Pulled Pork Baked Potatoes are big russets with crispy, salty skins, split open and fluffed, then loaded with butter, cheddar and a heap of hot barbecue pulled pork and finished with cool sour cream, green onions and jalapeño. A baked potato with pulled pork piled on top makes an easy weeknight dinner and a good use for leftover pulled pork. The recipe serves 4 and is ready in 70 minutes, most of it hands-off baking time.
How to make pulled pork baked potatoes: Rub the potatoes with olive oil and kosher salt and bake them at 400°F for about 1 hour, until a fork slides in. Split and fluff them, add butter and cheddar, and pile on the hot pulled pork.
Why You’ll Love It
- Leftovers become dinner: 4 cups of cooked pulled pork turn into a full meal for four.
- 10 minutes of prep: wash, oil and salt the potatoes, and the oven does the rest.
- Crisp outside, fluffy inside: an oiled, salted skin baked on a sheet pan around a soft, buttery middle.
- Easy to change: melt more cheese on top, twice-bake them, or add bacon and cheese sauce.
Ingredient Notes
Russet potatoes: Pick 4 large ones. Russets are the best choice for baking; Yukon Golds will also do.
Pulled pork: Use 4 cups of cooked pulled pork, leftover or made ahead. The pork is already cooked, so it only needs reheating until it is hot all the way through, 165°F, the temperature USDA FSIS gives for leftovers.
Barbecue sauce: The cup of sauce is optional. Stir it into the pork while it warms, or drizzle it over the top at the end.
Cheddar: Two cups, shredded. It goes into the hot potato first, under the pork.
Toppings: Butter, sour cream and green onions have no set amount, so add as much as you like. Chives can stand in for the green onions. One sliced jalapeño adds heat; leave it off for a milder plate.
Ingredients
- 4 large russet potatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more for the inside
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, plus more for the inside
- 4 cups pulled pork, cooked
- 1 cup barbecue sauce, optional
- Butter, for the potatoes
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- Sour cream, for topping
- Green onions, sliced, for topping
- 1 jalapeño, sliced
How to Make Pulled Pork Baked Potatoes
1. Heat the oven. Heat the oven to 400°F.
2. Season the potatoes. Wash and dry the potatoes and poke several holes in each one with a fork. Rub them with the olive oil, sprinkle generously with the salt and pepper, and set them on a sheet pan.
3. Bake. Bake for 1 hour, or until a fork slides easily into the center.
4. Warm the pork. Toward the end of the baking time, warm the pulled pork, stirred together with the barbecue sauce if you like, until it is hot all the way through (165°F).
5. Open the potatoes. Slice each potato lengthwise across the top without cutting all the way through, then push the ends inward to open it up. Fluff the inside with a fork.
6. Load and serve. Add butter, a little salt and pepper, and the cheddar to each potato, then pile on the hot pulled pork. Top with sour cream, green onions and sliced jalapeño, and drizzle with barbecue sauce if it is not already stirred into the pork.
How to Make the Potato as Good as the Pork
Good pulled pork deserves a potato that is worth eating on its own. That comes down to three things: a crisp skin, a middle that is tender all the way through, and an inside that is seasoned before the pork goes on.
Dry, oil, salt. Scrub the potatoes, then pat them dry with a paper towel. An olive oil rub, a coat of kosher salt and a sheet pan are what give the skin its crisp, salty crust. Line the pan with parchment if you like.
Bake until truly tender. At 400°F, russets take 45 minutes to 1 hour (large ones like these about 1 hour), so start checking at 45 minutes. Use whichever test suits your kitchen:
| Test | Done when |
|---|---|
| Fork | It slides easily into the center |
| Skewer | It slides in easily |
| Instant-read thermometer | The center reads 202°F |
If the center still resists, give it more time and test again.
Season the inside, not just the top. Once the potato is open and fluffed, work a little butter, salt, pepper and a pinch of the cheddar right into the soft potato before any pork goes on. Then every forkful tastes seasoned, not only the part under the toppings.
Tips for Success
How much barbecue sauce should I use?
Pile on plenty of pork and go easy on the sauce. Start with a thin drizzle and set the rest of the sauce on the table so everyone can add more. You can also stir the sauce into the pork while it warms instead of pouring it over the top.
Can I get the potatoes ready ahead of time?
Yes. Bake the potatoes up to 24 hours ahead, refrigerate them, then reheat them in the oven until they reach 165°F before you fluff and fill them. Pulled pork can be made ahead and reheated to 165°F too, so the rest of dinner comes together quickly.
Variations
- Melted cheese on top: Load the potatoes with pork, a light drizzle of sauce and more shredded cheddar, then bake at 400°F for about 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted. Warm the pork to 165°F before it goes on (step 4); the 10 minutes in the oven only melts the cheese.
- Twice-baked: Halve the baked potatoes and scoop out the middles, leaving about 1/4 inch of potato around the edges and bottom. Whip the scooped potato with 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup milk and 1 teaspoon salt using a hand mixer, spoon it back into the skins, top with shredded cheese, crumbled bacon and pulled pork warmed to 165°F (step 4), and bake at 400°F for 10 minutes, until the filling is hot in the center (165°F). Finish with barbecue sauce and chives.
- Bacon and cheese sauce: Pour hot cheese sauce over the pork and scatter chopped crispy bacon on top before the sour cream and green onions.
Storage & Reheating
USDA FSIS says to refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow, covered containers and eat them within 3 to 4 days. Reheat the potatoes in the oven for the crispiest skins, until they reach 165°F. Extra pulled pork can go in the freezer for a later dinner; frozen leftovers keep 3 to 4 months, and they should thaw in the refrigerator, never on the counter. Keep cheese sauce out of the freezer, since cream sauces freeze poorly, and do not reheat the pork in a slow cooker.
What to Serve With It
One loaded potato is a meal on its own, but a side turns it into a spread. Mac and cheese, green beans and a crisp salad all fit: try good ole fashion mac and cheese, smothered green beans or a spinach salad with warm bacon dressing. For more barbecue pork, make slow cooker root beer BBQ pork ribs. On another potato night, trade the pork for a seasoned ground beef filling in taco stuffed baked potatoes, or feed a crowd with a slow cooker loaded potato bake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does pulled pork go with baked potatoes?
Yes. Pulled pork on a big baked potato is filling enough to serve as the main dish, with a salad or slaw alongside.
What cheese can I use instead of cheddar?
Pepper Jack, Swiss or Monterey Jack all work in place of the cheddar. Half cheddar and half Monterey Jack is another good mix.
Can I use leftover chicken or beef instead of pork?
Yes. Leftover chicken or beef goes on a baked potato the same way: reheat it to 165°F, pile it on and add the same toppings.
Can I use cooking spray instead of olive oil?
Yes. Olive oil cooking spray makes it easy to get an even coat on the skins; sprinkle the kosher salt over it the same way. Avocado oil works too.
Final Notes
Next time you cook a batch of pulled pork, set aside 4 cups for these potatoes and a second dinner is mostly done. If you make them, tell me in the comments what you piled on top.
Pulled Pork Baked Potatoes
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Ingredients
- 4 large russet potatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt plus more for the inside
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper plus more for the inside
- 4 cups pulled pork cooked
- 1 cup barbecue sauce optional
- butter for the potatoes
- 2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
- sour cream for topping
- green onions sliced, for topping
- 1 jalapeño sliced
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400°F.
- Wash and dry the potatoes and poke several holes in each one with a fork. Rub them with the olive oil, sprinkle generously with the salt and pepper, and set them on a sheet pan.
- Bake for 1 hour, or until a fork slides easily into the center.
- Toward the end of the baking time, warm the pulled pork, stirred together with the barbecue sauce if you like, until it is hot all the way through (165°F).
- Slice each potato lengthwise across the top without cutting all the way through, then push the ends inward to open it up. Fluff the inside with a fork.
- Add butter, a little salt and pepper, and the cheddar to each potato, then pile on the hot pulled pork. Top with sour cream, green onions and sliced jalapeño, and drizzle with barbecue sauce if it is not already stirred into the pork.
