16 Stuffed Baked Potatoes So Hearty, You Can Make a Meal Out of Them

At risk of sounding like, oh, everyone in your life these days, have you noticed how expensive groceries have gotten? Whether you’re feeding a family of five, and your leftovers are plentiful but not quite enough to feed everyone a second time, or you’re just feeding yourself, and you have some bits and bobs in the fridge to use up, we’ve got a budget-friendly idea for turning a little into a lot. It’s rounding out the meal by piling it on a good old baked potato, just like back in the day. Whether it’s chili, a reuben, some stew or extra sauce, just about everything is tastier on top of a potato, and you will absolutely, definitely, be plenty full when you’re done eating it.

All the elements of a reuben sandwich are so complementary with a potato, this will truly be one of those “why didn’t I think of this before?” moments. Pastrami’s saltiness is cut and carried by the mild potato flesh, and the sauerkraut, Swiss and Thousand Island dressing make it chef’s kiss. While you don’t have to make the dressing yourself, a homemade version is very nice and keeps well, for future potatoes.

Yes, we include sweet potatoes in the calculus here. This one gets a creamy topping with ground turkey and veggies in a coconut mustard sauce. Mushrooms bring a nice pop of umami, and broccoli and spinach plus fresh sage and rosemary bring a full taste of the garden.

Those of you who remember the baked potato bars in all kinds of restaurants in the 1980s and 90s, this one’s for you. It has that classic combo we all loved, from broccoli florets to bacon bits. But the thing that makes this truly ultimate is replacing the sad shredded cheese with a cheese sauce, this one made from sharp cheddar rather than processed cheese, so no fluorescent goo in sight.

This recipe is a real win in terms of stretching your grocery dollars. Here, just ¾ pound of beef can feed 4, but it’s as hearty and filling as any steak dinner. Tomato and cumin enhance the savoriness of the beef and dials down the sweetness of the potato, which itself still contributes a certain creamy richness.

Mexican flavors and sweet potatoes seem made to go together, the natural sweetness enhancing the spices in just the way that a hint of sweet corn in a tortilla does. Here, the sweet potato stands in for the tortilla. Go ahead and lift it and eat it like a taco! You’ll be surprised at how well it works.

This can be classified as your classic stuffed baked potato, but put an egg on it! Bell pepper and spinach pump up the veggie content and add so much good savory texture. Some bacon, cheese and scallions play well with all of the above.

Potatoes are just as excellent a vehicle for carbonara as pasta, it turns out. Carbonara is a classic bacon-and-egg sauce that gets its name from the flecks of ground black pepper, said to resemble bits of coal (carbone in Italian). All together, it’s absolutely delizioso.

Healthy, yes, but also satisfying, oh yes. Shredded chicken is stuffed inside these roasted sweet potatoes, which get avocado standing in for the usual dairy for creaminess and richness. But no fear, we’ve still got a bit of Cheddar in there to scratch the itch.

To be fair, this qualifies as a “twice-baked;” but that makes it easier to stuff more in and keep it there (the second baking creates a delightful crusty shell on the outside). Here, mashed cauliflower joins up with the potato flesh for an intriguingly complex flavor, enhanced with Cheddar (natch) and fresh scallions. You certainly couldn’t forget the bacon bits atop such a masterpiece.

Here, less than a pound of shrimp is enough for four, since it’s scampi-fied and topping baked potatoes. This is the ultimate luxury if served alongside steak, as the recipe mentions, but we find it to be rich and filling enough to make dinner on its own, too. Fresh herbs are an added bit of luxury, but it won’t suffer if you don’t have them on hand.

Putting chorizo in anything is a game-over trick for making that meal your favorite of the week. This recipe uses fresh chorizo, inexpensive, and commonly used in Mexican cooking. It behaves like any other ground meat, but that brings so much good seasoning with it. That red oil that pools is simply so delicious with sweet potato.

These stuffed sweet potatoes bring everything you love about fajitas but the sizzling skillet. You’ve got that seasoning for that savory-griddle flavor, and skirt steak, a rich and chewy cut of steak that goes so well with the sizzled bell peppers. Go ahead and throw some tortilla chips on the side, since this is just as fun to dip into with them as it is with your fork.

Sweet potatoes can speak Italian, too. Here, pancetta gets crisped up to mingle with every Italian American’s favorite vegetable, bitter and irresistible broccoli rabe. Some meaty shiitakes and ricotta are the right choice here, for a whole-package meal that hits all the notes with aplomb.

This potato is a real master class in elevating the everyday contents of your fridge! The meal prep instructions convert something fancy into a doable plan, and the toppings — quick-pickled celery, a garlicky lime-and-chive sour cream, and buffalo-inspired chicken, are fantastic together. The result is so craveable, you’ll want this after a long day at work, on a Friday night on the couch with a great movie, and so on, and so on…

Here, you have practically everyone’s favorite dip, translated to baked potato topping (it’s a sweet potato in this case). Spinach and artichoke lend a nice vegetal tang to a cheesy and toasty broiled topping, which truly makes this feel like a one-item meal. You can add a side salad if you wish, but you might not even need it.