These easy potato skins make the perfect party appetizer. Or add some protein like chicken or ground beef to make them more filling for a meal!
Potato skins have always been a favorite appetizer for my husband and recently my oldest has gotten into eating them as well, as long as they’re topped with lots of bacon. I’ve been tinkering with how to make them for a while now and I’ve finally settled on a fool-proof method that everyone loves.
How To Make Easy Potato Skins Step-by-Step
Potato skins can be a bit time-intensive but the end result is always well worth it. And you can make them in phases so you don’t have to do everything at once. Here’s what I do:
- Several hours ahead of time, cook your potatoes. I like to poke each on a few times with a fork, spray with oil and roast at 425 degrees until soft enough to pierce with a knife. This will depend on the size of your potatoes but usually takes about 40 minutes.
- Cook your bacon however you want. Try our Oven Baked Bacon.
- When you’re ready to make the potato skins, slice the potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out the middle, leaving a thin layer of potato in the skin.
- Melt butter in a small ramekin and mix in the spices.
- Brush the butter on the potatoes inside and out.
- Place them on a baking sheet and bake face down for 10 minutes.
- Flip them over and add cheese and chopped bacon.
- Bake 5 more minutes, remove from the oven, top with green onions and serve.
Easy Potato Skins Recipe
Watch my eight-year-old make potato skins for a party appetizer:
Here’s the recipe we use:
PrintHow To Make Easy Potato Skins
These potato skins make the perfect party appetizer. Or add some protein like chicken or ground beef to make them more filling for a meal!
Ingredients
- 1 – 1.5 pounds of small yellow potatoes
- 3 Tbsp butter
- 1/2 tsp parsley
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 3–4 strips bacon, cooked and diced
- cheese – we use shredded colby jack
- green onions
Instructions
- Poke potatoes with a fork, spray lightly with oil (optional) and bake at 425 degrees until soft enough to pierce with a knife. This will depend on the size of your potatoes but should take about 40 minutes.
- Let potatoes cool.
- Slice potatoes in half length-wise and scoop out the potato until just a thin layer remains.
- Melt butter in a small bowl and mix in spices.
- Brush inside and outside of potato skins with butter.
- Place cut-side down on a baking sheet lined with foil.
- Bake at 400 degrees F for 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven, flip them over and fill with shredded cheese and diced bacon.
- Bake 5 more minutes. Remove and top with green onions before serving.
Easy Potato Skins FAQs
What potatoes can I use for potato skins?
If you prefer larger potatoes or want to cut them into smaller pieces, you can use russet potatoes. I wouldn’t recommend red potatoes. Yellow or yukon gold are my preference for potato skins.
What goes with potato skins for dinner?
Like I mentioned above, you can add more protein to your potato skins by adding chicken, ground beef or beans or you can serve them as a side dish. Try serving with chili, grilled chicken and a salad, meatloaf and more.
Dipping sauces for potato skins
Sour cream is the most popular for potato skins but you could also try bbq sauce, ketchup, Chick-fil-A sauce or add a drizzle of hot sauce on top.
Toppings for potato skins
You can pretty much add any topping you want. Give them a bbq twist by adding pulled bbq chicken and a little coleslaw. Try a pizza twist by adding a pepperoni and cheese with marinara for dipping. Or go for broccoli cheddar by adding a little steamed broccoli.
What to do with potato removed from potato skins
Turn them into mashed potatoes, mix them up with egg and cheese and turn them into potato cakes or try making a twice-baked potato-style casserole.
These would pair well with this Pepperoni Bread as party appetizers! And if you need other toppings for these potato skins, try:
- Easy Homemade Salsa
- Homemade Guacamole
- Or if you’re not a bacon fan, leave that off and add some homemade taco meat!
Enjoy!
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