Light, creamy, fluffy, and fully loaded twice-baked potatoes are a scrumptious treat. They are ideal for a lite meal or a side dish packed with flavor.
The potato skin is thin and crisp like a homemade chip. The combination of the ingredients with the smoked potato meat gives each bite a delightful freshness. You are going to be tempted to use this mixture for your next mashed potato recipe.
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Smoked Potatoes
Oh yes, this is part of the magic of this twice-baked potato recipe. I really enjoy the flavors from the maple wood when we smoked baked potatoes. The maple’s sweet flavor and aromatics remind me of cookouts on a wood fire. Just set up the BBQ grill for indirect cooking or the smoker to 400 degrees F. My husband offsets the maple chunks to the edge of the coals to optimize the length of smoking time. These at-home smoked baked potatoes on the BBQ, are easy and simple. It just takes a little planning.
A little planning with big rewards:
Sean love’s to BBQ. When I put twice-baked potatoes on the menu, I like to sneak them in at the end of one of his cooks. Thanks, Hubby! I just need to remember to get the potatoes prepped before he is done. Then, he just smokes and bakes them after whatever he cooked. They don’t need much attention. So we can finish dinner or whatever else we were doing. Now we have our secret ingredient for this week’s upcoming twice-baked potatoes, see How to Make Twice-Baked Potatoes below.
What you will need for Twice-Baked Potatoes
Of course, you’ll need baked potatoes. The beauty of this recipe is it can be done in stages or on the day. Just ensure the potatoes have cooled. It makes it so much easier to scoop the meat out.
Equipment
- Smoker, BBQ, or oven
- Cookie sheet
- Hand Mixer
- Clear mixing bowls: Anchor and Hocking Glassware
Ingredients
- 4 large baked Russet potatoes (cooled)
- Salt
- Onion powder
- Ground black pepper
- Chicken broth
- Salted butter
- Sour cream
- Bacon bits
- 8 cooked bacon strips for topping pieces (optional)
- Colby Jack cheese
See the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for a full list of ingredients with measurements.
How to make Twice-Baked Potatoes
Prep BBQ Grill
- Set BBQ for indirect cooking or smoker at 400 degrees F.
Making your potato boats (skins)
- Lay the potatoes flat
- Slice them length-wise about 2/3 from the bottom. We prefer to have 4 big boat-sized twice-baked potatoes. Then, there are 4 potato skins that are great for smaller appetites or just more potato goodness
- For medium boats, slice in the middle for 8 twice-baked potatoes
Make the potato mixture
- Spoon out the flesh from the potatoes into a mixing bowl, I got 4 cups. We prefer to have crispy skin. So, I have found leaving only 1/8 – 1/4 inch of meat behind is the answer
- Add in the salt, onion powder, and black pepper. Mix with a hand mixer
- Add in chicken broth and melted butter. Mix until the ingredients are incorporated. Don’t worry the texture will not be smooth yet
- Add the sour cream, bacon bits, and shredded cheese
- Mix until smooth (or desired consistency)
Make the Twice-Baked Potatoes
- Spoon portions of the potato mixture into the potato boats. We like to overfill them with a rounded dome
- Top each with some additional shredded cheese and bacon pieces (or bacon bits)
- Repeat the above with the smaller skins, just add one step of brushing the inside of the skins with melted butter before adding everything else
- Place the potatoes on a half cookie sheet or disposable pan. Put them on the preheated grill or smoker.
- Cook for 20-minutes or until the cheese has melted
- Serve and Enjoy!
See the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for a full list of ingredients with measurements.
TIPS
- If you enjoy your twice-baked potatoes with extra crispy skin, just oil and salt the skins as desired before baking.
- You can easily substitute the chicken broth with milk. However, the final texture may be slightly different.
FAQs
Yes. In fact, you could use the oven for the whole recipe.
3 – 4 days in the refrigerator
The chicken broth brings a freshness to the starchiness of the potatoes, blends the flavors, and adds its own savoriness.
We found out that when we bake the potatoes unwrapped, they have a stronger skin. Which makes it easier to scoop the meat out and hold its shape for the second bake.
Other recipes that go great with
Twice-Baked Potatoes:
What other toppings do you like on your Twice-Baked Potatoes? Let us know in the comments below.
Twice-Baked Potatoes
Equipment
- BBQ Grill (Indirect cooking method)
- Cookie sheet
- Hand mixer
- Clear mixing bowls
Ingredients
- 4 large baked Russet potatoes (about 4 cups of potato flesh)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 5 tablespoons salted butter, melted (divided)
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup bacon bits
- 8 pieces cooked bacon (optional for topping)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Colby Jack cheese (divided)
Instructions
Prep BBQ Grill
- Preheat BBQ to 400 degrees F
- Set BBQ to indirect cooking
Make your potato boats (skins)
- Place potatoes on a cutting board
- Slice them length-wise 2/3 from the bottom. You'll have a boat and a skin
Make the potato mixture
- Spoon the flesh out of the potato boat and skin pieces into a bowl. It should yield about 4 cups. For crispier skin leave around 1/8 inch of flesh on the potato
- Add the salt, onion powder, and ground black pepper into the bowl. Mix with a hand mixer
- Add the chicken broth and 4 tablespoons of melted butter. Mix until the ingredients are incorporated
- Add the sour cream, bacon bits, and 1 cup of shredded cheese
- Mix until smooth (or desired consistency)
Make the twice-baked potatoes
- Spoon in portions of the potato mixture into the potato boats, until a rounded dome is formed
- For the potato skins use the last tablespoon of melted butter to coat the inside. Then add the remaining potato mixture
- Top each potato boat and skin with the remaining shredded cheese and bacon pieces (or bacon bits)
- Place the full boats and skins on a half cookie sheet or disposable pan. Put them on the preheated BBQ grill
- Cook for 20-min or until the cheese has melted
- Serve and Enjoy!
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