensures that moisture inside the potato turns to steam quickly, separating the starch granules and creating that fluffy interior. Lower temperatures may eventually cook the potato through, but they often leave it dense and heavy. America’s Test Kitchen’s baked potato prioritises texture over baking.
What Happens Inside the Potato?
One of the reasons this method works so consistently is that it aligns with food science rather than fighting it. As the potato heats, starch granules absorb moisture, swell, and burst, creating a soft, mealy texture. If moisture lingers on the skin for too long, it can condense and degrade the skin’s texture. By encouraging steady moisture release, America’s Test Kitchen’s baked potato preserves the ideal interior while developing a crisp exterior.
This also explains why puncturing the potato with a fork, once considered essential, is no longer necessary. Potatoes don’t explode in home ovens; the steam escapes naturally through the skin. Testing showed no benefit to poking holes, only unnecessary handling.
Serving it the Right Way
Once baked, the potato ain’t finished until it’s opened properly. America’s Test Kitchen recommends cutting a slit lengthwise and gently squeezing the ends to make the inside fluffy. This simple yet important step ensures crumbs are separated, and all excess steam is released. This makes room for butter, sour cream, mayo or any other topping you prefer with your baked potato recipe. Now, it’s true that this is a very small detail, but it goes hand in hand with the logic of America’s Test Kitchen’s baked potato: keep the interior light rather than compacted.
Toppings themselves are left refreshingly open-ended. The method doesn’t dictate how you should finish your potato, only that the base is good enough to support anything from classic butter and chives to more indulgent combinations like cheese and bacon.
Why This Baked Potato Is Worth Your Time?
The beauty of America’s Test Kitchen baked potato is that it doesn’t ask for more effort, only better timing and understanding. It respects the ingredient, relies on sound technique, and delivers results consistently better than the average home-baked potato.
In the end, this isn’t about making a fancy dish out of a humble ingredient. It’s about doing a simple thing properly, with intention. And once you taste a baked potato with a shatteringly crisp skin and a cloud-like interior, it’s hard to go back to the old way of doing things.
