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6 of the best... baked potato fillings

From smoked salmon to chorizo, here are six great accompaniments for the humble jacket spud.

WHILE SIMPLE IN theory, making the perfect baked potato can often be tricky.

The ideal is a spud that’s soft and fluffy on the inside, with crispy skin on the outside. No rock-hard potatoes here.

To start with, the type of potato you use is crucial. Pop a waxy potato in the oven, and you won’t get the results you’re after. Opt for floury varieties like Roosters, Kerr’s Pinks or Golden Wonders.

For cooking time, you can expect a large potato to take 45 minutes to an hour to bake, and any recipes that vouch for speeding it up should be viewed with great suspicion.

In terms of prep, I find pricking the potato a good way to get heat into the centre more quickly. A smart method for crispy skin is to wet the potato and douse with sea salt to make it stick. Golden, crispy and beautifully seasoned jackets every time.

So now that the potato is ready to go, what should you top it with? Here are a few suggestions from around the foodie internet.

1. Baked Potato Three Ways, from Rachel Allen: Three suggestions from Irish chef Rachel Allen here, including a quintessentially Irish filling of smoked salmon, and one indulgent cheese and bacon variety.

2. Souffléd Jacket Potatoes, from Delia Smith: A little twist on the classic, whereby you scoop out the potato “flesh” once cooked, whip it with cream, and pop it back in the skins. Drool.

3. Superseed Sweet Potato, from Donal Skehan: For an extra protein punch, this recipe adds chickpeas and toasted seeds, along with a spicy yoghurt dressing. Perfect for lunch or dinner.

shutterstock_1059599948 Shutterstock / Lya Berg Shutterstock / Lya Berg / Lya Berg

4. Best Ever Twice Baked Potatoes, from The Kitchen Magpie: You’ve heard of twice-cooked chips? I consider this an even better alternative, loaded with cheddar and onions.

5. Sweet Potato And Chorizo Tray Bake, from The Cook’s GrocerIf you really can’t spare 45 minutes for a classic baked potato, this recipe slices the potatoes and lays them on a tray, allowing for speedier cooking. Parboiling for five or ten minutes first will result in a softer potato.

6. BBQ Garlic and Anchovy Baked Potatoes, from Jamie OliverAs we are still mid-summer, here is a cracking BBQ-based recipe from Jamie Oliver, with a smattering of anchovies to add a salty tang.

More: 6 of the best… toasted cheese sandwich recipes>

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    Mute Jules Lucas
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    Mar 4th 2013, 12:48 PM

    The impact of this scandal has done wonders for the local village butcher, which we are better off buying our meat from anyway in my opinion!

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    Mute Christmas Carroll
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    Mar 4th 2013, 12:56 PM

    Completely agree! Never mind the fact that at least you know what you’re getting is the real deal, it’s much healthier and tastes a hell of a lot better… Makes the extra money spent worth it!

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    Mute Figo murphy
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    Mar 4th 2013, 1:01 PM

    I agree. My local butcher is flying. He just bought a new car, he got rid of that old horse he used to go around on.

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    Mute Christmas Carroll
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    Mar 4th 2013, 1:03 PM

    Dammit Figo :-P

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    Mute Dodge Challenger
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    Mar 4th 2013, 12:53 PM

    Will this horse meat issue ever go away? It’s not that much of a big deal. Not to ruin any appetites but could you imagine the amount of little insects and other creatures that get minced in with the meat supply that we never know about.

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    Mute susanna smyth
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    Mar 4th 2013, 12:56 PM

    Burgers are tested for horse meat only. What other nasty could be in there disguised as beef ?

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    Mute Bo11ocks_to_this
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    Mar 4th 2013, 1:19 PM

    Did anyone else see the article from SA about water buffalo, horse and others found in beef. I’ll try find a link

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    Mute mcgoo
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    Mar 4th 2013, 1:15 PM

    A bit ironic that “Kanter” did the study eh?

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    Mute pat aherne
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    Mar 4th 2013, 1:21 PM

    When we were starting our then 18 month on meat (2years ago) my wife decided to get supermarket burgers just in case he did not like them – well to tell you the truth he pretty much threw the burger back at her. I said why not try butcher meat it will taste alot better and healthier for the child. She got a 1/4 pounder and he ate 2/3 of it. Hence even an 18 month old knew the taste of quality !!

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    Mute clareo79
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    Mar 4th 2013, 2:07 PM

    You gave an 18 month old a burger?!

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    Mute mister
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    Mar 4th 2013, 12:51 PM

    Interesting article. If I’m reading those stats correctly, does this indicate that ordinary local butchers have not experienced a bounce in trade? And if not, I wonder why?

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    Mute Hippocrateeth
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    Mar 4th 2013, 12:57 PM

    In other news, the number of horses commuting on the Dart has risen by over 800% in the past week. Community watch locals report a growing number of incidences involving horses some described as having ‘brazen attitudes’ and ‘brass balls’ towards concerned travellers waiting on the platforms for their respective trains. In a more striking example of the intimidation by the footloose horses, a 6-pack box of Silverdale frozen burgers was kicked at an elderly man’s head causing the man to curse loudly at the ebullient edible equine. The man was later taken for questioning. A file has been sent to the office of the DPP and a request for legal aid has been sought.

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    Mute Dave Kavanagh
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    Mar 4th 2013, 1:18 PM

    Great the media is loving this story and in doing so are systematically destroying one of Irelands core industries. Dont get me wrong I am totally for a free press but some of the sensationalism printed about this scandle (storm in a teacup) in relation to its connection with Ireland has been pure speculation and even when facts where established the Irish connection was still bigged up. Journal well done on being responsible and accurate if only other media would follow your example.

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    Mute Barry McSweeney
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    Mar 4th 2013, 3:22 PM

    If anyone is destroying one of Ireland’s core industries it is those who sold contaminated meat, the officials who refuse to admit that traceability “from farm to fork” is a lie, and the businessmen who refuse to speak publicly about what happened in their factories.
    Burying your head in the sand and “pulling on the green jersey” as you advocate will never work.

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    Mute АЛЕКСАНДРЪ ХАИШ
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    Mar 4th 2013, 5:47 PM

    Completely agree with you on this one, Dave!

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    Mute sid
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    Mar 4th 2013, 1:07 PM

    @ dodge

    I figure its a very big deal , nobody has any idea where what horses were used, could have used anything to bolster up the weight

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    Mute АЛЕКСАНДРЪ ХАИШ
    Favourite АЛЕКСАНДРЪ ХАИШ
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    Mar 4th 2013, 5:21 PM

    “FSAI” IS STILL WORKING ON CONTAMINATED MEAT PRODUCTS ???, WHILE THERE IS POISONOUS MILK AND DAIRY PRODUCTS RAPIDLY SPREAD ACROSS IRELAND! Disgrace!

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