Potatoes are a staple in Western cuisine. They can be eaten in all different ways. You can have them roasted as part of a Sunday dinner. You can mash them up and put them on top of a shepherd’s pie (see also ‘Can you feeze Pork Pies?‘). You can make more extravagant dishes such as potato dauphinoise (see also Freezing Dauphinoise Potatoes) and rosti.
However, one of the most popular potato dishes is the baked potato. It can make a meal in itself and you can choose all sorts of different fillings such as cheese and baked beans, chili con carne, tuna mayonnaise, egg mayonnaise, and even curry. However, although potatoes do last for a while at room temperature, they then can start to sprout.
Is there a way to make sure that you have a constant supply of potatoes so that you can whip up a quick supper? Yes, there is. You can freeze them. In this article, we will be taking a look at how to freeze baked potatoes for the best results, and how to defrost them.
How To Freeze Baked Potatoes
It isn’t difficult to freeze baked potatoes, but you shouldn’t freeze the fillings with them as they can make the potatoes go mushy. In addition, some fillings like cheese and coleslaw made with mayonnaise don’t freeze well. Other fillings can’t be frozen for as long as baked potatoes.
These are the steps you should follow to freeze baked potatoes.
1. Cook the Potatoes
The first step is to cook the potatoes. Make sure that they are cooked through.
2. Cool the Potatoes
Bring the potatoes down to room temperature on your countertop. It will take less than two hours, the time when bacteria can start to form in food. You will want the potatoes to be cold as if you put them into the freezer when they are warm, it can bring up the temperature and other food can start to defrost. This can destroy the texture of the food and might even cause food poisoning.
3. Wrap the Potatoes in foil
Wrap the potatoes in two layers of aluminum foil. Make sure that the potatoes are tightly wrapped so that air doesn’t get to them. If air does get in, freezer burn can occur and the potatoes will lose taste and texture.
4. Put the potatoes in freezer bags
Once you have wrapped the potatoes in aluminum foil, put them in freezer bags, squeezing out all the air so that freezer burn doesn’t occur. Label the bags with the date you put the potatoes in the freezer. You don’t want to keep the potatoes in the freezer for longer than they should be.
5. Freeze the potatoes
Put the baked potatoes in the freezer. It is a good idea to lay them down flat so that they keep their shape.
How to Freeze Baked Potatoes With Fillings
We don’t advise freezing baked potatoes with fillings as they can make the potatoes go soggy. It is better to freeze the fillings separately, checking, of course, that they are suitable for freezing. Wrap the fillings in meal-size portions so that you take out just what you need for a serving. Remember to put the date frozen on the freezer bag so that you don’t keep the fillings for longer than they should be in the freezer.
Tips For Freezing Baking Potatoes
- Make sure that the potatoes are cold before you put them in the freezer.
- Wrap the potatoes securely in aluminum foil so that air doesn’t get in and freezer burn occurs. The potatoes will then probably lose their texture and taste. The same goes for the freezer bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible.
- Freeze fillings separately otherwise the potatoes will become soggy when defrosted. Some fillings shouldn’t be frozen so you should ensure that you have things like cheese in your fridge if that is your choice of filling. Some fillings, such as tuna and beans come in cans and don’t need to be frozen as they have a long shelf-life. Other fillings like chili con carne and curry can be frozen, but they won’t last as long in the freezer as your potatoes.
For How Long Can I Freeze Baked Potatoes?
Baked potatoes last for a few days in the fridge so if you want to use them later than that, freeze them. They last for ages in the freezer. In fact, you can keep them in the freezer for up to eight months so you will be ensured that you will be able to have baked potatoes for some time to come.
How Do You Defrost Baked Potatoes?
It is always best to defrost food slowly in the fridge. It’s not a good idea to defrost your baked potatoes on the countertop as they might not be defrosted within two hours, the time that bacteria can start to develop. Instead, take the number of potatoes you need out of the freezer the night before you want to eat them and defrost them in the fridge. You can take them out of the aluminum foil and put them in a bowl.
However, you might get home from work and really want a baked potato. If this is the case, you can defrost baked potatoes in the microwave and then put them in the oven to crisp up. However, if you want to add a hot filling that you have frozen, such as chili or curry, they should have been defrosted in the fridge the night before. If you do defrost your baked potato in this way, it is better to add a cold ingredient as the filling, such as cheese, tuna mayonnaise, or coleslaw. Alternatively, you could just heat up a can of baked beans in the microwave. It doesn’t take long to get hot.
Can You Refreeze Baked Potatoes?
It’s not a good idea to refreeze baked potatoes as the texture will change. If you keep defrosting and refreezing, moisture will be lost and the potatoes will probably end up dried and shriveled. As long as you wrap the potatoes individually, you should be able to take out just as many as you need and the problem of refreezing won’t occur.
Is It A Good Idea To Freeze Baked Potatoes?
Yes it is, as long as you wrap them securely and don’t let air get in as then freezer burn can occur. They are an ideal go-to when you don’t know what to cook for your lunch or dinner. Just remember to either freeze the fillings separately or to use fresh fillings like tuna mayonnaise or cheese.
Frequently Asked Questions?
Hopefully, we have told you all you need to know about freezing baked potatoes, but if you are still curious, we have answered a couple of questions here.
Can you freeze potato skins?
Potato skins are a very popular snack or starter and are easy to make. Just cut the potato in half and scoop out most of the potato. Just leave a little potato in the bottom and then bake. Then you can freeze them. Just follow our instructions for freezing baked potatoes. Again, don’t freeze the fillings as they will make the skins soggy.
Can you freeze baked sweet potatoes?
Contrary to popular belief, sweet potatoes aren’t actually from the same family of vegetables as potatoes. However, they freeze just as well and you can follow our instructions for freezing potatoes.
