Idle question. I've always heard that you need to prick the skins before baking a potato. The potential consequence for failure to do so is a catastrophic potato explosion.
When I was a kid my mom was baking potatoes one time and realized partway through that she forgot to stab them before putting them in the oven. She quickly opened the oven and slid the rack out and stabbed one with a fork. Unfortunately it was too late. I was standing right next to the oven and potato exploded all over my mom and I as soon as the fork touched it.
In the oven, really hot and it blew open and "baked" all over the inside. Hell to clean up. I was sure I poked it, but... couldn't remember.
Now I go all serial killer on them before baking.
Despite microwaving potatoes frequently, (1-10/wk, don’t judge me) for many years (often questionably, typically without pricking) I have yet to have one explode. One would assume microwave explosions would be more common.
Perhaps luck, perhaps potato type/size (I like Yukon gold and reds, which are thin skin, small, and relatively soft) but it’s just me so I don’t usually buy large/baking potatoes, and maybe those are more prone to bursting?
I put them in a lidded microwave safe container, bit of water in the bottom, microwave for 10-15 minutes. Never a burst in… almost 20 years?
Many many times. My microwaves have a good mash of assorted root vegetables stuck in corners and behind grilles and on hidden fans. Real roach hotel, until I turn the oven on, and the roaches scurry out to explode, beginning the cycle anew.
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