Should I Oil Idaho® Potatoes Before Baking? (2024)

FAQs

Should I Oil Idaho® Potatoes Before Baking? ›

Adding oil to potatoes before baking is perfectly fine, just a personal preference. Without oil the Idaho russet skin bakes up crispy, with oil the skin will carry a lot of the flavor of the oil so some people have a preference for using olive oil or peanut oil.

Skip rubbing your potatoes in oil and salt until the end of the cooking time. That's when they'll deliver the most texture and flavor benefit for the spuds. If you oil them up early, the skins may not turn crispy. The salt, too, can run off the potatoes in the heat.

It's simple: Pan-fry with cooking oil(s), not butter. As much as we love butter, it burns too quickly over high heat, which is necessary for optimal crispiness. While olive oil does taste great with potatoes, it also has a lower smoking point.

For the best-tasting baked potatoes, start with Idaho® potatoes. The Idaho® potato has a high solids content so that during baking, the starch grains swell and separate, resulting in a characteristically light, fluffy texture.

Don't Skip on Prep. Give the whole potatoes a good scrub under running water, then dry them with a dish towel. Pierce the potatoes all over with a fork. The drying step eliminates excess moisture and the pricked holes let steam escape so the spuds won't burst open as they bake.

A: This sure sounds a lot like potatoes that have been stored too long, in too cold of an environment before cooking. When potatoes are held below 41°F for too long a period, the starches convert to sugar and it changes the cooking chemistry.

If the potato is hard, bake it a little longer. Don't exceed the recommended cooking time because potatoes will continue to cook after they're removed from the oven and the skin will get dry. "Another common mistake is letting the potato rest or cool before cutting.

If you over-crowded the pan so that there isn't enough space for the potatoes to rest on the pan without touching each other, it will prevent the water from evaporating and making the potatoes crispy. You can always try to broil the potatoes for 1-2 minutes to crisp them up at the end of baking if necessary.

Neutral, low-cost oil such as vegetable oil, canola oil, safflower oil, peanut oil, corn oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, etc., work well for roasting. These oils have a high smoke point, allowing the potatoes to get very hot to achieve maximum crispiness.

You want to use an oil with a mild flavour for your roasties. We prefer olive oil, but you can opt for vegetable, canola or grapeseed oils instead.

What is so special about idaho potatoes? ›

So why are Idaho® potatoes so much better than the rest? Idaho's growing season of warm days and cool nights, combined with plenty of mountain-fed irrigation and rich volcanic soil, produce the unique texture, taste, and dependable performance that keep customers asking for more.

People are often accustomed to placing their taters on a baking sheet with parchment paper or wrapping their spuds in foil. But one of the reasons why restaurant baked potatoes taste so good is because kitchens know that using wire racks or oven grates allows all sides of the spuds to be exposed to hot air.

A: Adding oil to potatoes before baking is perfectly fine, just a personal preference. Without oil the Idaho russet skin bakes up crispy, with oil the skin will carry a lot of the flavor of the oil so some people have a preference for using olive oil or peanut oil.

Rumor has it that an un-pricked spud will explode in the oven—but in all actuality, that's unlikely. Conventional wisdom says that when you bake a potato, you have to prick it with a fork all over a few times, piercing the skin to allow steam to release.

Don't skimp on the salt.

If you make this baked potato recipe, you will be! Coating the spuds in salt makes the skins extra-crispy and flavorful. Plus, with a bit of the salty skin in each bite, you won't need to worry about seasoning the potato flesh as you eat.

Neutral, low-cost oil such as vegetable oil, canola oil, safflower oil, peanut oil, corn oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, etc., work well for roasting. These oils have a high smoke point, allowing the potatoes to get very hot to achieve maximum crispiness.

Soak the cut potatoes in cold, salted water for 10 minutes. Drain and thoroughly pat to dry. Pour a 1/4 cup of peanut oil (or another high temperature oil) into a large, heavy cast iron or non-stick pan over high heat, and add the cut potatoes in batches.

Prior to cooking, the potatoes should be scrubbed clean of any dirt, rinsed, and dried. I use vegetable oil to rub the potatoes, which helps the skin crisp up nicely. You can use olive oil if you prefer.

You also should avoid prepping the potatoes ahead of time if you intend to fry them, as hot oil and wet veggies don't mix well.