Stuff Baked Potatoes With This Classic Deli Meat To Unlock Gourmet Flavors

When baking a potato, getting the spud right is only half the journey. Everything else that goes on top of it is where the real magic happens. There are seemingly simple ingredients that take this dish from an ordinary side to a bundle of flavors you will want to keep digging your fork into. And that's exactly what happens when you stuff your baked potato with pastrami.

Pastrami is beef that has been brined in aromatics and spices, dry-cured, and smoked, a true delicacy which you may have met countless times before in Reuben sandwiches. Stuffing pastrami into your baked potatoes is an easy-peasy process. Right after you have baked the potatoes and slit them in half, stuff the pastrami into the center. You can pile on other toppings over it, including vegetables and sauces. If you opt for a bit of cheese layered over, give the potato another round in the oven for a quick broil (no more than 5 minutes).

It brings a whole world of flavor complexity to the baked potatoes. The starchy base is invigorated with a few slices of pastrami's rich, savory depth and peppery bite, made all the more intricate by a smoky undertone. These bold flavors smoothly cut through the earthy starch, creating a taste profile that's both harmonious and exciting. As fall rolls around, it's also one of the best ingredients to give your baked potatoes a seasonal twist.

A Reuben sandwich-inspired twist for your loaded baked potatoes makes perfect sense when you've already got the pastrami. All you'd have to do is bring in a handful of sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, pickles, chives, and drizzles of Russian or Thousand Island dressing. Maybe even incorporate some hot sauce into the mix for a subtle heat to spike through all the creamy, savory richness. Much like with the original sandwich, the pastrami is interchangeable with corned beef, or you can even use them both — provided you don't mind the saltiness.

Although slightly unexpected, chili will also make a marvelous addition. Go in with a few spoonfuls of chili, sour cream, and chipotle pepper, then balance it out with sauerkraut or any of your favorite potato vegetable toppings. Alternatively, you can stuff your baked potatoes Italian-style for a gourmet meal. Since you've already got the pastrami, an antipasto spin is just a few other Italian delicacies away, if you include green olives, tapenade, artichoke hearts, and perhaps even an Italian deli meat like salami and pepperoni. Pizza-style baked potatoes, loaded with marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, basil, and of course, the pastrami in lieu of pepperoni, will make for a phenomenal dinner.