Jacket potatoes rank among the most comforting kitchen staples, offering a golden, crisp exterior and fluffy interior when cooked right. Topped thoughtfully, they become a standout dish.
The Ideal Cooking Technique
Chef Ian Theasby from Bosh outlines the best approach for maximum crispiness. Start by stabbing the potato several times with a fork. Rub olive oil into the skin to help it crisp up, then add a sprinkle of salt for flavor from the start.
Bake at 200°C for about one hour. This yields a crispy outside and fluffy inside.
“It’s all about oiling the skin, right? So you get your jacket potato, you stab it a few times with a fork, and then what you do is rub in some olive oil to get it to embed into the skin. And then I tend to also rub in a little bit of salt so you’re sort of seasoning it right from the get-go. And then let the oven do the work. You just bang it in there and just roast it about 200°C for probably about an hour until it’s crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Now that is when you are wanting maximum jacket potato quality.”
Time-Saving Microwave Option
For faster results, microwave the potato for about 10 minutes first, then finish in the oven for the crisp skin.
Oven Loyalty Over Air Fryers
Ian Theasby prefers traditional ovens despite air fryers’ popularity. He notes, “I do like cooking with air fryers, but I’m a real fan of the oven. Air fryers are great, right? And I’m sure that if I just went over to the air fryer side then I’d be converted, but I’m just a stickler for the oven.”
Ian Theasby and Henry Firth form the Bosh duo, marking 10 years of plant-based cooking with their eighth cookbook, More Plants. Ian calls it their “best one yet,” featuring 90 recipes ready in 30 minutes. It emphasizes fiber, vegetables, beans, grains, and bold flavors for everyday wellness.
Pickle Bean-Stuffed Jacket Potatoes Recipe
Ingredients
- Four baking potatoes (250 g each)
- Olive oil
- Two tablespoons of plant-based butter
- Sea salt to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- For the pickle bean topping: 200 g gherkins
- Quarter of a red onion
- Half a small cucumber
- 25 g dill
- One lemon
- 400 g can of cannellini beans
- 400 g can of butter beans
- 450 g of firm tofu
- 30 g of BOSH nooch nutritional yeast
- One tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil
- One tablespoon of Dijon mustard
- One tablespoon of white wine vinegar
- Whole cornichons, to garnish
Method
- Preheat the oven to 240°C (220°C fan / Gas 9).
- Pierce the potatoes several times and microwave for 20 minutes at 900W, turning every five minutes.
- Coat with olive oil and salt, then bake for about 10 minutes until skins crisp and centers fluff.
- Finely chop gherkins, red onion, and cucumber. Strip dill, juice lemon, drain and rinse beans.
- Blend tofu, beans, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard, vinegar, and water to a smooth, thick paste. Season with salt and pepper.
- Stir in most chopped vegetables and dill.
- Halve potatoes, loosen flesh, add plant-based butter, spoon on filling, and top with remaining vegetables and dill.
