Baked potatoes are a great dish that you can add to any meal and probably make it better.
It also makes a great snack if you’re short on time and just want to stick something satisfying into the oven, to do something else while they bake.
Whatever your reasons, freezing baked potatoes is a great habit to get into if you want a very quick but satisfying meal (see also Can You Freeze Jacket Potatoes?), or if you need a side dish for something else you’re making, but you don’t have the time or the inclination to make both at once.
As long as you prepare them correctly, baked potatoes (see also Freezing Roast Potatoes) freeze very well. While they’ll keep a maximum of 3 days in the fridge, you can store baked potatoes in the freezer for 10 months, or even a whole year.
While you can, it doesn’t mean you should. For best results, consider using the baked potatoes within a month of freezing.
This is provided that the freezing temperature of your freezer is constant, and kept at a 0°F to keep them fresh.
As baked potatoes still have a relatively high water content, they can easily go grainy or watery if you freeze or thaw them incorrectly.
How Do You Freeze Baked Potatoes?
How To Prepare Baked Potatoes For The Freezer
The method is the same for leftovers as well as making them from scratch.
If you are making them from scratch, hold off on adding any seasoning, butter, or other dairy or toppings to this particular batch.
Once baked, leave them on the baking tray until they are cold. Cover them individually in foil, making sure that each is airtight.
Not sealing the foil will result in mushy potatoes, and considering that’s a far cry from baked potatoes, it’s not what we’re going for.
Put the prepared potatoes into a very large resealable freezer bag, the thicker, the better. Make sure to get rid of any excess air, and seal. Label it with the storage date, and freeze.
How Do You Defrost and Reheat Baked Potatoes?
The best way of thawing frozen baked potatoes is to put them straight into the fridge.
Because you packed them individually, you can choose as many as you need and put the rest back into the freezer.
Let the frozen potatoes thaw overnight, and this slow process will help prevent any dramatic texture changes.
If you don’t have this much time, you can also use the microwave to thaw the frozen baked potatoes. Instead of setting the microwave to defrost, put it on a low setting to thaw the potatoes.
To reheat the potatoes, either use the oven or the microwave. The oven is gentler, and it’s easier to add the desired toppings beforehand without it all drying out.
You should also add any seasonings, herbs, or accompaniments you want before you put it in the microwave or oven to reheat.
Conclusion
To begin with, baked potatoes are extremely versatile which can either be served as a side dish or as part of a main, but you may not always have the time to wait around.
Some weeks, you may not have the hour to spare, or the energy, if work has been taking up all your time, or something else which is stealing all of your attention.
It helps that you can freeze baked potatoes (see also How To Freeze Raw Potatoes), as you’ve done all the hard work beforehand. It also reduces the risk of wasting food.
Even if you don’t want baked potatoes right now, you can prevent the spuds from sprouting or blooming by baking them and freezing them for a later date.
