The Best Fluffy Pancakes recipe you will fall in love with. Full of tips and tricks to help you make the best pancakes.
Thanksgiving dinner shouldn’t need a whole Thursday. Chicken and stuffing loaded baked potatoes with gravy get you the same plate, the turkey-dinner flavors, stuffed into a russet that does half the work for you.
Fluffy potato. Butter and sour cream melting in. Shredded chicken. Then a lid of stuffing baked until the edges crisp, and gravy over the whole thing. I make these on weeknights, not holidays.
Prep: 15 minutes | Cook: 1 hour 15 minutes | Total: 1 hour 30 minutes | Serves: 4 (adjust the potato count to fit)
Why This Works
The stuffing goes on after the potato is already cooked and loaded. That order matters. Stuff it raw into the potato and the stuffing steams, goes soggy, and never crisps. Piling it on top and hitting it with 425°F heat dries the surface out, so you get a crunchy top over a soft middle.
Butter and sour cream go in first and get mashed into the flesh. The potato turns rich and a little tangy before anything else touches it, which means the chicken doesn’t taste like it’s sitting on a dry spud. And gravy goes on last, always. Gravy before the oven and you lose all that crunch you just built.
Ingredients
- Jumbo russet potatoes, as many as you need
- Oil
- Salt and pepper
- A couple tablespoons butter, per potato
- A couple tablespoons sour cream, per potato
- 1/4 cup cooked shredded chicken, per potato
- 1 box stuffing mix
- 1 1/2 cups hot water
- Chicken gravy
Instructions
- Bake the potatoes the way you normally do. Rub them with oil, salt, and pepper first.
- When they’re done, slice each one open.
- Add a couple tablespoons of butter, a couple tablespoons of sour cream, and 1/4 cup shredded chicken to each potato. Mix it right in.
- Stir the stuffing mix with the 1 1/2 cups hot water.
- Pile the stuffing on top of the potatoes.
- Bake at 425°F for 10 to 15 minutes, until the top is a bit crispy.
- Drizzle chicken gravy over everything.
- Eat.
Tips
- Russets only. Yukon golds are fine potatoes, but they don’t get that fluffy inside that soaks up butter.
- Don’t skip the oil and salt on the skin. That’s the crispy skin you’ll be fighting over.
- Pull them when the stuffing edges are dark golden. Pale means soft.
- Warm the gravy before you pour. Cold gravy on a hot potato is a bummer.
- Use rotisserie chicken if you have it. Leftover roast works too.
Variations
- Turkey instead of chicken. Obvious, and good. Leftover turkey, same quantity.
- Cheddar under the stuffing. A small handful. Worth it.
- Cranberry sauce on the side. Do this. Spoon, don’t mix in.
- Bacon. I’d skip it. The stuffing and gravy are already salty and bacon just crowds the plate.
Make-Ahead
Bake the potatoes up to two days ahead and keep them in the fridge. Shred the chicken ahead too. Do not stuff and top them early. The stuffing soaks up moisture and turns to paste sitting in the fridge, and no oven rescues that. Assemble, then bake the final 10 to 15 minutes right before serving.
FAQ
What do you serve with chicken and stuffing loaded baked potatoes?
Green beans or a simple salad. Something green and crisp against all that richness.
Can I use leftover stuffing?
Yes, and honestly it’s the best use for it. Skip the hot water, press the cold stuffing on top, and bake until hot and crispy, usually the same 10 to 15 minutes.
Can I make these in an air fryer?
Probably, though I haven’t tested it.
What kind of gravy works best?
Chicken gravy from a jar or packet is fine. Homemade is better if you’ve got ten minutes. Turkey gravy works too.
How do I reheat leftovers?
Oven at 375°F for about 15 minutes, uncovered, so the stuffing crisps again. The microwave works in a pinch but you lose the crunch.
Closing Thoughts
Set these out as a build-your-own potato bar when you’ve got a crowd: potatoes, a pan of stuffing, a bowl of chicken, a boat of gravy, and let everybody stack their own. Put the extra stuffing in a skillet and nobody will leave hungry.
Chicken and Stuffing Loaded Baked Potatoes with Gravy
These Chicken and Stuffing Loaded Baked Potatoes are filled with buttery mashed potato, sour cream, shredded chicken, and savory stuffing, then baked until lightly crisp and finished with warm chicken gravy.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
Bake the Potatoes
- Preheat the oven according to your preferred baked potato method. Rub the jumbo russet potatoes with oil and season with salt and black pepper.
- Bake the potatoes until completely tender when pierced with a fork.
Fill the Potatoes
- When the potatoes are done, carefully slice each one open lengthwise.
- Add approximately 2 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons sour cream, and 1/4 cup cooked shredded chicken to each potato.
- Mix the potato flesh, butter, sour cream, and chicken together inside each potato until well combined.
Prepare the Stuffing
- Combine the stuffing mix with 1 1/2 cups hot water and prepare according to the package-style method.
- Top each loaded potato generously with the prepared stuffing.
Finish and Serve
- Bake the loaded potatoes at 425°F (220°C) for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the stuffing is slightly crisp and golden on top.
- Drizzle warm chicken gravy generously over the top of each potato.
- Serve hot and enjoy.
Notes
Jumbo russet potatoes work best for this recipe.
The number of potatoes can be adjusted based on how many servings you need.
Use approximately 2 tablespoons each of butter and sour cream and 1/4 cup shredded chicken per potato.
Bake the assembled potatoes until the stuffing is lightly crisp on top.
The initial baked-potato cooking time was not specified, so the prep, cook, and total time fields have been left blank.
