Jacket Potatoes with Bacon and Sweet Chilli Sauce

My kids love jacket potatoes, and bacon, and sweet corn, and sweet chilli sauce (especially)! Putting them all together makes for an easy and tasty mid-week meal that they can make themselves. Serve with salad.

(Serves 4-6)

Ingredients

• 6 large baking potatoes (I use agria potatoes and buy them still covered in dirt)
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 sticks celery, washed and sliced
• butter
• 3/4 cup canned whole kernel sweet corn, drained
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 cup milk, heated when required
• 1 cup grated tasty cheese
• 300g NZ free-range bacon rashers
• 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
• sweet chilli sauce

Method

1. Scrub potatoes, sprinkle with salt while still wet and transfer to a rack in an oven preheated to 200°C (fanbake). Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or more, turning once or twice, until the skins are nice and crunchy.

2. Put onion and celery in small pan with a large knob of butter and cook gently, covered with a lid, until tender and translucent. Add corn and turn off heat.

3. Put diced tomatoes in a sieve and drain 10 minutes.

4. When potatoes are ready – crackling crisp skins and tender pulp – remove to a board and immediately cut open. Scoop out flesh and put in a bowl. Season with salt, mix in a lump of butter and the hot milk, then the cheese and mix together.

5. Grill bacon until crisp.

6. Pile potato back into skins and put potatoes on a serving platter. Add parsley and tomatoes to onion mixture and spoon over potatoes. Top with crisp rashers of bacon and drizzle with sweet chilli sauce. Serve immediately.