I made 10-minute, 1-hour, and 10-hour baked potatoes, and microwaving the spuds wasn’t the worst option

I tested three recipes for baked potatoes.

Paige Bennett

I tried recipes for 10-minute, 1-hour, and 10-hour baked potatoes to see which was worth it.
I thought the 10-minute microwave recipe was fine but wasn’t a fan of the 10-hour slow-cooker one.
My favorite method was the classic no-foil oven recipe, which was close to how I already made them.

Growing up, it was usually fastest for my mom to throw baked potatoes in the microwave before we piled toppings on them.

When I struck out on my own, I started wrapping them in foil and throwing them in the oven for about an hour — until I discovered baking potatoes uncovered and coating them in salt was much better.

There are so many ways to make a baked potato, so I decided to try a few methods. I tested an easy 10-minute recipe made in the microwave, a one-hour potato baked in the oven, and a 10-hour method using a slow cooker.

Here’s how they stacked up.

The first potato was cooked in the microwave.

I microwaved the potato in a mug.

Paige Bennett

I placed the potato upright in a microwave-safe container and let it cook for five minutes.

Then I used tongs to carefully flip the potato over and cooked it for another three minutes.

The texture turned out OK.

It tasted better with butter.

Paige Bennett

Fortunately, the texture issues, inside and out, were easy to mask with extra butter and toppings.

This method is great in a pinch when you just can’t wait for a baked potato. But as someone who loves to eat the whole potato, skin and all, this isn’t my preferred method.

The one-hour potato uses a no-foil method, which is closest to how I usually make them.

I’m used to making baked potatoes without foil.

Paige Bennett

The recipe doesn’t call for the potato to be wrapped in foil. Instead, I placed the oiled-up potato on a small tray to bake it.

The recipe says 45 minutes to an hour, but this was a pretty hefty potato, so I let it go for the full hour.

I couldn’t get enough of the skin on this potato.

The oven makes the potato nice and crispy.

Paige Bennett

I was a fan of the oven-baked potato.

The interior was soft, but it wasn’t as fluffy as it is in my usual potato method. I typically bake mine slightly longer, score them, and bake them some more.

I expected the slow-cooker potatoes to turn out soft, but the result was quite the opposite.

The recipe called for the potato to be wrapped in foil.

Paige Bennett

The recipe said to add 1 cup of water to the slow cooker, but that barely covered the bottom. I ended up adding a few cups until the water reached about one-third of the way up on the foil-covered potato.

My slow cooker tends to run hot, even when it’s at a low temperature, so I set it to the lowest setting to prevent overcooking.

I started worrying about the potato’s texture in the slow cooker.

This potato didn’t look or smell appealing.

Paige Bennett

When I took it out of the slow cooker, the skin was hot, damp, and dark, so the heat was definitely reaching the potato.

The inside was hot, too, but it was so tough that I could barely take a full bite with a fork.

Aside from the horrible texture, the smell was bad. I expected the butter and garlic to smell amazing, but it created a very strange odor I really hope I never have to smell again.

I won’t use the slow-cooker recipe again.

The one-hour recipe was pretty much perfect.

Paige Bennett

Microwaving potatoes is quick and convenient, but the texture just pales in comparison with a standard oven-baked potato.

I understand the appeal of making potatoes for a crowd in a slow cooker, but I can’t see myself attempting that method again.

The one-hour potato, complete with a delicious and crispy skin, was my favorite of the three. I’d make it again and again as a base for different toppings.

This story was originally published in August 2022 and most recently updated on September 17, 2024.

Read the original article on Business Insider

source:https://www.businessinsider.com/trying-10-minute-1-hour-10-hour-baked-potatoes-photos-2022-8