Baked potatoes are comfort food for many, including myself. The toaster oven is an incredible small appliance to have in your kitchen – it is versatile, energy-efficient, and affordable. I Love Cookware is here with the definitive guide on how to bake a potato in a toaster oven.
A toaster oven is a superb option for baked potatoes, small meals, or side dishes. You might want to bake your potato in the toaster oven if you’re short on time or looking for a more energy-efficient way to cook your potatoes. You can use the mini oven for an assortment of unique recipes.
You’re not alone if you’ve struggled with baked potatoes.
It’s hard to know how long they need to cook and even harder to get them crispy on the outside.
You don’t have time for that, though- so we’ll teach you a few tricks that will make it easier in just 5 minutes or less!
With a bit of practice, you will be able to bake perfect potatoes every time using your toaster oven. Give it a try today!
What is a Toaster Oven, and How Does it Work?
A toaster oven is a small electric oven used for toasting bread, cooking small meals, or baking potatoes. It is a less expensive option than using your full-sized oven, and it also uses less energy.
Toaster ovens come in many different shapes and sizes, and whether you want a space saver toaster oven or a large one, it doesn’t matter. They all have the same essential components – a heating element, a fan, and an oven chamber.
How to Bake a Potato in the Toaster Oven:
There are a few ways to bake a potato in a toaster oven. Directly on the wire rack, on a baking sheet, wrapped in foil, whole, or cut into chunks.
If you use a tray, you don’t have to spray it with cooking spray or use parchment paper to prevent the potato from sticking. Most whole-baked potatoes will not stick to the pan.
However, if you poke holes in the potato with a fork (our recommended method), some potato juice will leak out onto your pan. I prefer not to use parchment paper or aluminum foil, and instead, I just use one of these awesome toaster oven accessories:
The stainless steel toaster oven tray will help you create a crispy baked potato
- HEALTHY - TeamFar toaster oven tray is made of 18/0 stainless steel, Wire rack is made of 18/8 stainless steel, No any toxic or chemical coating, Rust free and healthy for everyday use
- CRAFT - This broiler pan has smooth rolled edges without sharp spot, Roasting rack is strongly weaved with dense lines to avoid food falling through, Long lasting for many years
- EASY CLEAN - Full sides all around avoid sauce flowing everywhere to keep your oven neat, Smooth mirror finish make cleaning a breeze, Both parts are dishwasher safe
- WIRE RACK - The grill rack fits nicely inside the toaster oven pan, Lifts food above juice to allow hot air circulating to bake evenly, This cooling rack can be separately used for cooling food
- SIZE - Tray 7’’x9.3’’x1’’, Rack 6.25’’x8.75’’x0.5’’, Fits most home toaster ovens, Perfect size for controlling your food proportion, Used to bake or broil like chicken wings, burger, sausage, sliced bread, and chips, etc.
The crisper sheet will allow you to create a crispy baked potato easily. However, it’s not necessary.
- PERFECT HEAT CIRCULATION: Ensure all your food is deliciously crispy with the Cooks Innovations crisper sheet and liner set. Our 100% non-stick PTFE toaster oven tray lining keeps the bottom of your oven clean while the crisper rack makes for perfect air circulation to ensure the crispiest of foods!
- PREVENT FOOD FALLING THROUGH RACK: There is nothing more frustrating than having foods falling through the rack and creating unnecessary cleanup. This crisping sheet with liner is perfect for ensuring delicious, crispy food while keeping small or delicate foods from falling through the toaster oven rack.
- CRISP FOOD EVERY TIME: The nonstick oven liner and crisper allow perfect heat circulation around food, preventing soggy, uneven cooking - ensuring CRISP food every time all while protecting the bottom of your oven by catching all the messy drips or greasy spills.
- CATCH THE DRIPS: Our 100% non-stick PTFE toaster oven tray lining keeps the bottom of your oven clean! Our oven guard protects your oven from spills, drops, and drips from pizza, oven fries, pastries, chicken nuggets, fish sticks, turnovers, etc before they burn and stick. Eliminate a tedious chore with our crisper tray and liner set.
- EASY TO CLEAN: Say goodbye to splatters and burned-on messes! The toaster oven liner and crisper are easy to clean and reusable on both sides. Avoid scrubbing and wiping hard-to-reach areas with our removable oven liner and crisper tray. They are also dishwasher safe, BPA and PFOA free.
Step 1 for How to Bake a Potato in a Toaster Oven – Preheat
Time to prepare and cook: 40 minutes to 1 hour.
Preheat your toaster oven to 400° F
Step 2 for Toaster Oven Baked Potato – Poke It With A Fork
Place your raw potato on a cutting board, hold it firmly with one hand and pierce it with a fork in 2 locations. Poking holes in the potato will allow the steam to escape. Since potatoes have a high water content, allowing the steam to escape will do two important things.
Firstly it will prevent your potato from exploding in the oven, an infrequent occurrence. Secondly, it will allow all the steam to escape, creating a fluffier inside. We all know that crispy outside and fluffy inside make a perfect baked potato.
Step 3 for Toaster Oven Baked Potato – Baking
Place the potato on the wire rack, baking sheet, crisper sheet, or parchment paper. Bake for 40-60 minutes, depending on the size of your potato. Poke it with a fork at around 35 minutes; if it’s still rock hard, you’ll know you will have at least 25-35 minutes.
However, if the fork goes into the flesh smoothly, you are getting close!
Step 4 for How to Bake a Potato in a Toaster Oven – Oil
Rub the outside of your potato with olive oil, and then lightly sprinkle it with salt. Do this step during the middle of the baking process instead of beforehand.
Although the oil is unnecessary, you will still get a crispy potato if you use a russet. The oil adds an ad of flavor and can help the crisping process if you don’t have a lot of time.
Step 5 for How to Bake a Potato in a Toaster Oven – Done
Take it out when it is soft after poking it with a fork. Make sure the skin is as crispy as you like. If you want the skin a little bit crisper, just leave it in for another 10 minutes.
Potato Baking Pro Tips From An Expert:
There are a few things that you can do to make sure your potato turns out perfect every time. First, you prick the potato with a fork several times before baking it.
Poking with a fork will allow the steam to escape and help prevent the potato from bursting. More importantly, it will create a fluffy interior.
Second, brush the potato with olive oil during the baking (not before). The oil will give it a nice crispy skin, but more importantly, it will enhance the flavor.
Thirdly a crisper sheet may help you get that crispy potato skin that everyone is always after! Finally, sprinkle the potato with salt before baking.
How Long Does It Take For Baked Potatoes In Toaster Oven?
It takes 40 minutes to 1 hour for a toaster oven-baked potato to finish cooking. Some things that affect time are:
Size Of Your Potato (affects how to bake a potato in a toaster oven)
The larger your potato t, the longer you need to keep it in the oven.
Variety Of Potato (also affects how to bake a potato in a toaster oven)
Do you have an enormous Idaho potato like the Ranger or Russet? On the other hand, a Yukon Gold or a Purple Potatoes is much smaller and will bake in less time.
Starch to Water Ratio
Russet potatoes have a higher starch content than Red Bliss or Red Skin Potatoes. A russet will hold its shape in the oven and get a crispier skin because it has less moisture.
Therefore there will be more miniature steam in the oven. In contrast, red potatoes have a higher moisture content and will not get as crispy. You can learn all about the starch to water ratio in potatoes here.
How Do You Know When Your Baked Potato Is Done and Ready
You will need to periodically check the potato to see if the inside is done. Poke the baked potatoes with a thin knife or fork.
Does the silverware easily slide into the potato flesh with little effort? If it does, see if your potato skin is crunchy enough and to your liking. You can always leave the potato in for an extra 10 minutes to let the skin crisp up.
Allow your baked potato to cook for enough time. Do not rush the cooking time. Nobody wants to slice into their baked potato only to realize that the center is still hard.
How To Get Your Baked Potato Extra Crispy
A crispy baked potato is a sought-after, often mysterious treat. However, we are here to help you with a few ways that you can achieve a crispy baked potato.
- Use russet potatoes for a crispy skin baked potato.
- After you wash your russet potato, completely dry it with paper towels. Do not leave any moisture on the skin.
- Poke the potato skin with a fork to allow the steam to escape. Doing this helps you achieve a fluffy center with crispy skin.
- Use a wire rack underneath your potato, so the heat can circulate better and make the skin crispy.
- If you don’t have a small wire rack that fits into a toaster oven pan, you can just place the potatoes directly onto the toaster oven center rack. Just be sure to clean the bottom of the toaster oven afterward.
- Preheat your toaster oven to 400° Fahrenheit.
- Once the toaster oven is hot, put your potato in and cook it for 45-60 minutes.
- If you have time, brush the potato with some olive oil during baking. Then rub with some kosher salt. If you have a probe thermometer, once your potatoes reach an internal temperature of 205° F, you can rub them with olive oil and salt. If you don’t have a thermometer, just let them cook for at least 30 minutes before brushing them with oil. Doing this extra step in the middle of the cooking process will create a much crispier potato skin!
- After taking your baked potato out of the oven, cut it immediately. Otherwise, the steam inside will cause your potato skin to get soggy.
Easy Recipes For Potatoes That You Can Bake In The Toaster Oven:
You can make endless recipes in your toaster oven, but here are a few of our favorites.
Roasted Rosemary Potatoes:
- Preheat your toaster oven to 400° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut 2-3 potatoes into wedges and toss them with olive oil, rosemary, salt, and pepper.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, flipping once until they are crispy and golden brown.
Twice Baked Potatoes:
- Preheat your toaster oven to 400° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Pierce 4-5 potatoes several times with a fork and bake for 45-60 minutes until they are soft when pierced with a fork.
- Remove the potatoes from the toaster oven and let them cool for a few minutes.
- Cut a small slit in the top of each potato and scoop out the insides, leaving a thin layer of potato near the skin.
- Mash the potatoes with butter, milk, salt, and pepper until smooth.
- Place the mashed potatoes back into your potato skins and re-bake for 10-15 minutes until they are hot and bubbly.
Can You Reheat A Baked Potato In The Toaster Oven?
Yes, you can reheat a baked potato in the toaster oven. Preheat your toaster oven to 350 degrees F, place the potato on a baking sheet, and bake for 20-30 minutes until it is hot and crispy. Place the leftover baked potato directly onto the wire rack, so the hot air hits all of the sides! Enjoy!
Can You Bake Potatoes In A Toaster Oven?
Yes, it’s an easy way to bake 1-4 potatoes, depending on the size of your toaster oven. Preheat the toaster oven to 400 degrees F, poke the potatoes with a fork a few times and bake for 45-60 minutes until they are soft when pierced with a fork.
You can also use the wire rack method if you want them crispy on the outside- just preheat the toaster oven to 450° F.
What’s The Difference Between A Toaster Oven And An Oven?
Toasters use less energy than traditional ovens because they are smaller and compact. It’s the perfect appliance for cooking small items like potatoes, cookies, and pizzas. You can use A traditional oven for larger items- like a whole pie or a large tray of lasagna.
Baked Potato In Breville Toaster Oven
A Breville Toaster Oven makes an excellent baked potato! If you choose to bake just one or two potatoes and don’t want to turn the big oven on, use the Breville! This is how you learn how to bake a potato in a toaster oven.
A baked potato in a Breville toaster oven will come out perfectly if you follow our steps and pro tips above for how to bake a potato in a toaster oven.
Baked Potato In Cuisinart Toaster Oven
The cute little Cuisinart toaster oven is perfect for making one or two baked potatoes. Why heat up your entire house, just because you are craving a baked potato?
A baked potato in a Cuisinart toaster oven will come out awesome if you follow our crispy baked potato tips above.
Can You Bake A Sweet Potato In Your Toaster Oven?
Yes, absolutely, you can bake a sweet potato in your toaster oven. Keep in mind that a sweet potato might leak sticky juice. The sticky juice will get all over the bottom element of your toaster oven if you are not careful.
Place the sweet potato onto a tray so it can catch anything that drips out, and clean up will be a breeze.
Make sure you wash and completely dry your sweet potato before baking it in the toaster oven. Also, poke it with a fork, so you allow the steam to escape.
Common Challenges When Learning How to Bake A Potato In A Toaster Oven
When people bake potatoes in a toaster oven, the most common problem is not knowing how long they need to cook. Learn how to bake a potato in a toaster oven the right way! Baking can take anywhere from 45 min to 70 min to bake potatoes, depending on their size and type.
Another challenge is knowing how soft they need to be for perfection. You want them to be soft when pierced with a fork, but not so soft that they fall apart.
Finally, many people struggle with getting the potatoes to be crispy on the outside. You can achieve this by following our methods above. The wire rack method or by brushing them with oil during the middle of the baking process.
Final Thoughts For How To Bake A Potato In A Toaster Oven
If you’re in the mood for some comfort food, look no further than this guide on how to bake a potato in a toaster oven. This is a great way to make a delicious and filling meal without heating up your kitchen. Follow these simple steps and you’ll have a perfect baked potato in no time!
More Fun Kitchen Tips And Reviews That Are Useful
- Saute Pan Reviews – Plus the best stainless steel saute pan.
- Nuwave Wok – Make cooking fun again with a new kitchen appliance!
- Fig and Cheese Pairing – What cheese goes with figs?