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Make perfectly tender Crock Pot Baked Potatoes with just 3 simple ingredients! This is an easy slow cooker baked potato recipe that yields fluffy texture potato centers and perfectly seasoned crispy skins – THE BEST baked potatoes.
Crock Pot Baked Potatoes Recipe
If you’re looking for an easy method to make a perfectly tender and fluffy baked potato without turning on the oven – these Crock Pot Baked Potatoes are the answer! With just 3 simple, real ingredients, a slow cooker, and minimal prep, your crockpot will do all the work. It’s the perfect main dish for dinner loaded with the toppings of your choice, or a delicious side dish paired with steak and other grilled meats.
The baked potatoes come out fluffy, soft, creamy, and with a cloud-like fluffy interior. The potato skins of the baked are deliciously seasoned and crispy. The best part is that you don’t even need to individually wrap each potato in aluminum foil!
Just add your favorite potato toppings – or create a loaded baked potato bar – and everyone can create their own baked potato just how they like it.
Why You’ll Love Making Baked Potatoes In The Slow Cooker
- 🥔 Easy Preparation : Just wash, season, and let the slow cooker do all the work!
- 🥔 No Oven Required : Perfect for hot days or when your oven is already busy.
- 🥔 Perfectly Fluffy & Crispy Skins : Slow cooking produces tender, creamy, and cloud-like fluffy potato centers. The olive oil and salt help to create crispy skins that actually taste good!
- 🥔 Great For Meal Prep : Make several potatoes at once and use them throughout the week.
- 🥔 Easy To Customize : Baked potatoes are the perfect dinner because you can add your favorite toppings.
Only 3 Simple Ingredients Needed
- Russet Potatoes : Russets are ideal because their starch content creates a light and fluffy interior, and they hold up the best to the longer cook time because of their thick skins.
- Olive Oil : Helps the potato skins become flavorful and lightly crisp. I prefer using extra-virgin ‘light tasting’ olive oil but any olive oil can be used.
- Kosher Salt : Enhances the natural flavor of the potatoes.
How To Make Crock Pot Baked Potatoes (Printable Recipe Card)
Wash and scrub the potatoes thoroughly under cool running water to remove any dirt from the skins. Dry the potatoes completely with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels.
Pierce each potato 5-6 times with a fork so the steam can escape while they cook.
Drizzle the olive oil over the potatoes and use your clean hands to rub each potato evenly until it’s coated in olive oil. Then sprinkle the kosher salt over the potatoes and again, rub it into all sides of each potato.
Place the seasoned potatoes inside a large crock pot (6QT-8QT) and arrange them in a single layer as best you can. A small amount of overlapping or stacking is fine, but avoid tightly packing them inside.
Cover the crockpot and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or LOW for 6-8 hours. Being checking the potatoes for doneness (easily pierced with a fork or knife) at the earliest coking time since the exact cooking time will depend on the potato size and the size of the crockpot used (see notes).
Carefully remove the hot potatoes from the crockpot using tongs. Cut a slit lengthwise across the top of each potato, gently squeeze the ends to open it up, fluff the inside with a fork and add all your favorite toppings (butter, salt & pepper, shredded cheese, sour cream, green onions, and bacon bits).
How To Store and Reheat Leftover Potatoes
Allow any leftover potatoes to cool closer to room temperature. Place them in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Reheat leftover baked potatoes in a 350°F oven for 15-20 minutes, in an air fryer at 375°F for 5-8 minutes, or in the microwave until heated through.
Pro Tips From The Test Kitchen
- Choose potatoes that are similar in size so they cook evenly.
- You can cook as many of potatoes at once that your crockpot allows. I use a larger crockpot (7QT or 8 QT) and I can easily fit 6-8 large russet potatoes inside. You want to try to keep them in a single layer, but overlapping or stacking them also work just fine – just watch the cook time because they may need longer if they’re stacked together in a smaller crockpot.
- I prefer cooking on LOW heat for 8 hours. This way, the potatoes are guaranteed to be ultra tender & soft, and ready to go by dinnertime.
- I normally don’t measure out the olive oil but instead drizzle it over top the potatoes and then use my clean hands to rub the potatoes, ensuring that the entire potato is coated in olive oil. You will end up using about 1-3 tablespoons of olive oil depending on the amount of potatoes and the size of the potatoes used.
- Avoid lifting the crock pot lid frequently because each time the lid is removed, heat escapes and may extend the cook time. It’s really important, especially for potatoes, to leave the lid on constantly so you end up with perfectly soft potatoes. There really is never a need to lift the lid off during the cook time.
- I only recommend using Russet Potatoes and nothing else – there are lots of options such as Idaho potatoes, Yukon golds, red potatoes, etc – but Russet potatoes are the only potato I suggest using when making crock pot potatoes.
- To check if the potatoes are done; insert a knife or fork into the center of the largest potato (and each potato to ensure all are cooked). The potatoes are ready when they are fork tender – meaning, that a fork or knife very easily, with no resistance, slides right into the center of the potato. If that doesn’t happen then leave the potatoes in the crockpot to cook for longer.
What Are Baked Potato Topping Ideas?
- Sour Cream
- Shredded Cheese
- Cheese Sauce
- Cottage Cheese – This is a ‘surprising’ family favorite potato topping
- Sliced Green Onions
- Bacon Bits
- Salt & Pepper
- Shredded BBQ Chicken
- Shredded Pork
- Add taco toppings such as cooked ground beef, pico de gallo, black beans, etc for ‘taco baked potatoes’
- Use up leftover chili and add some shredded cheese on top for ‘chili baked potatoes’
More Potato Recipes You’ll Love
- Ranch Potatoes
- Twice Baked Potato Casserole
- Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
- Meringue Topped Sweet Potato Casserole
- Old Fashioned Cheesy Hamburger Potato Casserole
- Cheesy Ham and Potato Casserole Recipe
- Maple Cinnamon Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes (With Russet Potatoes)
- Crockpot Steak and Potatoes
- Beef and Potatoes Skillet
- Dill Pickle Potato Salad
- Steakhouse Potato Salad
- Leftover Mashed Potato Soup
- Slow Cooker Creamy Potato Soup
Crock Pot Baked Potatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 large russet potatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
Instructions
- Wash and scrub the potatoes thoroughly under cool running water to remove any dirt from the skins. Dry the potatoes completely with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels.
- Pierce each potato 5-6 times with a fork so the steam can escape while they cook.
- Drizzle the olive oil over the potatoes and use your clean hands to rub each potato evenly until it's coated in olive oil. Then sprinkle the kosher salt over the potatoes and again, rub it into all sides of each potato.
- Place the seasoned potatoes inside a large crock pot (I use 8QT) and arrange them in a single layer as best you can. A small amount of overlapping or stacking is fine, but avoid tightly packing them inside.
- Cover the crockpot and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or LOW for 6-8 hours.*Begin checking the potatoes for doneness (easily pierced with a fork or knife) at the earliest coking time since the exact cooking time will depend on the potato size and the size of the crockpot used.*I prefer cooking on low heat for 7-8 hours for the softest, fluffiest potato. Low and slow is always best in the crock pot.
- Carefully remove the hot potatoes from the crockpot using tongs. Cut a slit lengthwise across the top of each potato, gently squeeze the ends to open it up, fluff the inside with a fork and add all your favorite toppings (butter, salt & pepper, shredded cheese, sour cream, green onions, and bacon bits).
Notes
- Choose potatoes that are similar in size so they cook evenly.
- You can cook as many of potatoes at once that your crockpot allows. I use a larger crockpot (7QT or 8 QT) and I can easily fit 6-8 large russet potatoes inside. You want to try to keep them in a single layer, but overlapping or stacking them also work just fine – just watch the cook time because they may need longer if they’re stacked together in a smaller crockpot.
- I prefer cooking on LOW heat for 8 hours. This way, the potatoes are guaranteed to be ultra tender & soft, and ready to go by dinnertime.
- Avoid lifting the crock pot lid frequently because each time the lid is removed, heat escapes and may extend the cook time. It’s really important, especially for potatoes, to leave the lid on constantly so you end up with perfectly soft potatoes. There really is never a need to lift the lid off during the cook time.
- I only recommend using Russet Potatoes and nothing else – there are lots of options such as Idaho potatoes, Yukon golds, red potatoes, etc – but Russet potatoes are the only potato I suggest using when making crock pot potatoes.
- To check if the potatoes are done; insert a knife or fork into the center of the largest potato (and each potato to ensure all are cooked). The potatoes are ready when they are fork tender – meaning, that a fork or knife very easily, with no resistance, slides right into the center of the potato. If that doesn’t happen then leave the potatoes in the crockpot to cook for longer.
Nutrition
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