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Creamy Garlic Chicken Loaded Potato

Recipe by The Cozy Bowl Kitchen

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  • Total Time1 hour 45 minutes
  • Yield2 loaded potatoes 1x

A crisp-skinned baked potato loaded with creamy garlic chicken thigh, melting cheddar, spring onions and crispy onions. The sauce is reduced thick so it sits on the potato instead of running off it.

Ingredients

Scale

For the potatoes

  • 2 large floury baking potatoes, Maris Piper or King Edward, about 300 to 350 g each
  • 1 tsp vegetable or olive oil
  • 1 tsp flaky sea salt
  • 30 g salted butter
  • Fine sea salt and black pepper

For the creamy garlic chicken

  • 400 g boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2 cm pieces
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 20 g unsalted butter
  • 1 medium onion, finely diced
  • 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 150 ml chicken stock
  • 2 tbsp full-fat soft cheese
  • 50 ml double cream
  • 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme or mixed herbs
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • Fine sea salt and black pepper, to taste

To load

  • 100 g mature cheddar, coarsely grated
  • 2 spring onions, thinly sliced
  • 2 tbsp crispy fried onions
  • Chilli oil, to serve (optional)

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven to 200°C fan (220°C conventional). Scrub the potatoes and dry them completely. Prick each 6 to 8 times with a fork, rub with the oil and sprinkle generously with flaky salt, pressing it into the skin.
  2. Bake directly on the middle oven shelf, with a tray on the shelf below to catch drips, for 75 to 90 minutes, until a skewer slides through with no resistance and the skin is crisp. Do not use foil.
  3. When the potatoes have about 30 minutes left, start the chicken. Heat the vegetable oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat until shimmering.
  4. Add the chicken in a single layer and leave undisturbed for 2 minutes, until properly golden underneath. Turn and cook for a further 2 minutes. Cook in two batches if the pan is small. Remove to a plate.
  5. Lower the heat to medium, add the butter and the diced onion, and cook for 5 minutes until translucent and sweet. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute only.
  6. Pour in the chicken stock and scrape the base of the pan to lift all the browned bits. Return the chicken and any resting juices, add the thyme, and simmer gently for 8 minutes.
  7. Take the pan off a rolling boil. Stir in the soft cheese and double cream until smooth, then add the Dijon mustard.
  8. Return to a gentle bubble for 3 to 4 minutes, until the sauce coats the back of a spoon and a spatula dragged through the pan leaves a trail that holds for a second.
  9. Take off the heat, stir in the lemon juice, then taste and season with salt and pepper. Leave to sit for 2 minutes.
  10. Cut the baked potatoes open immediately, squeeze the sides to open them up, add half the butter to each, season, and fork it through the flesh until fluffy.
  11. Scatter two thirds of the cheddar over the hot flesh so it melts. Spoon the creamy chicken over the top.
  12. Finish with the remaining cheese, the spring onions and the crispy fried onions. Add chilli oil if you like, and serve immediately.

Notes

Make ahead: The creamy chicken can be made up to 2 days ahead and is arguably better on day two. Refrigerate and reheat gently in a pan with a splash of stock or milk to loosen the sauce. Bake the potatoes fresh, or reheat at 200°C for 15 to 20 minutes.

The mistake to avoid: Not reducing the sauce enough. A thin sauce slides off the potato and pools on the plate. Keep going until it coats the back of a spoon and holds a trail when you drag a spatula through the pan.

Variations: Brown 150 g sliced chestnut mushrooms with the onion, wilt in two handfuls of spinach at the end, or crisp 2 rashers of snipped smoked streaky bacon in the pan first and scatter it back on top. Use 300 g leftover shredded roast chicken added with the cream and simmered for just 3 minutes.

Equipment: A large frying pan, a vegetable brush, a fork, a thin skewer for testing the potatoes and a box grater.

Allergen note: Always check the label of every ingredient you use, as recipes and allergen information can change. People with food allergies or intolerances must also consider cross-contamination.

Take particular care with the soft cheese, double cream, cheddar and butter (milk), the mustard (mustard), stock (celery, wheat) and crispy fried onions (often wheat flour). Allergen information must be confirmed by The Cozy Bowl before it is relied upon.

This is a home recipe inspired by a dish or flavour available at The Cozy Bowl. It is not the restaurant’s exact commercial recipe.

Find it online: https://thecozybowl.co.uk/creamy-chicken-loaded-potato/