BAKED POTATOES

TO CONFIRM THE GENERAL WISDOM ON what constitutes the best baking potato, we baked an all-purpose potato, Yukon Gold, and the standard baking potato, russet, and found that russets do produce the fluffiest and—to our mind—the best baked potato. We baked russets at temperatures ranging from 350 to 500 degrees and discovered that traditional slow baking is best, mainly because of the effect it has on the skin. The skin of a potato baked at 350 degrees for an hour and 15 minutes simply has no peer. Just under the skin, a well-baked potato will develop a substantial brown layer. This is because the dark skin absorbs heat during cooking, and the starch just inside the skin is broken down into sugar and starts to brown. If you love baked potato skin, this is definitely the best method.

If slow baking is essential to good skin, the consistency of the flesh also requires some attention. Letting the potato sit awhile after baking without opening it up will steam the potato and cause the flesh to become more dense. For fluffy potatoes, create a wide opening to let steam escape as soon as the potatoes come out of the oven.

Twice-baked potatoes are essentially baked potatoes from which the flesh has been removed, mashed with dairy ingredients and seasonings, mounded back in the shells, and baked again. This dish offers a good range of both texture and flavor in a single morsel. Done well, the skin is chewy and substantial without being tough, with just a hint of crispness to play off the smooth, creamy filling. In terms of flavor, cheese and other dairy ingredients make the filling rich and tangy, a contrast with the potato's mild, slightly sweet shell.

Because twice-baked potatoes are put in the oven twice, we found it best to limit the initial baking to an hour, rather than the usual 75 minutes. Oiling the skins before baking and using a higher oven temperature promote crispness—not something you necessarily want in plain baked potatoes but a trait we came to admire in creamy twice-baked potatoes. Another difference in the treatment of baked and twice-baked potatoes occurs when they come out of the oven. Unlike baked potatoes, which should be cut open immediately to release steam, twice-baked potatoes should be allowed to sit and cool down a bit, which makes them easier to handle. Because the flesh is mixed with wet ingredients, any compromise to the texture from unreleased moisture is negligible.

Once the potato halves had been emptied of their flesh, they got a little flabby sitting on the counter waiting to be stuffed. Because the oven was still on and waiting for the return of the stuffed halves, we decided to put the skins back in while we prepared the filling. That worked beautifully, giving the shells an extra dimension of crispness.

Pleased with our chewy, slightly crunchy skins, we now had to develop a smooth, lush, flavorful filling. Dozens of further tests helped us refine our filling to a rich, but not killer, combination of sharp cheddar, sour cream, buttermilk, and butter. We learned to season the filling aggressively with salt and pepper; for herbs, the slightly sharp flavor of scallions or chives was best.

With the filling mixed and mounded back into the shells, our last tests centered on the final baking. We wanted to do more than just heat the filling through; we intended to form an attractive brown crust on it as well. We found that using the broiler was the was easiest and most effective method. After 10 or 15 minutes, the potatoes emerged browned, crusted, and ready for the table.