The Astonishingly Simple Trick To Cut Potato Baking Time In Half

Baked potatoes yield steamy pockets and call for delicious toppings, but they seem to take forever to cook all the way through. And you're not alone if you have to poke them with a fork several times throughout baking before they're finally done. If you're looking to cut the cooking time on these stubborn spuds in half, we've got just the tip.

That's right, what used to be at least 45 minutes in the oven before your potatoes were remotely tender to now no more than 25 minutes. All you have to do is this one simple trick: Instead of wrapping them in tin foil and cranking the oven to a super high temperature, simply cut them in half lengthwise, place them face-down onto a greased baking sheet and bake them that way. That's right, you don't need foil at all. And because your potatoes are cut in half, they're much thinner, which majorly reduces the baking time.

This traditional way of making baked potatoes in tin foil works by steaming the potato until it eventually becomes tender. This tried-and-true method, of course, works well enough. But if you are interested in slashing your cook time drastically and achieving an even better texture, listen up. 

By cutting your potato in half and baking them face-down on a baking sheet, you're able to cook the spud faster since there's less potato the heat has to penetrate through. But, you're also allowing the inside of the potato to cook facing outward, which helps elevate the taste and adds better texture. As the internal portion continues to cook on the sheet, it will also brown more, which brings forth the flavor.

On top of these two bonuses, there is yet another reason you'll want to start making this your go-to potato-cooking method at home: The combination of the hot surface from the baking sheet and the grease that is present will give the surface of your potato a nice crispiness.

Most of us can agree that one of the best parts of eating cooked potatoes is the crispy skin on the tuber. And by using this method, the skin that is exposed while baking will get nice and crisp. This inclines more people to eat the potato whole, skin and all, instead of only consuming the flesh. While the flesh contains a good amount of fiber, the skin has more than double the amount of fiber the flesh does, meaning that this simple hack will allow you to fully benefit from the goodness these hearty spuds have to offer in way less time.

Even if you're not the biggest fan of baked potatoes, you can still enjoy ultra-crispy skin by using this technique with fingerling potatoes. By slicing them in half, and coating them in oil and butter, you'll achieve a golden, crisp exterior while still achieving a melt-in-your-mouth texture.