Do you remember when Wendy’s had a potato and chili bar? I think there was probably a small salad bar mixed in there too, but the potato bar was my favorite. You could throw all kinds of stuff on your potato; chili, cheese, bacon, you name it.
Granted, this was probably not the healthiest way to eat a baked potato, nor was it the best chili in the world, but the price was right. Mom used to take me there all the time before gymnastics classes or meets ( that’s right, this big butt used to fit in a leotard). “You need the carbs,” she would say. She never let me get the nacho cheese whiz stuff, but I wanted it really bad.
Later, when I went to college there was this sandwich place called McAlister’s not far from campus. It was a local chain that had good food for reasonable prices. The best thing on the menu though was the stuffed potatoes. Those sucker’s were huge! I found out later they were actually 2 potatoes on one plate, which explained a lot. They stuffed them with all kinds of things, but my favorite was one with hot dogs and bbq sauce and cheese.
You can take a girl out of the country….
This is my homage to Wendy’s and McAlister’s. It’s also my lazy day dinner. The whole thing comes together in the amount of time it takes to microwave a few potatoes, which is nice. You can thumb your nose at the nuked potatoes if you want, but we all do it every now and then.
I would love to hear what you stuff your potatoes with. I think the potato is the perfect vessel for all kinds of creativity…or refrigerator leftovers.
BBQ Stuffed Potato
4 baking potatoes
1 T oil
1 bell pepper, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 cup smoked sausage or kielbasa, sliced
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
1/4 cup apple juice
salt, pepper
cheddar cheese
butter
Bake or microwave your potatoes. Heat oil in a skillet and add peppers and onions. Saute until softened.
In a separate saucepan, combine BBQ sauce and apple juice. Add in sausage. Heat until sausage and sauce is hot.
Bust open your potatoes and season with salt, pepper, and butter. Top with peppers, onions, sausage, sauce and cheese. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 4 baking potatoes
- 1 T oil
- 1 bell pepper , chopped
- 1/2 onion , chopped
- 1 cup smoked sausage or kielbasa , sliced
- 1/2 cup BBQ sauce
- 1/4 cup apple juice
- salt , pepper
- cheddar cheese
- butter
Instructions
- Bake your potatoes for about an hour in a 400 degree oven or microwave on HIGH for 12-15 minutes.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and add peppers and onions. Saute until softened.
- In a separate saucepan, combine BBQ sauce and apple juice and cook over medium heat. Add in sausage. Heat until sausage and sauce is hot.
- Bust open your potatoes and season with salt, pepper, and butter. Top with peppers, onions, sausage, sauce and cheese. Enjoy!
I also love stuffed potatoes, but I do not eat meat so lots of veggies. I did do a grilled eggplant one with aged white cheddar (and a not so healthy portion of butter)…
That is a fantastic potato! Love the smoked kielbasa.
Looks like a very satisfying potato!
I would never thumb my nose at microwaving potatoes, I do it all the time! Ham & cheese is probably my favorite way of eating stuffed potatoes, I have the recipe on my blog if you're interested. I also love potatoes topped with a broccoli cheese sauce.
Great post. It looks sooo good minus the onions and peppers for me. I might dabble in a little potato bar for my next family game night!
for this type of eating – pulled BBQ pork, grilled onions & peppers or grilled chicken with wing sauce…. the sausage thingy too
I like potatoes recipe. Very savaroy… Super!