I stumbled on this dish purely from craving some fries and trying to make it a tad more healthy. When I tell y'all this loaded air fried potato was E-VER-Y-THING...I ain't lyin! If you don't have an air fryer, I honestly don't know how you've been able to function! I use mine for everything from brussel sprouts, to mini pita pizzas, to reheating my air fried leftovers.
This plant-based meal is super easy to make, but will take about an hour before you're in hot, savory potato heaven. This recipe can make 1-4 servings, depending on the size of your air fryer and how big your potatos are, but I love to make these fresh and I am ususally only making one baking potato. Adjust the serving sizes below as needed. You can get all the ingredients from my fave store..you guessed it..ALDI (as I lovingly refer to as..."The Aldi's").
I love that this recipe is full of plants, but feels like a cheat meal. Load your potato with a variety of fresh veggies, but if you don't have all these ingredients, don't stress! The potato is the star of this show, so feel free to make your own tweaks to this recipe:
What you'll need:
One (1) Russet potato, medium sized
1/2 tsp of oil (I use grapeseed or olive)
1/2 tsp of sea salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp of smoked paprika
1/4 cup of shredded vegan cheese (I like So Delicious, Violife Cheddar or Daiya)
1/2 tbsp vegan butter (I like Earth Balance)
1/8 red or yellow onion, chopped (about a palmful once chopped)
1/4 cup of tomatoes, diced
2 tsp of jalepeno, diced finely
1/4 avocado, diced
2 tbsps of cilantro, chopped
Optional Toppings:
Vegan sour cream (I use Aldi brand)
Mild/hot giardiniera peppers (Yum! Issa Chicago thang. I get mine from Aldi)
2-3 tbsp of salsa (I love the organic Chipotle and Lime Salsa from Aldi)
- Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees
- While its preheating, rinse off/clean your potato
- Wrap the potato in a hand/paper towel to dry then place in a bowl
- Add oil and rub it all over the potato, lightly coating it
- Add salt and garlic powder, rub on potato skin
- Place potato in the heated air fryer for 40-50 minutes (I love crunchy skin, so I usually leave mine in for at least 45 minutes). There is NO NEED to pierce your potato(es) with a fork or wrap them in aluminum foil. Be careful when removing them; use tongs or an oven mitten.
- Open potato with a fork
- Add vegan butter and smoked paprika, use the fork to mix in
- Add shredded vegan cheese
- Mix/blend again
- Sprinkle your chopped veggies; top with chopped cilantro and diced avocado
- Add optional toppings if any and sprinkle smoked paprika on top.
Enjoy!