Baked potatoes can be more than just a side. Load them up with brisket, chili, or buffalo chicken, and they hold their own as a full meal. These recipes take a basic potato and turn it into a full meal with minimal effort. Some are quick, some are hearty, and all of them get the job done. No extra sides needed—just a fork and an appetite.
Loaded Brisket Potatoes
Leftover brisket never had it so good. Pile it onto a baked potato, smother it in BBQ sauce, and you’ve got a meal that’s better than most restaurant plates.
Get the Recipe: Loaded Brisket Potatoes
Red Wine Beef Stew Stuffed Potatoes
Hearty beef stew, slow-cooked with red wine, gets spooned over baked potatoes for a meal that’s as comforting as it gets.
Get the Recipe: Red Wine Beef Stew Stuffed Potatoes
Texas Roadhouse Loaded Sweet Potatoes
If you love Texas Roadhouse’s famous loaded sweet potatoes, now you can make them at home. Packed with butter, cinnamon, and marshmallows, this one is basically dessert disguised as a side. No judgment if it becomes the main event.
Get the Recipe: Texas Roadhouse Loaded Sweet Potatoes
Creamy Vegetarian Potato Soup
This rich, cheesy potato soup is like a big, cozy blanket in a bowl. It’s easy to make, packed with flavor, and the kind of meal that makes you forget you ever needed anything else.
Get the Recipe: Creamy Vegetarian Potato Soup
Cheesy Chili Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Stuff a sweet potato with hearty chili and a ridiculous amount of cheese, and suddenly, dinner is handled. This one’s great for when you want comfort food that actually fills you up.
Get the Recipe: Cheesy Chili Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Instant Pot Loaded Potato Casserole
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When you need something quick, cheesy, and packed with bacon, this casserole gets the job done in 30 minutes. A big dish of this guarantees no leftovers.
Get the Recipe: Instant Pot Loaded Potato Casserole
Loaded Hashbrown Casserole
Shredded potatoes, cheese, and bacon baked together into something magical. Make it ahead, keep it in the fridge, and pull it out whenever you need a no-effort meal.
Get the Recipe: Loaded Hashbrown Casserole
Slow Cooker Baked Potatoes
Throw some potatoes in the slow cooker, go live your life, and come back to perfect baked potatoes. Load them up with whatever you’ve got, and dinner’s done.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Baked Potatoes
Twice Baked Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes, but extra. These are loaded with sour cream, cheddar, and crispy bacon, then baked again to make them even better. Perfect for when you want potatoes to be the main event.
Get the Recipe: Twice Baked Mashed Potatoes
Potato Patties with Chana Dal
A crispy, golden potato patty filled with spiced chana dal makes for a great vegetarian meal. These are just as good as a main dish as they are a snack.
Get the Recipe: Potato Patties with Chana Dal
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
This soup is thick, creamy, and packed with everything great about a loaded baked potato. Cheese, bacon, chives—it’s all in there, and yes, it’s as good as it sounds.
Get the Recipe: Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Buffalo Chicken Baked Potatoes
Baked potatoes get a serious upgrade with spicy buffalo chicken. This is a great one for when you want something filling but don’t feel like making a complicated meal.
Get the Recipe: Buffalo Chicken Baked Potatoes
Broccoli Cheddar Baked Potatoes
Broccoli and cheddar belong in a baked potato. These are easy to throw together and turn a basic potato into a full meal with almost zero effort.
Get the Recipe: Broccoli Cheddar Baked Potatoes
Twice Baked Potato Casserole
Everything you love about twice-baked potatoes, but in an easy, cheesy casserole form. Bacon, cheese, and potatoes make this one an instant favorite.
Get the Recipe: Twice Baked Potato Casserole
Air Fryer Loaded Baked Potatoes
The air fryer makes baked potatoes extra fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside. Pile on your favorite toppings, and you’ve got a meal that beats anything from a steakhouse.
Get the Recipe: Air Fryer Loaded Baked Potatoes
Loaded Baked Potato Bites
These bite-sized loaded potatoes are great when you need a quick appetizer or just want an excuse to eat mini baked potatoes.
Get the Recipe: Loaded Baked Potato Bites
Jalapeño Popper Potato Skins
Take everything great about jalapeño poppers and stuff it into crispy potato skins. Cheesy, spicy, and impossible to stop eating.
Get the Recipe: Jalapeño Popper Potato Skins
Turkish Baked Potato
A massive baked potato loaded with an over-the-top amount of toppings, just like the ones you’d find on the streets of Turkey. Pile it high and don’t hold back.
Get the Recipe: Turkish Baked Potato
Brisket Baked Potato
Got leftover brisket? Throw it on a baked potato, load it up with BBQ sauce, and call it dinner. It’s that easy.
Get the Recipe: Brisket Baked Potato
Taco Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Swap out the tortilla for a sweet potato, and you’ve got a taco that eats like a full meal. Top it with whatever you’d put in a taco, and dig in.
Get the Recipe: Taco Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Tuna Baked Potatoes
Think of this like a cross between a tuna melt and a twice-baked potato. Creamy tuna filling, melty cheese, and crispy potato skins—what’s not to love?
Get the Recipe: Tuna Baked Potatoes
Loaded Chorizo Baked Potato
Spicy chorizo, creamy Mexican crema, queso fresco, and pickled onions make this baked potato a whole event. Add some lime, and it’s even better.
Get the Recipe: Loaded Chorizo Baked Potato
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
