Vegan Twice Baked Potatoes

These vegan twice baked potatoes are creamy, savory and so delicious! Makes for an amazing vegetarian side dish recipe, but can also be served as a full meal! 100% plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.

It is the holiday season and I thought I would share an amazing festive side dish to add to your Thanksgiving of Christmas menu. They can obviously be enjoyed all year long, but these vegan twice baked potatoes feel more special and definitely earn their spot at the holiday table.

They are healthy and use a whole food plant-based tofu sour cream to turn their filling super creamy, but you can obviously add some vegan butter and even vegan cheese for more of a treat if you want.

We loved adding tempeh bacon or vegan bacon bits and green onions for added texture and flavor. Scoop the mixture back in the potatoes and bake again! They were a huge hit!

Let me know if you give them a try! ❤️

❤️ Why you will love this recipe

• Easy: Vegetarian side dish that uses simple ingredients.
• Delicious: Packed with flavor and rich in creamy texture.
• Healthier: Made with whole food plant-based ingredients, yet just as delicious as regular loaded baked potatoes.
• Versatile: Swap the toppings and serve with any main dish.
• Specific diet friendly: Completely vegan, dairy-free, vegetarian and easy to make gluten-free.

➡️ Best potatoes for this recipe

A starchy potato works best when making baked potatoes in the oven. Starchy potatoes include Russet, Idaho or red potatoes.

I think Russet potatoes are the number one choice for twice baked potatoes: they come in a larger size, have a nice creamy texture when mashed and also, a sturdy and tougher skin that holds better when stuffing them. Red potatoes would create a tasty filling, but their skin is super thin and delicate, which would make it harder to stuff and bake them for a second time without falling apart.

Also, when choosing your potatoes, aim for evenly shaped potatoes so they stand better straight up after being sliced in half.

🗒 Ingredient notes (+substitutions)

• Potatoes: I used 4 medium to large Russet potatoes.
• Sour cream: My homemade tofu sour cream is perfect to make this recipe! It is creamy, healthy and nicely tangy, which works out great to flavor the mashed potato filling. But feel free to use a store-bought sour cream, such as this sour cream from the brand forager that we love.
• Vegan tempeh bacon: I garnished the vegan baked potatoes with this tempeh bacon from the brand Lightlife to add a delicious smoky flavor, although you could omit it. My vegan bacon bits would also be amazing in this recipe and add a fair amount of plant-based protein as well.
• Nutritional yeast: to add a delicious cheesy flavor.
• Plant-based milk: not shown in the ingredient picture, but you might have to add a little extra milk to the mixture depending on the size of your potatoes. Make sure it is unsweetened plain milk if using.
• Green onions: for a classic loaded baked potatoes flavor. Chives work great too!

⭐️ Full list of ingredients with quantities down below in the recipe card!

📝 Variations

It is easy to personalize this vegetarian twice baked potatoes recipe! You can add so much more to the mashed potato mixture, especially if making this recipe as a full meal. Here are some ideas:

• Steamed broccoli or cauliflower
• Thawed frozen green peas or corn
• Crushed fresh garlic
• Smoked or sweet paprika
• Roasted mushrooms
• Fresh herbs such as dill, parsley or cilantro

🍽 How to make vegan twice baked potatoes

Step 1: Clean the potatoes and dry them well using a towel. Place the potatoes on a parchment paper-covered baking sheet and rub them with a little olive oil.

Step 2: Using a fork, poke the potatoes a few times through their skin and sprinkle some coarse salt over. bake for about 60 minutes at 400ºF or until fork tender.

Step 3: Once the potatoes are done, take them out and let them cool down for a few minutes. Then, slice them in half lengthwise. Use a spoon and scoop out the flesh by leaving a thin wall of potatoes all around to help the "skin boat" hold well and be more solid once stuffed (about ⅛ inch thick).

Step 4: Transfer the potato flesh in a large bowl as you scoop it out and use a hand-held potato masher to mash until smooth to your liking.

Step 5: While the potatoes are baking, it is a good time to prepare the tempeh bacon, if using. Simply chop the slices into small cubes and roast in a pan on medium-high heat until crispy, about 7-10 minutes. Once done, set aside until ready to use. You can also follow this vegan bacon bits recipe instead of using tempeh.

Step 6: To the bowl with the mashed potatoes, add the sour cream, nutritional yeast, green onion, tempeh bacon (or bacon bits), salt and pepper. I like mine a little chunky, but you can also make the filling very smooth. Add a little plant milk for a smoother texture and add some vegan butter if desired.

Step 7: Once the mashed potato mixture is done, scoop it back into the potato skins using a spoon. Sprinkle some salt and pepper over and bake for 10-15 minutes. If you wanted to include vegan cheese, then you could add some over the potatoes before baking them.

Step 8: Serve the potatoes warm topped with more vegan sour cream, green onions and tempeh bacon.

⭐️ Detailed recipe (with video) down below in the recipe card!

✅ Favorite vegan baked potato toppings

Make sure to keep some extra sour cream to dollop over the vegan loaded baked potatoes when serving. Feel free to make a double batch of the sour cream so you have plenty!

Also, top with more fresh green onions when serving, but chives or even finely diced red onion would work to add that nice pungent flavor and crunch. I also like to keep some more crispy bacon bits or tempeh bacon aside for garnishing to add a pop of color as well.

More topping ideas include: finely diced red pepper, hot sauce, vegan cheese sauce, chopped fresh herbs, ground black pepper, red pepper flakes, nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan cheese.

You could also really load it up with black beans, lentils or chickpeas to make this meal super filling. Or even a vegan jackfruit chili for a saucy result. Yum!

💡 Helpful tips

• Baking time will vary a lot depending on how large your potatoes are. It should take about 60 minutes, although you may want to check after 45 minutes or so if your potatoes are on the smaller side. For larger potatoes, then you might need to let them bake for 70-80 minutes.
• Adjust texture: Since the size of your potato will vary, you will have to play around with the amount of sour cream and see if you want to add some plant milk to make the filling mixture thinner. Try to avoid super runny mashed potatoes so they hold well in the potato skin while baking. When making this recipe, I start with ½ cup of sour cream, but often add about 2-3 tablespoons extra.
• Be delicate when scooping out the flesh so the skins stay as intact as possible.

❗️ Storage and freezing tips

Keep leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Keep any topping ingredients apart while storing.

If making them ahead or if you want to freeze them, then I recommend you store them just before the step of baking them for the second time.

Thaw in the fridge overnight and then, once ready to eat, simply put them in the oven to bake them for a second time. You might have to bake them a little longer if they were super cold when you added them to the oven.

🌱 More vegan potato recipes you might like

🍴 Pairing suggestions for this recipe

I hope you like these vegan twice baked potatoes as much as we do! If you try them, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how they were. Your feedback is so helpful!

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