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Food & Recipes

How to Reheat a Baked Potato So It Stays Light and Fluffy

Leftover baked potatoes don’t have to taste bland.

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Are you tired of serving up dry, day-old spuds your family refuses to eat? Then it’s time to learn how to reheat a baked potato the right way. 

If you have leftover baked potatoes laying around, you might be thinking, “Can I reheat a baked potato?” While enjoying the spud fresh out of the oven is certainly the tastiest way to go, there’s nothing wrong with throwing a few spuds in the oven or microwave and calling it a night — as long as you know the best methods for each appliance. 

Here, we answer a few of your burning questions about this beloved side dish, including “How long to reheat a baked potato?” and “Is it safe to reheat a baked potato?” You might be surprised by some of the answers we found.

How do you reheat a baked potato in the oven?

Potatoes make a great side to a juicy steak or fresh piece of grilled salmon. Far too often, though, our eyes are bigger than our stomachs, and half gets left on the plate. But rather than tossing leftover baked potatoes in the garbage, why not wrap them up and save them in the fridge for another delicious meal?

If you have a few day-old baked potatoes sitting in your fridge, Claudia Sidoti, the head chef from Hello Fresh, shares expert tips for reheating it with step-by-step instructions.

Her first piece of advice: If you want to achieve a crispier skin, it’s always best to use your oven to “re-bake” and reheat the baked potato. But it’s not just the method that matters — you also need to know how long the process actually takes. Here, Sidoti shows us in three easy steps:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 
  2. Place the baked potato on the oven rack directly to heat (this applies to whole potatoes). Alternatively, you can place the baked potato on a cookie sheet or other baking sheet, and then put it in the oven. 
  3. Leave the baked potato in the oven for about 20 minutes. 
  4. Take it out of the oven, let it cool, and enjoy.

How do you reheat a baked potato in the microwave?

Baked potatoes are best fresh,” explains Sidoti. But if you have to reheat them, she says using your most-used kitchen appliance, the microwave, is still an excellent option. That said, knowing how to reheat a baked potato in the microwave does require a few extra seconds of prep work to get it right. Here, Sidoti describes the best process for this method in four simple steps.

  1. Slice the baked potato in half.
  2. Cover the baked potato with a damp paper towel.
  3. Place the wrapped baked potato in a microwave-safe dish.
  4. Microwave the baked potato on medium until it’s heated through (high if your microwave does not cook well on medium). The length of the reheat depends on the size of the potato, but typically, you will reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes. 

In general, it’s a good idea to remove all of the toppings before you place the baked potato in the microwave — unless you have twice-baked potatoes with the fixings already mixed in. If that’s the case, here’s what you need to know about reheating a twice-baked potato:

  • You can reheat a twice-baked potato in the microwave or the oven.
  • Some people freeze twice-baked potatoes and then reheat later.
  • You can place the frozen, twice-baked potatoes directly in the oven or let them thaw overnight in the fridge. 
  • The same steps you use (above) to reheat a baked potato in the oven or microwave also apply to reheating twice-baked potatoes. 
  • If you go with the microwave method but want a crispier skin, you can place your potatoes in the oven for a few minutes on the broiler setting, after you take them out of the microwave. 

What is the best way to reheat a baked potato?

It probably comes as no surprise that the best way to reheat a baked potato is in the oven. A helpful tip that comes up often with the oven method is to place the baked potato on a thin cookie sheet or piece of foil so the potato gets heat from all sides. 

However, the oven definitely takes more time than the microwave. That’s why the microwave comes in at a close second-best method. In fact, many experts say that if you know how to reheat a baked potato in the microwave, go ahead and use this option — just make sure you use a damp paper towel to cover the baked potato so your spud stays moist and tasty. 

Now that you know how to reheat a baked potato, you might be wondering: Is it safe to reheat a baked potato in the first place? While the reheating process itself is safe, it’s the storage method where people make mistakes. 

That’s why we have one last tip before you try out one of these cooking methods: Make sure to store your cooked baked potato in the refrigerator. If you leave it out at room temperature, harmful bacteria could grow — and consuming the potato in that case could make you very sick.

Want even more helpful tips for making leftovers taste their best? Check out our guides on how to reheat lasagna, how to reheat mac and cheese, and how to reheat salmon. (Making mashed potatoes? Click through to make them thick and delicious.)

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