I have been baking potatoes for a long time and have never seen an explosion of potatoes in a conventional oven. But I have read about horrible experiences from posters on various sites, with what seems to be more anecdotal than well reasoned consideration. I believe what they are reporting is real but there seems to be a lot of information missing. So, I would like to provide some further thoughts and possible explanation for the “exploding potato” phenomenon. The cover photo is a quick experiment that I did when I recently cooked a meatloaf. I punctured the skin of one, and not the other. As the photo shows, there was no explosion.
In the majority of comments that I have seen, the consensus appears to be that the steam has to escape so the skin has to be pierced. This includes using a fork, skewers, and even nails! But, there are some “holes” in that consensus. First, the skin is a semi-permeable membrane. We can prove this by placing a potato in a solution of a weak salt solution and the water in the potato will travel to the salt solution dehydrating the potato. Second, the internal temperature does not reach the boiling point. There may be some steam but not enough to cause an explosion. Third, there are normally bruises and openings in the potato due to the manner in which the potatoes are taken by the picking equipment.
So what may be happening for the explosions that are being observed? My sense based on what seems reasonable is that the problem is related to the temperature at which the cooking occurs. Baked potatoes can be cooked at a fairly low temperature, say 300 F (148 C ) all the way up to 475 F (246 C). I typically bake potatoes at about 350 F for an hour to an hour and a half. But, at the higher temperatures the rate of moisture generation may overwhelm the ability for the pores to allow the pressure to escape. And, if olive oil is used to coat the skin to soften, that would simply increase the potential for problems. With respect to microwave cooking, I have no experience as I like the skin to be dry and tasty! If you have any alternative thoughts I would be interested in them so please use the comments sections. One potato, two potato…
In the majority of comments that I have seen, the consensus appears to be that the steam has to escape so the skin has to be pierced. This includes using a fork, skewers, and even nails! But, there are some “holes” in that consensus. First, the skin is a semi-permeable membrane. We can prove this by placing a potato in a solution of a weak salt solution and the water in the potato will travel to the salt solution dehydrating the potato. Second, the internal temperature does not reach the boiling point. There may be some steam but not enough to cause an explosion. Third, there are normally bruises and openings in the potato due to the manner in which the potatoes are taken by the picking equipment.
So what may be happening for the explosions that are being observed? My sense based on what seems reasonable is that the problem is related to the temperature at which the cooking occurs. Baked potatoes can be cooked at a fairly low temperature, say 300 F (148 C ) all the way up to 475 F (246 C). I typically bake potatoes at about 350 F for an hour to an hour and a half. But, at the higher temperatures the rate of moisture generation may overwhelm the ability for the pores to allow the pressure to escape. And, if olive oil is used to coat the skin to soften, that would simply increase the potential for problems. With respect to microwave cooking, I have no experience as I like the skin to be dry and tasty! If you have any alternative thoughts I would be interested in them so please use the comments sections. One potato, two potato…
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