Potato Salad Bake Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why are restaurant baked potatoes so good? ›

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.

Because of this combination, I suggest cooking the potatoes on Saturday afternoon, refrigerating, then finish prepping the potato salad that evening or Sunday morning and consuming within two days. Learn more about All Things Potato Salad here!

Why is it common to salt the exterior of a baked potato? A: Chefs started doing this years ago to allow the salt to absorb or draw out the moisture of the potato while baking, which results in a dry, fluffy potato. They used to do something similar with prime rib, sometimes baking it over rock salt.

This is because the skin of an average potato is sturdy enough to prevent most of the steam from escaping. For this reason, our verdict on the debate is to indeed poke the potato skin with a fork or knife in a few places before you bake it.

Rinsing potatoes helps remove excess starch, so it is recommended to rinse the potatoes before cooking. To ensure even more starch is out of the way, it's recommended that they even be quickly rinsed after boiling. We recommend using hot water for rinsing after boiling and cold water prior to boiling.

Much of this depends on what type of potato you are using. If you're going for the starchy potato, I would peel it first, then cut it into bite-sized pieces and boil it. Other potatoes have thinner skin and I think seeing the skin of potato adds some interest to the salad.

Cook the potatoes properly: Overcooking potatoes can cause them to become too soft and mushy. To prevent this, boil the potatoes until they are just tender, but not falling apart. Drain the potatoes and let them cool completely before adding the dressing.

POTATOES, MAYONNAISE (SOYBEAN OIL, WATER, EGG YOLKS, VINEGAR, SALT), MUSTARD (WATER, VINEGAR, MUSTARD SEED, SALT, SUGAR, SOYBEAN OIL, TURMERIC, PAPRIKA, GARLIC POWDER, SPICES, ANNATTO EXTRACT (COLOR], XANTHAN GUM, CITRIC ACID, NATURAL FLAVOR), DILL PICKLE CUBES (CUCUMBER VINEGAR, SALT, CALCIUM CHLORIDE, NATURAL ...

Not Getting The Cook Time Right

If you overcook them, the result is a mushy, grainy mess. And if you undercook them, you end up with crunchy (not in a good way) potatoes. It's a delicate balance to achieve soft, tender potatoes for that just-right potato salad texture.

Why don't you peel potatoes for potato salad? ›

There's no reason at all, so my advice is to leave the skins on. The skin on a potato adds a nice texture and flavor to the potato salad and it's also the healthiest part.

Watery potato salads may be caused by the following: Type of potato used. A waxy or moist potato tends to stay that way when cooked. The Russet Burbank variety has high solids (starch to water ratio) and tends to be drier when cooked.

According to Restaurant Ninjas, restaurants that serve baked potatoes bake their potatoes in advance and keep them in warming equipment. Moreover, there is a constant cycle of new potatoes going out to ensure the food is fresh.

Whereas most home cooks will use a pinch of butter, a couple of shakes of salt, and a bit of milk, steakhouse chefs aren't afraid to go all out with the dairy. There's no room for 2% or even whole milk in their mashed potatoes -- the thinness of plain milk just isn't creamy enough to cut it. And creaminess is key!

Foil will prevent potatoes from drying out while they are kept warm – one of the reasons restaurants serve their baked potatoes in foil.

Yukon Gold Potatoes

Use just about any cooking method for these gold potatoes and you won't be disappointed with the results. Because they're so versatile, Yukons are a popular option for restaurants and commercial kitchens.