Bake a batch of baked potatoes in your slow cooker – it costs so much less than using the oven and is a great way to get ahead with the cooking!
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Getting back to basics
The recipes that seem to be most popular on my site are family slow cooker meals. So I am going to be getting back to basics and sharing some simple family slow cooker recipes with you this year.
Sharing how I make slow cooker jacket potatoes seems like a good place to start. Some people are often surprised to hear you can bake a potato in the slow cooker!
Make them into a family meal
If you have more than one slow cooker, as I know a lot of slow cooker users do since they are such an addictive thing to use, you can bake potatoes in one pot and a slow cooker chilli or casserole in the other. Dinner done in one hit!
Or jacket potatoes can of course be a meal in themselves with just simple tinned store cupboard ingredients like baked beans, sweetcorn, or tuna. All ideal for a simple midweek dinner.
I like to cook a couple more potatoes than I need for the evening meal. Then the extra ones can be a quick lunch for another day.
Advantages of baking potatoes in the slow cooker
Baking potatoes in the slow cooker is easy and for me the advantage is not having to use the oven which costs so much more to run.
Leaving the slow cooker on to cook while I am out at work means I can come home to a meal which is ready to eat too!
If you have a hungry young family then that’s ideal!
Step by step instructions
Step 1. Prick the skins of the potatoes, rub with oil and sprinkle with salt if desired (I leave mine au naturel!), put in the slow cooker on a piece of baking parchment, this prevents sticking.
Step 2. Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 5 hours.
Optional: If you are home, you can turn the potatoes over occasionally which helps them to brown on all sides.
Do I need to wrap the potatoes in foil?
No it is not necessary, the contact with the sides of the slow cooker pot will make the skin brown and crisp up as you can see from the photos.
Do jacket potatoes do crispy in the slow cooker?
Yes the edges of the potatoes go brown and the skin crisps up. If you can turn them over halfway then both sides will be brown.
Do baked potatoes turn brown inside if cooked in the slow cooker?
They can get a slightly browner inside than if you cooked them in the oven but they still taste great.
Potato fillings to try
If the options I’ve mentioned above aren’t tickling your fancy, Buzzfeed has you covered with 23 amazing ways to fill your baked potato.
More recipes to try
If slow cooker jackets are just the sort of recipe you need for your family then you might also like:
- slow cooker lasagne
- slow cooker moussaka
- slow cooker lamb casserole
- slow cooker chicken pasanda curry
There are loads more slow cooker recipes in my slow cooker archives as well – take a peek!
Pin for later
Recipe
Slow Cooker Baked Potatoes
Equipment
Instructions
- If desired rub the potatoes with oil and sprinkle with salt. Pierce the potatoes a few times with a fork.
- Place the potatoes in the slow cooker on a piece of baking paper (to prevent sticking).
- Cook on high for 5 hours or on low for 7-8 hours.
Kerri says
I made these yesterday following the recipe and they were so good and the house smelt amazing. I turned them over half way through and they got crispy as well. The parchment was great as the dish didn’t need much cleaning afterwards.
Will make them again when I need dinner quickly after getting g home!
bakingqueen74 says
Fab, so glad to hear this Kerri! 🙂
Lesley-Anne says
Could one use foil instead of parchment paper…??
bakingqueen74 says
You don’t need to use foil to ensure browning in the slow cooker for this recipe, as it is the contact with the base of the pot which makes the potatoes go crispy. But if you have no baking paper you could try foil. I haven’t tried it so do report back!