Baked potatoes

[Disgustin]

Ok, I have to ask—what’s with the English calling a baked potato a “jacket potato”? It’s baked, not wearing an actual jacket. We don’t call a roasted chicken a “crispy skin bird,” so why do they need a separate name for a perfectly baked tattie?

And another thing… why are you having it as a side dish with your actual dinner? I’ve seen English pals having a jacket potato alongside a steak or (God forbid) lasagne. LASAGNE! It’s not a portion of chips we’re talking about here—it’s a whole potato.

In Scotland, it’s simple—you bake a tattie, throw on some butter and a mountain of cheese, or go all out with beans or tuna mayo. Done. It’s lunch. It’s hearty, it’s filling, it doesn’t need to “go” with anything else because it is the main event.

Is this an English thing I’ve missed? Or just me? What are your thoughts?

PS: Let’s not even get started on folk who microwave them… criminal.

Well I will out shame you - I use frozen ones and microwave them!

I do then butter and salt the skin and finish in the oven

baked spuds here but I don’t find the name jacket potato remotely offensive or controversial

How did you guess canny beat em he says

I microwave my jacket spuds and then air fry for ten minutes for crispness. No time for baking in the oven after work and a lot more expensive. Before I had an air fryer, I would half and grill them skin up for the same effect. I am an efficient, cost effective heathen in the baked potato world .

I have a combi microwave, cooks the spud and crisps the skin. Perfect jacket potatoes every time.

YABU a whole potato chopped into chips is less than a portion of chips. It’s a healthy non processed food with lots of fibre and Vit c.
Jacket is obviously the skin.
Chips are so called because the potato is chipped.
Do I need to explain wedges?

I will so be calling them this from now on 🤣

Yes please 🤣

If you're going to start a thread for a laugh it's best to choose something funny.

Same... weird that garlic bread gets a pass! Never thought about that one....

Yeah but they aren't crispy then. I start mine in the microwave, then take out, coat in olive oil and some spices (depending on mood), wrap in foil and let it finish in the oven. That gets them crispy.

You couldn't be more wrong potatoes are hilarious

I'm very English and it's always been a baked potato, and never served as a side.

Tbh I think growing up it would have been regarded as on a par with saying settee or lounge. Only used by those who would like to think they were middle class.
Aka, bit pretentious but not nearly as posh as they'd like to think they were.

Definitely not in the vocabulary of my farming parents.

Or maybe it's regional?

I remember being told in French classes that the French used
"Pomme de terre en le robe de chambre" or something like that for jacket potato. Ignore the spelling, as English defeats me on spelling, so French is worse.

Roughly translated, I think this means "apple of the ground in its dressing gown". This was so superb I have remembered it after forgetting almost the rest of my French over 30 years since I did my GCSEs. I can't remember if this was a regional idiom, but it's a great one.

Cotton candy...yummy

Sorry for complete derail. Had to dig deep into my memory bank for that one

Hot dogs don't contain dog. It's just a name.

For me, a baked potato is just a potato with some butter, served as a side dish. Whereas a jacket potato is larger, has substantial filling, and is a full meal.

Nope it's great cook in microwave until soft 7 mins then ideally airfry for 8 amazing and quick. Second choice finish in oven for 15 mins.

But the microwave air fry is quicker and tastes just as good.

la pomme de terre en robe des champs I think

Thank you baked potato.

I thought you were going to say your DM called candy floss barbe à papa (daddy’s beard) @GivingUpFinally, not cotton candy. 🤮

I often have a jacket potato as a side to my steak, and I fill it with cheese. Oh the horror!

There were loads of jacket potato places and vans in England in the 80s and 90s. We had Spud U Like. It just went out of fashion.

I mourn for Spud-U-Like.

But they’re not wearing a kilt 🙄

😂