I'm really not over reaching when I tell you that I made the greatest stuffed potatoes EVER last night. I am absolutely my biggest critic when it comes to food I prepare. I'm always and a day making something & then (3 bites in) deciding that I could have done it better- and making a plan.
But not these babies. Oh, no. They are perfection. (I sound so full of myself, don't I?!)
And... they used up some left overs that were taking up shelf space in my Frigidaire. Score! And, I made them using ingredients I scrounged the pantry for. Double Score! Also, these potatoes are huge & super filling, so they totally rock the show as the main entree. Triple Score!
Anyway, allow me to share.
First, spend about 900 hours caramelizing some onions over the stove while you watch the Big Bang Theory on your laptop.
Actually, it's more like 30-45 minutes. But whatever. Seems longer.
And I stand by my statement on the BBT.
When they start to caramelize and get beautiful, hit them with a couple of shots of Worcestershire sauce & a pinch of sugar.
AFTER you're done with the onions, start on the potatoes.
Why?
Because you're about to crank your oven up to 450 degrees for about 60 minutes.
That puppy gets hot!
And, I don't know about you, but I try and flee the kitchen when the oven is that hot.
Moving along.
Place a cookie sheet, lined with foil on the bottom rung.
Wash your potatoes.
Then oil those babies up. I used extra-virgin.
And then salt them up. Use kosher/sea salt/Morton's. Whatever.
Just salt the heck out of them.
I mean it. Use more that you think you'll need.
Then put them directly on the oven rack. Cook them for 50-60 minutes, flipping them over every 20 or so.
By the way, this is totally the way I make regular old baked potatoes.
Now comes the fun part. When you take the potatoes out of the oven set them out to cool for a bit & make sure you turn the oven OFF for a while. It's hot enough as it is in North Texas with out added to the heat!
When the potatoes are cool enough to handle (and you've turned the oven back on to your broiler setting!!!), slice them open and scoop out the flesh, making sure to keep the shells intact. You're going to need 'em later. To be honest, I'm really not sure what the best way to do this is. I just made a slit in the top, smooshed up the flesh & started scooping.
Now.
Take that left over roasted chicken from the end of last week (what, you don't have that in your fridge? ... hmm.) and mix it with the scooped out potato flesh, some sour cream & a bit of shredded cheese. Add some fresh ground pepper, some garlic powder & a wee pinch of salt. Mix it all up.
Stuff it all back into the potato shells. Don't worry about getting too much stuffing, just go for it, I say. If you're like me and the chicken is a bit on the chilly side, pop them back in the oven for a few minutes while the broiler is heating up. That should do the trick.
And remember those tasty onions from earlier?
Top the potatoes with those.
Top the onions with some more cheese.
Then into the oven, under the broiler, for 2-3 minutes. Until they look like this:
The hand you see in the picture below is my husband's. He's almost done eating his 1st potato & was about 60 seconds away from diving into his 2nd.
Happy Eating!
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