Fried Potato Skins

Sins of Commission



Most of us have a few guilty secrets. There are early transgressions we might now admit to with a wry, if slightly embarrassed, grin. For instance, as a child I was sometimes unable to control the temptation to "steal" a tin of smoked oysters or jar of cornishons from the pantry and hide in the garage so my mother wouldn't catch me eating them -- not that she didn't know who'd done it. (I suspect eating entire jars of cornichons at age eight was a harbinger of my subsequent life of culinary debauchery.)

And then there are more recent and less innocent sins that I'd hesitate to confess to a priest. Sources of shame and disappointment in my own integrity. You'll understand if I don't offer a personal example of them.

There's another category of sin often called guilty pleasures (you chocolate eaters know what I'm talking about). It's comprised of those little indulgences we have trouble justifying to ourselves. I had a friend who used to hide Oreos from her kids and eat them herself. Others have a regular evening cocktail they pretend is a rare exception to strict probity. Me? Potato skins.

Potato skins deep-fried to a crispy brownish gold. Filled to the rim with perfectly cooked, thick-cut bacon. Heaped with mounds of sharp cheddar. Baked until the cheese bubbles and flows. Topped with cool, snow-white sour cream. Potato skins so over-flowing with cholesterol-laden fat they make your teeth squeak.

I don't know who invented skins back in the 70s. But they should be shot.

Although you can still find them in the appetizer section of many menus, I never order them. Too often someone has mistaken broccoli for bacon (they're not the same thing at all) or added sauteed onions (like painting a mustache on a Renoir) or substituted jalapeno Monterey Jack for cheddar (a mistake akin to using sugar instead of salt on a steak). But mostly the pitiful things found in restaurants are just poor imitations with limp skins, undercooked bacon, mild cheese, and fake sour cream.

Potato Skins
Serves 6 as appetizer.

6 medium Idaho potatoes
1 lb meaty bacon
12 oz extra-sharp cheddar — shredded
1 1/2 c cultured sour cream
oil for frying

Scrub and bake potatoes until done. Cool thoroughly and scoop out flesh leaving just under 1/4" of flesh on skins. Reserve flesh for other uses.

Heat oven to 450F.

Cook bacon thoroughly, drain, and coarsely chop.

Heat enough oil to submerge skins in to 350F. Fry skins until golden brown (they should be quite crisp in the thinner spots). Drain on paper towels.

Divide bacon among skins. Divide cheese among skins (don't be afraid to mound it up, it will melt down into skins). Bake on rack in middle of oven until cheese melts and bubbles -- about 10 minutes.

Season liberally with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add sour cream and gorge. Serves two.

UPDATE: Here's a related entry on fats and oils.