Twice-Baked Potatoes Recipe
Twice Baked Potatoes are the perfect party food. Stuffed with sour cream, green onions, and cheese and baked to perfection, they are one crowd-pleaser of a side dish.
Obsessed with spuds? While you’re at it, try out our Air Fryer Baked Potatoes, Creamy Potato Soup, and Garlic Mashed Potatoes.
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What are Twice Baked Potatoes?
Twice-baked potatoes are a classic American side dish that is essentially stuffed potatoes. It blends two favorites – Creamy Mashed Potatoes and tender baked potatoes. They are called “twice baked” because the whole potatoes are first baked, then you scoop out the flesh and season it, re-stuff the potatoes, and bake them one more time in the oven until golden brown. The result is an ultra-creamy, decadent stuffed potato that’s worth writing home about.
Ingredients
The ingredients for making stuffed twice-baked potatoes are simple pantry and refrigerator staples. This recipe is also very versatile and you can change up the fillings based on what you have on hand. Feel free to experiment with various herbs and cheeses.
- Russet Potatoes – Select similar-sized potatoes for even cooking.
- Sour Cream – Full-fat sour cream brings a nice tang to the filling. If you’d like, you can use half sour cream and half Greek yogurt instead.
- Half and Half – Half and half will help thin out the filling and give it that mashed potatoes texture. You can substitute with equal parts of milk and heavy cream.
- Green Onions – Fresh, minced green onions or chives provide a pop of color and freshness.
- Bacon Bits – cook up some bacon using our Oven-Baked Bacon Recipe or Crispy Air Fryer Bacon Recipe (make sure to drain the bacon of excess grease before adding it to the filling).
- Cheddar Cheese – Extra sharp cheddar cheese is our top pick, but feel free to switch things up and use the cheese blend you love best. Sometimes we do half cheddar cheese and half bleu cheese for the extra tang and depth of flavor.
- Garlic Parsley Salt – This all-in-one seasoning blend adds nice garlic and herb flavor to the filling. Alternatively, you can use equal parts salt and garlic powder. If you like, you can also add a bit of fresh cracked black pepper.
Pro Tip: Russet Potatoes are the best potatoes for making twice-baked potatoes because they are sturdier than other potatoes so their shells/skins are perfect for stuffing. They also have a high starch content that makes for the creamiest filling.
How to Make Twice Baked Potatoes
- Prepare Potatoes – Wash potatoes under cold water and pat them dry. Set on a baking sheet, leaving space between each, and poke each potato several times with a fork.
- Bake the Potatoes – at 400°F for about 60-75 minutes until easily pierced with a fork.
- Scoop out the potatoes – cut the potatoes in half and keeping the skins intact, scoop out the insides into a large mixing bowl and mash with a potato masher or fork.
- Make potato filling – Add sour cream, half and half, and parsley salt to the potato flesh and mash the mixture until it’s creamy. Then, stir in the green onions, bacon bits, and 1 cup of cheddar cheese.
- Stuff the potato shells with the mashed potato filling and sprinkle the tops with more cheddar cheese.
- Bake Again – Bake stuffed potatoes at 350°F for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and heated through.
Pro Tip: To prevent the potatoes from bursting on the first bake, you must poke holes or slice slits in each one in several places. This vents the potato and prevents internal pressure (and a mess) from building up.
Serve Twice Baked Potatoes with
Stuffed potatoes are a super versatile side dish that pairs well with just about any meat or salad. Pair your stuffed potatoes with:
- Beef – We like to serve them alongside Pan-Seared Steak or Beef Kabob.
- Chicken – Air Fryer Chicken Wings or Spatchcock Chicken are the perfect matches.
- Salad – add freshness with Cucumber Tomato Avocado Salad or Caesar Salad.
- Kid-Friendly – If you’re whipping up the potatoes for kids pair them with Baked Chicken Nuggets or Popcorn Chicken.
Common Questions
This can happen if you scooped out too much of the insides, making the potato skins too flimsy. To prevent this, make sure to leave about a quarter of an inch of the flesh intact when scooping.
The best way to scoop the potato flesh for twice-baked potatoes is with a large spoon. The smooth back of the spoon will help guide you and make a smooth potato skin for stuffing.
If you overcook your twice-baked potatoes, they will be gummy and dry. To prevent this from happening, make sure to only pre-bake the potatoes until fork tender and reduce the heat to 350˚F for the final bake.
It’s not recommended to put twice-baked potatoes in the freezer. Cooked potatoes don’t tend to thaw well and tend to get a bit gummy when reheated.
Make-Ahead
- Storing: keep up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Make-Ahead: stuffed potatoes can be prepared 1-2 days in advance, do all the steps except for the last bake. Just before serving, bake until heated through.
- Reheating: Place them on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil and bake at 350°F for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the potato is warmed through. Avoid reheating the potatoes in the microwave, as they will turn dry, and gummy.
More Delicious Potato Recipes
- Instant Pot Baked Potatoes
- Easy Boiled Potatoes Recipe
- Breakfast Potatoes
- Crispy Baked Potato Wedges
- Easy Scalloped Potatoes Recipe
Twice Baked Potatoes are also a wonderful stand-by to repurpose leftover baked potatoes for an easy lunch and they never taste like leftovers. How do you make your stuffed potatoes? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
Twice-Baked Potatoes Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 russet potatoes, (about 2 lb)
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup half and half, or whipping cream
- 2 Tbsp green onions, diced
- 1/4 cup cooked bacon, chopped
- 1 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, grated
- 1 tsp garlic salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Wash the potatoes under cold water and pat them dry. Place them on a baking sheet, leaving a bit of space between each. Poke each potato in several places with a fork. Bake potatoes at 400°F for about 60-75 minutes or until they are easily pierced with a fork and give a little when pressed.
- Cut the potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out the insides (leaving about 1/4” in the shell) and transfer into a large bowl. Mash the potatoes with a potato masher or fork.
- Add sour cream, half and half, and parsley salt to the bowl with the potato insides. Mash the mixture together until creamy.
- Add green onions, bacon bits, and 1 cup of cheddar cheese and stir to combine.
- Fill the potato skins with the potato mixture and sprinkle the tops with the remaining cheddar cheese. Reduce the oven temperature and bake at 350°F for 15-20 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the potatoes are heated through.
Nutrition Per Serving
Natalya Drozhzhin
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Great recipe. The ingredient list includes garlic salt, but the instructions only mention parsley salt.
Hi Caitlin, Garlic Parsley Salt is an all-in-one seasoning blend, sometimes the name is used both ways. I hope that helps.
Will these only work with russet potatoes? Would golden potatoes work?
Hi Olga, you can experiment with other potatoes but Russet Potatoes are the best potatoes for making twice-baked potatoes because they are sturdier than other potatoes so their shells/skins are perfect for stuffing. They also have a high starch content that makes for the creamiest filling.
Looks great. The directions say to add parsley to the sour cream and 1/2 and 1/2…but there is no parsley (amount) included in the list of ingredients. Please clarify.
Hi Michele! Sorry for the confusion and thank you for pointing out the error. It’s actually supposed to read “parsley garlic salt.” I’ve attached the link for the parsley-garlic salt HERE.
Great recipe but here’s a time saver for you. Instead of oven baking, air fry the potatoes at 400 for 30 minutes. I only use the oven for the final step.
Thanks for sharing, Bob!
Yum! I made this to go along with our dinner last night and they were a huge hit. Everyone loved them, will definitely keep this in our rotation.
Nice to know that you loved this recipe, Julie!
i had been following Natasha for 3 years on Pinterest. i have tried her shrimp tacos and shrimp cobb salad. they have all been big hits with my picky eaters. tonight, i did the baked potatoes…..it was ANOTHER HUGE HIT!!! my kids ate about 3 each. soo yummy!! thank you so much for taking the time to post the recipes. i cant wait to see what else to try =)
That’s wonderful, Betty! I’m so glad you enjoy my recipes.
Love your 2 baked potatoes, if I baked them the night before for a picnic would they be ok?
Hi Jack & Polly! You sure can. Please see the Make-Ahead section in the recipe notes.
Almost the same recipe I use, but I also add cream cheese. Adds a little bit different texture and flavor.
If you would like the potato skins to be crispier you can bake them for about 5 -7 minutes in the oven before you put your filling in. I like to brush them with a little olive oil before I do this too.
Thank you for sharing, Beth!
I do this too, but with Worcestershire sauce and butter. Yum!
Could you do the first bake in the microwave in a cloth bag sold for that purpose – and then mix, stuff again and do final bake in the oven? Would save a lot of time.
Hi Val! I don’t have experience with cooking potatoes in the microwave to advise.
We make these all the time!! They are our favorite!! They are easy to make & I love them as my main dish. I will add some protein to make it even more hearty.
Sounds great! So glad you love this recipe.
These are so good! One of my favorite alternatives to mashed potatoes, because they are so filling. Don’t skimp on the bacon bits!
Thank you for sharing, Agnes! They really are so good and a great alternative.
These were incredibly easy to make! Loved how creamy they were!
So glad you enjoyed them!