"Yes, it's good to prick them," Smith told Food52. "It pokes holes in the skin, which allows steam to escape. Otherwise, they could explode—it doesn't happen all the time, but it happens every once in a while. The potato is full of water it's trying to turn to steam, or water vapor.
Poke the potatoes with a fork just enough to pierce the skin so the potato won't burst when baking, especially in the microwave. Four or five times should be plenty. A potato is composed mainly of water, so poking them helps release steam as it cooks.
It's important to note that not every baked potato will bust open if it is not pierced beforehand, but since you (and we) are unable to predict if a potato is liable to explode, it's a good idea to pierce the surface as a precaution. Extra Tip: we do not recommend wrapping a potato in aluminum foil when you bake it.
Directions. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Poke holes in potato and wrap in foil. Bake in oven for 45 to 60 minutes until tender.
"It pokes holes in the skin, which allows steam to escape. Otherwise, they could explode—it doesn't happen all the time, but it happens every once in a while. The potato is full of water it's trying to turn to steam, or water vapor.
What are the benefits of using aluminum foil on a baked potato? We've found that when wrapping a potato in foil, they actually cook faster because the aluminum foil traps the heat, thus cooking them faster.
According to Restaurant Ninjas, restaurants that serve baked potatoes bake their potatoes in advance and keep them in warming equipment. Moreover, there is a constant cycle of new potatoes going out to ensure the food is fresh. This might sound familiar.
Soaking potatoes in water helps remove excess starch. Excess starch can inhibit the potatoes from cooking evenly as well as creating a gummy or sticky texture on the outside of your potatoes. Cold water is used because hot water would react with the starch activating it, making it harder to separate from the potatoes.
Wrapping potatoes in foil does not hasten baking. On the contrary, since the foil itself has to be heated before the potato begins to bake, cooking times increase slightly. Not only do you get better baked potatoes when you bake them unwrapped, you also save money.
Some say wrapping baked potatoes in aluminum foil helps them cook faster (aluminum conducts heat, then traps it), and it does keep them hot for longer once they come out of the oven, which is why we think restaurants use this method. Wrapping potatoes will also give you a softer, steamed skin, if that's what you like.
The potato, when wrapped in foil or placed on the bottom of a pan will have a dark brown spot on the bottom, a sure sign of over cooking. Foil traps the moisture in the potato causing the skin to be wet and the inside flavorless or gummy.
Potatoes need to cook all the way through, and the best way for that to happen is to make sure the hot air can get to the potato from all sides. If a potato bakes with one side touching a sheet pan, you'll get a hard spot and possibly uneven cooking.
Holes – I recommend poking holes in the potato with a fork about 8 times, ⅛-inch deep pricks evenly around.
soak your potatoes in room temperature water for 2 hours before you bake them. Yep! It really does make a difference. While resting in the water bath, the potatoes will soak up some of the water and this, in turn, will help make them fluffy inside when you bake them.
Why use salt water for soaking potatoes? There's moisture naturally found in potatoes, and moisture is drawn to higher concentrations of salt. (This is a process called osmosis.) So, if you put the potatoes in a salt water bath, that will help draw out some of their moisture, resulting in crispier fries.
The baking soda bath breaks down the potato's pectin and draws the starch to the surface, which promotes browning and the satisfying crispiness that only a perfectly roasted potato can deliver.
Q: Why is it common to salt the exterior of a baked potato? A: Chefs started doing this years ago to allow the salt to absorb or draw out the moisture of the potato while baking, which results in a dry, fluffy potato.
We recommend baking potatoes at 400 degrees F for about an hour. Smaller spuds might take a little less time, while larger baking potatoes over 1 pound might take a little more.
Baked Potato Cheat Sheet
In a 400 degrees F oven, potatoes take 45 minutes to 1 hour - they're done when they're soft when squeezed (with oven mitts, of course!). A good indicator: a paring knife or the tines of a fork should slide easily into the potato when it's done baking.