Never Skip This Step Before Tossing Potatoes In The Microwave

While it might not produce quite the same crisp-yet-fluffy results as the oven, the fact that it doesn't take long to cook baked potatoes in the microwave makes it a popular method. However, there's one step you mustn't skip — and that's poking holes in the spuds before microwaving them. The reason is to prevent steam building up inside the cooking tubers and causing them to explode or burst open.

Now, it's true that exploding potatoes might not be a hugely common occurrence. It's possible you've skipped this step before, or know someone who gives it a miss, and you've never seen it happen. Sadly, it's hard to find any solid technical stats on the precise probability of your spud bursting, so it's difficult to know how frequently it actually happens. But just the fact that it's a real possibility is enough to make us keen to avoid this microwave disaster. And explosions are more likely to occur in the microwave than the oven, given it's a faster cooking method with greater pressure from the steam -– so it's always wise to err on the side of caution.

The quickest way to poke holes in your potato is to use a fork or a paring knife. Wash and dry the spuds, then poke each one fairly deeply – four or five times on each side should be ample, depending on size. Then rub your tuber in oil and seasoning, and you're ready to microwave.

As well as piercing the skin, there are other ways to get the best results from microwaved potatoes. It starts with choosing the right kind of spud — and that's starchy russets for a fluffy texture. If you're preparing multiple potatoes, ensure they're of roughly equal size so they cook in a similar time — usually around five minutes on each side.

While oiling the skin helps, it can still be tricky to get a crispy result in the microwave. One solution is to wash and prick the spud, then coat the damp skin in plenty of kosher salt before microwaving. You can always rub away excess salt after it's cooked. For the best of both worlds — a speedy meal and satisfyingly crispy skin — microwave a pierced, oiled, and salted potato, then give it a blast in a hot oven for 10 minutes (or a preheated air fryer for half that).

Microwaved potatoes can still cook unevenly, and a wrinkly-skinned spud with an underdone center is deeply disappointing. If you've had bad results before, it's worth changing the power setting on the microwave before you start. Cook your potato at half-power for five to six minutes on each side for a gentler approach. Whatever the method, you should always cut your potato open right after cooking it. Otherwise, the steam inside can once again become a problem — this time making the texture unpleasantly gummy. Not quite an explosive issue, but one worth avoiding all the same.