Best Spices for Baked Potatoes

A baked potato is seasoned in three places: the skin, the flesh once it is split, and whatever goes on top. Salt and black pepper do most of the work, and America’s Test Kitchen’s tested method seasons the skin before the potato goes in the oven.¹ Garlic, onion, chives, paprika and a few herbs build from there. This page covers what each seasoning does, when to add it, and how wedges and whole baked potatoes differ. Quantities appear only where a named recipe gives them.

At a glance

Seasoning	Where it goes	Job
Salt	Skin (as brine) and flesh	Seasoning; ATK’s method salts the skin before baking¹
Black pepper	Flesh, at serving	Pungency from piperine²
Garlic powder or garlic	Wedges before baking; flesh or butter after	Savory depth³⁴
Onion powder	Wedges before baking; flesh	Savory depth³
Paprika and chili powder	Wedges before baking	Color, mild pepper flavor, some heat³⁵
Chives	On top, at serving	Mild onion flavor and green garnish⁶
Basil, parsley	On top, at serving	Fresh herbal note⁷

Seasoning the skin

America’s Test Kitchen’s “Best Baked Potatoes” handles the skin in two steps.¹

Salt before baking. Dissolve 2 tablespoons of salt in 1/2 cup of water, toss the potatoes in it, and bake at 450°F until the center of the largest potato reaches 205°F, 45 minutes to an hour. ATK coats the potatoes in salty water to season the skin.¹
Oil after. Brush the tops and sides with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil and return them to the oven for 10 minutes; ATK paints on the oil once the potatoes are cooked through to crisp the skin.¹

That recipe uses neutral vegetable oil on the skin.¹ Olive oil is a common choice too, but we found no tested comparison of oils for baked-potato skin. ATK’s goat cheese topping (below) is where it uses extra-virgin olive oil.¹

Seasoning wedges

For wedges, the seasoning goes on before baking, mixed into the oil. Oregon State University Extension’s Food Hero recipe uses, for 3 large baking potatoes, 3 tablespoons vegetable oil with 1 1/2 teaspoons each of paprika, garlic powder, chili powder and onion powder, spread on the cut sides and baked 30 minutes at 450°F.³

Note that “chili powder” in an American recipe like this is usually a blend: the USDA’s purchasing specification for it lists ground chili pepper, cumin, oregano, salt and garlic powder.⁸ Paprika’s red color comes mainly from capsanthin and capsorubin.⁵

The core seasonings and what each one does

Salt and black pepper

Salt goes on twice in the ATK method: in the brine before baking and on the flesh at serving, along with pepper.¹ Black pepper’s pungency comes principally from piperine.² Grinding it fresh at the table is common practice and, in our judgment, gives a brighter, more aromatic result than pre-ground pepper. See cracked vs. ground black pepper.

Garlic: powder, salt, butter or oil

Garlic and onion are close relatives, both in the genus Allium, family Amaryllidaceae.⁹¹⁰

Garlic powder on wedges goes on before baking, in the oil.³
Garlic powder on cooked potato is trickier. America’s Test Kitchen found that garlic powder stirred dry into mashed potatoes tasted harsh and garlicky but not particularly complex, and recommends hydrating the powder in water before using it so its flavor compounds can form.¹¹⁴ For a split baked potato, stir hydrated powder into the butter or sour cream rather than sprinkling it dry; that application is our suggestion, based on ATK’s finding.
Garlic salt is garlic powder blended with salt; UC Agriculture and Natural Resources gives a home ratio of 4 parts salt to 1 part garlic powder.¹² If you use it, cut back on other salt. See garlic salt and garlic powder vs. garlic salt.
Garlic butter is another option. Raw garlic is sharp; ATK found that heating cloves to 140°F or above takes much of the bite out.¹³
Garlic oil needs care. UC ANR says not to store garlic in oil at room temperature, and to keep homemade garlic oil refrigerated for no more than 4 days.¹² See too much garlic powder if the powder runs away from you.

Onion, chives and green onion

Onion powder goes into the wedge seasoning.³ On a whole baked potato, the onion note usually comes from fresh chives or green onion on top. University of Wisconsin Extension describes chives as having a mild onion flavor and as best sprinkled on food just before serving, as seasoning or garnish.⁶ See chives vs. green onions, onion salt and onion salt vs. onion powder. Fried onions add crunch; that is a topping choice rather than a seasoning.

Fresh herbs: basil and parsley

Basil is an annual herb of the mint family; Britannica describes dried basil as warm, sweet, aromatic and mildly pungent, and names methyl chavicol and linalool among its oil components.¹⁴ Parsley appears in ATK’s herbed goat cheese topping.¹

Both are delicate herbs. The LSU AgCenter advises adding delicate herbs such as basil, chives and parsley a minute or two before the end of cooking, since prolonged heat costs them flavor.⁷ For a baked potato, that means on top at serving. Dried basil in a wedge seasoning will bake for the full time; in our judgment it adds less than fresh basil added at the end. See dried vs. fresh basil.

Toppings that carry the seasoning

ATK pairs its baked potatoes with two seasoned toppings:¹

Topping	Seasonings
Herbed goat cheese	1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tbsp minced fresh parsley, 1 1/2 tsp minced shallot, 1/4 tsp grated lemon zest, salt and pepper, with 2 oz goat cheese
Creamy egg	1 tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 1/2 tbsp minced cornichons, 1 tbsp minced capers, salt and pepper, with 3 hard-cooked eggs and 4 tbsp sour cream

The pattern is useful even without these recipes: a creamy base, something sharp or acidic, a fresh herb, salt and pepper. That framing is ours.

When to add each seasoning

Before baking: salt brine on whole potatoes;¹ the full oil-and-spice mix on wedges.³
After the potato is cooked through: oil on the skin for 10 more minutes.¹
At serving: salt and pepper on the split flesh,¹ fresh chives and herbs,⁶⁷ and hydrated garlic in butter or sour cream.⁴

“Best Baked Potatoes”, America’s Test Kitchen, reprinted by The Splendid Table, 2017. splendidtable.org · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³
“Black pepper”, Encyclopaedia Britannica. britannica.com · Reference work ↩ ↩²
“Potato Wedges”, Food Hero, Oregon State University Extension Service. extension.oregonstate.edu · Reference work ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷
Carolyn Grillo, “For Great Garlic Bread, Hydrate Your Garlic Powder First”, America’s Test Kitchen, 2021. americastestkitchen.com · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³
“Paprika extract”, Chemical and Technical Assessment for the 77th JECFA, FAO. fao.org · Regulator ↩ ↩²
Susan Mahr, “Chives, Allium schoenoprasum”, University of Wisconsin Extension. hort.extension.wisc.edu · Reference work ↩ ↩² ↩³
“Flavorful Herbs”, LSU AgCenter. lsuagcenter.com · Reference work ↩ ↩² ↩³
Commercial Item Description A-A-20001C, Spices and Spice Blends, USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, 2023. ams.usda.gov · Regulator ↩
“Allium sativum L.”, Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. powo.science.kew.org · Reference work ↩
“Allium cepa L.”, Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. powo.science.kew.org · Reference work ↩
“Experiment: Bringing Out the Best in Garlic Powder”, America’s Test Kitchen. americastestkitchen.com · Publication ↩
Linda J. Harris, “Garlic: Safe Methods to Store, Preserve, and Enjoy”, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, 2016. ccfruitandnuts.ucanr.edu · Reference work ↩ ↩²
“Taking the Bite out of Garlic”, America’s Test Kitchen. americastestkitchen.com · Publication ↩
“Basil”, Encyclopaedia Britannica. britannica.com · Reference work ↩

The Best Spices for Baked Potatoes: Seasoning the Skin, the Flesh and the Toppings