Baked potatoes with butter (known as jacket potatoes with butter in the UK) are a wonderfully simple yet absolutely heavenly dish. On the one hand, this is the simplest way to prepare the basic baked potato recipe. On the other hand, it is one of the most popular ways to serve them in Britain.
But don’t picture something bland. If you choose good potatoes, baking them in the oven in their skins, lightly oiled and salted beforehand, already makes them very tasty. And then the butter melting into the hot potato is simply divine.
The Ingredients Are Especially Important
It’s true of every recipe that it can only be as good as its ingredients. But this matters even more with simple dishes like baked potatoes with butter, which essentially has just two ingredients: potatoes and butter.
When it comes to potatoes, unfortunately, most of us have relatively few options. Still, first try to choose a variety grown specifically for baking. If that’s not available, choose potatoes that are as large, floury, and fresh as possible, with as few blemishes or sprouts as possible.
With butter, however, you really do have a choice. This is truly delicious with real, original butter made from milk, not a reduced-fat or otherwise downgraded version—in other words, butter with at least 82% fat. Please don’t try to use cheap margarine here, because it simply won’t taste good.
If you want to serve and eat it dairy-free or fully vegan, serve it with plant-based butter rather than margarine. There are some very good-quality ones, and this dish will be divine with those, too!
Baked Potatoes with Butter
Ingredients
For the baked potatoes
- 4 large baking potatoes for baking in the oven
- 1 tbsp cooking fat or oil
- salt
For the topping
- 6 tbsp butter 80 g, about 1 1/2 tablespoons (20 g) per potato, or to taste
- salt
Instructions
- As a first step, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Wash the potatoes well, then wipe them dry.
- Prick each potato with a fork in 5–6 places, on all sides.
- Rub the potatoes with oil or fat, and coat them with salt on all sides. This is what makes the skins delicious and crispy.
- Put the potatoes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and bake for 2 hours. Turn them over roughly halfway through. 20 minutes before the end, turn the temperature up to 425°F (220°C). Don’t forget, the potatoes need to be baked whole, with their skins on.
- Take the potatoes out of the oven. With a sharp knife, cut each one lengthwise, very deeply, then make a smaller crosswise cut as well. Open the potato with a knife and fork, and scrape the inside a little with the fork. Be careful, because at this point the potatoes are very hot. Touch the baking sheet only with oven mitts, and handle the potatoes with utensils. But don’t let them cool down, because then they won’t be nearly as delicious.
- Place the cold butter, shaved into thin curls with a knife, inside the hot potatoes, and salt them. The hot potatoes will melt the butter, creating a divine flavor combination. Serve immediately.
