Ridiculously Easy Crispy Potato Skins

Cheese, bacon, sour cream, and green onions take this potato skins recipe over the top! These crispy, flavorful potato skins elevate a frugal favorite into an amazing side dish or appetizer.

I’ve shared how you can make baked potatoes crazy fast, and today I’m showing you why.

Allow me to introduce the amazing, incredible, always a hit and not made nearly often enough, good enough as a side dish and NOT just an appetizer: potato skins.

Wait – did she really just say POTATO SKINS?!

Aren’t those just wanna-be vegetables filled with unhealthy saturated fat and deep-fried for 15 minutes to oblivion?

Oh friends, if this is what you think, then we need to have a little chat.

This easy potato skins recipe is SO delicious and full of flavor without all of that funky stuff! If you’ve never made potato skins before, it’s time to start.

RIDICULOUSLY EASY POTATO SKINS RECIPE

Why are loaded potato skins one of my favorite side dishes to prepare? Here are five good reasons…

• Potato skins are made of POTATOES, which the last time I checked, were a vegetable. AND they’re a CHEAP vegetable.
• Butter and cheese are healthier than you think. Both contain healthy fats and proteins.
• Bacon. Because everything’s better with bacon.
• We’re keeping a good amount of potato flesh so it’s not like you’re literally serving just the skin of the potato.
• The combination of potato + butter + cheese + bacon + sour cream + chives is a flavor explosion in your mouth that you MUST experience at least once in your life. And it should definitely be tonight.

Yes, make potato skins tonight. Your family will love you forever and ever.

How do I know? Because every time I make potato skins they are LITERALLY devoured in minutes.

I’ve had to start making a double batch because the family loves them so much!

POTATO SKIN RECIPE INGREDIENTS

With just 8 simple ingredients, this potato skin recipe is satisfying and delicious!

• Russet potatoes. Choose smaller potatoes. Potato skins cook better and taste the best when they can be eaten in 4-5 bites.
• Butter. Alternatively, some people use olive oil, and that’s okay if you don’t want butter, but canola oil is not recommended.
• Salt and ground black pepper. Simple seasonings are all you need here.
• Cheddar cheese. I like the classic flavor of shredded cheddar cheese, but you can also use Colby jack, pepperjack, or mozzarella if that’s what you have on hand.
• Bacon. Aim for about 1 piece of bacon per potato.
• Sour cream. This gives a creamy, tangy finish to the potato bites.
• Green onions. Not only do these make your potato skins look prettier, but you get extra zippy flavor! You could also do a sprinkle of chives instead.

Psst! Want to kick this up a notch? Try finishing this recipe with a pinch of finishing salt! I love Ava Jane’s Kitchen because it doesn’t have microplastics (gross, right?) and it’s SO GOOD! Plus, you can get a free 8oz. bag of sea salt (just pay shipping and handling!)

HOW TO MAKE POTATO SKINS

Ready to learn how to make cheesy potato skins? There are several steps, but I promise these are ridiculously easy to make!

Step 1. Preheat the oven to 400F.

Step 2. Poke the potatoes several times with a fork and wrap them with aluminum foil. Place directly on the oven rack, in the center of the oven, and bake until a knife easily pierces through, about 50-60 minutes. Alternatively, use one of these other baked potato cooking methods.

Step 3. While your potatoes are doing their thing in the oven, take 10 minutes to prepare the toppings: melt the butter, grate the cheese, and slice the green onions. Slice the bacon into small pieces and cook bacon until it is barely crispy.

Step 4. When the potatoes are tender and done, carefully unwrap them – they will be hot. Slice them in half lengthwise and let them sit for about 5 minutes so they’re cool enough to handle.

Step 5. Scoop the potato flesh out of the skins with a spoon, leaving about ¼” worth of the flesh intact all around. Save the potato flesh for mashed potatoes or another recipe like potato salad.

Step 6. Place the potato halves on a baking sheet, skin side down. Brush the inside of the potatoes with melted butter and season generously with salt and pepper.

Step 7. Flip the potatoes over and repeat with the melted butter, salt and pepper.

Step 8. Broil for 2 minutes. Using tongs, flip the potatoes over and broil again for 2 minutes.

Step 9. Top the potatoes with cheese and bacon and broil for 2-5 minutes more, until the cheese is thoroughly melted and just starting to brown.

Step 10. Top with sour cream and green onions as desired, or drizzle with Homemade Hot Sauce for an extra kick! Dipping in ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing is tasty too!

Put it all together and what do you get? A side dish that your family will absolutely love and one that will quickly make it to your weekly meal plan!

If you happen to have any leftover potato skins, let them cool completely before popping them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

You can also freeze potato skins. Flash freeze them in a single layer on a baking sheet for 1 hour before transferring them to a resealable bag. After defrosting, simply warm them in the oven until hot.

POTATO SKIN RECIPE VARIATIONS

• Spicy potato skins. Add some Pickled Jalapeños or Homemade Hot Sauce to the potato skin recipe. Creamy blue cheese complements the hotter flavors.
• Chili baked potato skins. Fill each potato skin with a scoop of chili and top with shredded cheese before broiling. Top with sour cream and green onions.
• Vegetarian potato skins. Skip the bacon and add some steamed broccoli florets and cheddar cheese instead.
• Taco potato skins. Add Ground Beef Taco Meat or black beans with the cheese, and top with sour cream and Salsa or Guacamole after broiling. Top them off with a sprinkle of cilantro and black olives!
• Italian potato skins. Use Parmesan cheese instead of cheddar and add a bit of Italian seasoning along with salt and pepper. Yum!

POTATO SKINS RECIPE TIPS

I will admit that there is a drawback to this easy potato skins recipe and that’s the time it takes to cook an oven baked potato. BUT I’ve found a way around that too.

The key is to plan ahead. You don’t have to plan WAY ahead, just a little bit.

• You can use a slow cooker or an instant pot to cook the potatoes. Bake them while you’re getting ready in the morning (or watching a show before bed).
• You can even microwave the potatoes if you’re really short on time. You can find instructions for all these cooking methods in this post.
• When making bacon for another meal or for a weekend breakfast, set aside some for the potato skins (allow 1 piece per whole potato). It’s easy to make a bunch of bacon without standing over the stove when you bake it in the oven!
• Buy the cheese in bricks, shred it yourself, and freeze it. Just pull out a package from the freezer.
• Sliced green onions will keep in a container for a good 3-4 days too. Pull them out when you’re already chopping something else. You can also freeze chopped green onions, although they aren’t as crisp when thawed as fresh green onions.

SERVE WITH CRISPY POTATO SKINS

I like to serve these potato skins as an easy side dish with dinner, but they’re also great for an appetizer spread! Try them along with these other yummy apps:

POTATO SKINS RECIPES FAQS

MORE EASY POTATO SIDE DISHES