Bacon Cheddar Hasselback Potatoes are starchy, savory, and the perfect comfort food. They feature crispy fluffy potatoes topped with creme fraiche, cheddar, bacon, and chives. It's simple, but all the flavors together meld into one tasty treat.
When it comes to comfort food, few things are as satisfying as a baked potato. In lieu of a traditional baked potato, we love to make these Bacon Cheddar Hasselback Potatoes. They are perfect for a barbecue, football party, or even lunch with a salad.
Not only are they easy, but they can be loaded with all your favorite toppings. We also bake the potatoes twice to make them nice and crispy and the slices make crevices that catch the melted cheddar and creme fraiche.
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About Hasselback Potatoes
- Taste - The combination of savory potatoes, rich bacon, and cheese and sour cream creates a delicious flavor medley.
- Texture - The potatoes are soft and fluffy while the bacon is crispy. The sour cream and cheese spread in all the potato crevices.
- Effort - These potatoes have a few simple steps. Just prepare the potatoes, bake them, then cook the bacon while the potatoes bake.
- Time - It takes a few minutes to prepare the potatoes, 40 minutes to cook the potatoes and bacon, then a few minutes to assemble.
What is the hasselback technique?
The hasselback technique is way of slicing potatoes and other food almost all the way through to create thin layers. The thin layers create extra surface area for more ingredients like cheese, bacon, creme fraiche, chives, and seasoning.
Ingredients
- Yukon gold potatoes - Large yukon potatoes have great flavor and are the perfect size for hasselback potatoes.
- Butter - Added between the layers of potatoes for richness.
- Cheddar cheese - A sharp cheddar will add a pungent flavor.
- Bacon - Chopped into crunchy flavor crystals
- Freshly ground black pepper - Adds a little spice to the dish.
- Kosher Salt - Brings all the flavors together.
- Creme fraiche or sour cream - Both provide a tangy and creamy accent. Creme fraiche is thicker and less tangy than sour cream.
- Chives - Adds a mild oniony taste.
Substitutions
- Cheese - Use your favorite hard cheese instead of cheddar. Try mozzarella, gouda, gruyère, gouda, fontina, or a mix.
- Potatoes - Russet potatoes are a great alternative to Yukon potatoes, they are starchy so they get crispy when cooked but retain their fluffy inside for a perfect bite.
- Healthier - Replace bacon with turkey bacon.
- Crispy prosciutto - Give the potatoes an Italian spin with crispy prosciutto instead of bacon. It’s more delicate and does not have a smoky flavor like traditional bacon.
- Mini potatoes - Use standard or mini Yukon potatoes or red potatoes for a smaller version of these potatoes. Bake for less time since there is less volume compared to large potatoes. This is a great option for a small appetizer or kid-friendly potatoes.
- Vegetarian - Omit bacon to make this dish vegetarian.
Variations
- Extra cheesy - In addition to cheddar, you can add gouda, gruyère or grate Parmigiano-Reggiano on top of the potatoes.
- Basil or parsley - Fresh torn basil or chopped parsley adds a brightness to the dish.
- Herbed roasted garlic butter - Add roasted garlic and herbaceous flavor by melting herbed roasted garlic butter and drizzling it on the potatoes before you add the cheese.
- Seasoning - Mix homemade Italian seasoning or lemon pepper seasoning with melted butter and brush the potatoes to imbue more flavor.
- Truffle oil - Elevate the finished baked potatoes with a drizzle of truffle oil.
Instructions
- Heat the oven - Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly grease with oil.
- Cut and prepare the potatoes - Place a potato between two chopsticks on a cutting board. Thinly slice the potatoes crosswise to create ⅛-inch thick pockets, leaving about ¼ inch at the bottom unsliced. The chopsticks are a guide that helps prevent the knife from cutting most of the potato all the way. Be careful when you cut the ends of the potatoes since the chopsticks will not reach there. Repeat this step for the remaining three potatoes. (Photo 1)
- Prepare the potatoes - Place the potatoes on the baking sheet with space between each potato. Brush the olive oil on top of the potatoes, getting between the layers. Sprinkle kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder on top of each potato. (Photo 2)
- Bake the potatoes - Place the potatoes in the oven and cook for about 60 minutes, more or less depending on the size of the potatoes, or until golden and tender.
- Cook the bacon - While the potatoes are in the oven, cook the bacon. Add the bacon to a cold pan and heat on medium heat. This will render the bacon nicely and result in crispy bacon. Transfer the cooked bacon to a paper towel to soak up the oil. (Photo 3 and 4)
- Chop bacon - Once cool, chop up the bacon into small pieces and set aside. (Photo 5)
- Stuff and bake - Remove the potatoes from the oven and stuff with cheese. Use a fork to help open up some of the pockets. Place the potatoes back in the oven to melt the cheese, about 3 minutes. (Photo 6)
- Garnish and serve - Remove from the oven again and top with creme fraiche or sour cream, bacon, and chives. Serve immediately. (Photo 7 and 8)
What to Serve with Hasselback Potatoes
These hasselback potatoes are a the perfect side for a weeknight dinner, weekend bbq, or game day. We especially love to make them withour BBQ Baked Chicken Thighs, Cast Iron Skillet Burger, Pesto Swiss And Turkey Sliders, or a BBQ Chicken Salad with Ranch.
Recipe FAQs
The name hasselback comes from the Swedish restaurant, Hasselbacken, where the technique was created.
If your potatoes are still hard after baking, they may not have been cooked at a high enough heat for long enough. In order to soften the potatoes, cook them for 10 more minutes or until softened.
Yes, there are tools that streamline the process. We have never used one, but they are widely available for purchase.
This is based on your personal preference. We like to keep the skin on for its crispy and crunchy texture.
Storage
These baked potatoes are best served fresh. However, you can store the leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. In order to reheat them, heat in the oven at 300°F for 10 minutes.
Top Tips
- Evenly slice the potatoes so the slices are the same thickness and cook evenly.
- Use a fork to open up the pockets when it’s time to stuff the potatoes with cheese. This helps prevent you from burning your fingers and opens the potato pockets efficiently.
- If you know you won't eat all the potatoes you've made, don't dress the ones you don't plan on eating. Wait until you store and reheat them to dress them, that way they won't get soggy.
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Bacon Cheddar Hasselback Potatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 large Yukon gold potatoes washed and dried
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- 2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper or to taste
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder or to taste
- 1 cup cheddar cheese grated
- 4 bacon strips
- 4 tablespoon creme fraiche or sour cream
- 4 teaspoon chives chopped
Instructions
- Heat the oven - Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly grease with oil.
- Cut and prepare the potatoes - Place a potato between two chopsticks on a cutting board. Thinly slice the potatoes crosswise to create ⅛-inch thick pockets, leaving about ¼ inch at the bottom unsliced. The chopsticks are a guide that helps prevent the knife from cutting most of the potato all the way. Be careful when you cut the ends of the potatoes since the chopsticks will not reach there. Repeat this step for the remaining three potatoes.4 large Yukon gold potatoes
- Prepare the potatoes - Place the potatoes on the baking sheet with space between each potato. Brush the olive oil on top of the potatoes, getting between the layers. Sprinkle kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder on top of each potato.2 tablespoon olive oil, 2 teaspoon kosher salt, 2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper, 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Bake the potatoes - Place the potatoes in the oven and cook for about 60 minutes, more or less depending on the size of the potatoes, or until golden and tender.
- Cook the bacon - While the potatoes are in the oven, cook the bacon. Add the bacon to a cold pan and heat on medium heat. This will render the bacon nicely and result in crispy bacon. Transfer the cooked bacon to a paper towel to soak up the oil. Once cool, chop up the bacon into small pieces and set aside.4 bacon strips
- Garnish and serve - Remove the potatoes from the oven and stuff with cheese. Use a fork to help open up some of the pockets. Place the potatoes back in the oven to melt the cheese, about 3 minutes. Remove from the oven again and top with creme fraiche or sour cream, bacon, and chives. Serve immediately.1 cup cheddar cheese, 4 tablespoon creme fraiche or sour cream, 4 teaspoon chives chopped
Notes
- Evenly slice the potatoes so the slices are the same thickness and cook evenly.
- Use a fork to open up the pockets when it’s time to stuff the potatoes with cheese. This helps prevent you from burning your fingers and opens the potato pockets efficiently.
- If you don't plan to eat all the potatoes you've made, don't dress the ones you don't plan on eating. Wait until you store and reheat them to dress them, that way they won't get soggy.
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