With the likes of Spud Man and Spud Bros dominating For You pages on TikTok, jacket potatoes seem to be all the rage.

The innocent jacket is a staple in British cuisine and is one of the most popular lunchtime options owing to its simplicity. To the uninitiated, it's just a big spud with some filling, but it's so much more than that.

Comfort foods can evoke feelings of cosiness as they are frequently linked to carefree memories. Take Anton Ego tucking into a bowl of ratatouille for example.

A jacket potato can do just that to a Brit.

Back when we were kids, bangers and mash in front of the telly, vegetable soup whilst off sick from school, a Sunday roast at your nans, or, a baked potato, could make or break your week.

For myself, this cure of nostalgia persisted well into adulthood. I remember being at university in Kent some years ago, 250 miles away from home and having trouble adapting to 'the south' in my first week. Four baked potatoes later, I was at peace with my surroundings (I was asleep and in a food coma).

But what makes "the world's best baked potato"? You ask. Well, you have to go with your favourite topping for one.

According to Good Food.com, these are the top 8 choices:

  1. Vegan chickpea curry jacket potatoes.
  2. Jacket potato with whipped feta & sumac.
  3. Tuna sweet potato jackets.
  4. Mushroom jacket potatoes.
  5. Turkey chilli jacket potatoes.
  6. Jacket potatoes with home-baked beans.
  7. Vegan three-bean chilli with potato jackets.
  8. Sweet potato jacket with pulled pesto chicken.

I'm sorry, but most of those look far too fancy and time-consuming. You're not here for 'woke potatoes', you want the world's best jacket in under 12 minutes. Rule, Britannia!

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The world's best jacket potato:

To start, get yourself a big bag of baking potatoes, because after you try this, you'll wish you made more.

Do not, however, choose the biggest one. If you want this recipe done in around 12 minutes, you'll need an average-sized spud.

Slather it in olive oil and coat it with salt. Chefs started doing this years ago to allow the salt to absorb or draw out the moisture of the potato while baking, which should produce a fluffy potato.

Next, take your Jon Snow spud and stab generously "for The Watch". The old adage of them exploding under the pressure of heat is true. If the heat can't escape, it'll pop, so always prick it with a fork.

This is where we differ from typical recipes. Using the oven is not only expensive but it takes around 1-2 hours. Instead, head on over to the mee-cro-wah-vay and pop it in for 2 minutes.

After that's done, lump it in the air fryer on the highest heat for 8 minutes and prep your filling. When I made mine I had barely anything in the fridge, but this is how I found my favourite combination.

Red Leicester and potato salad. That's it. Carbs upon carbs, treat yourself because it takes minimal effort.

Witney Gazette: The spud should come out crispy.The spud should come out crispy. (Image: Newsquest)

After 8 minutes, take your crispy spud out of the fryer and cut a cross into the potato, only slightly breaching the skin. Then press each sector and you should have a delightful burst of fluffiness. 

Apply as much butter and salt and pepper as you desire, then finish off with your chosen toppings. So cheese and potato salad in my case. I've always found less is more when it comes to a baked potato, I hate seeing them waterlogged and drowning in baked beans. That's just me.

The final step is simple, put it back into the air fryer for 2 minutes to melt the toppings and also give it one final dose of crisping.

Voila, the 12-minute spud. Enjoy.

Before you ask, no, I did not steal the plate from Wetherspoons.