Jacket potatoes ‘making a comeback’

Searches on Waitrose.com for jacket potato and baked potato have soared by 436% and 313%, respectively.

Many social media users and chefs have been giving the baked potato makeovers to elevate their working from home lunch. Pimping your potato is a growing trend that is seeing traction across social media sites; with more than 490,000 uses of the hashtag #bakedpotato, as people share a wide variety of jacket potato toppings and new creations.

Waitrose has seen an increase in views on recipes such as twice-baked potatoes with crab and gruyere (+26.7%), twice-baked sweet potatoes stuffed with spiced chickpeas (+38%), baked potatoes with pickle and herb tuna mayo (33%), and kale and caramelised onion jackets (+45%).

Celebrity chefs have also been showcasing baked potatoes in gourmet versions of the dish.

Leah Hyslop, deputy editor of Waitrose Food Magazine, said: “Whether you choose to keep it classic with baked beans and a mountain of cheese, or go gourmet with an array of toppings, the humble spud certainly remains a favourite with our shoppers. With more of us working from home, and taking breaks away from our desks by spending time in our kitchens, we expect jacket potatoes to only grow in popularity as we look to create delicious dishes using simple, quality ingredients we already have at home.”