Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss Navigator

Creamy, Cheesy Twice Baked Potatoes Cooked on the Pit Boss

Looking for the ultimate potato side dish to serve alongside your favorite backyard barbecue meals? These Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss Navigator are loaded with bacon, sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, and buttery potato filling, then finished with a second trip to the grill until golden brown and irresistible.

The Best Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss

There are some recipes that quietly sit on the side of the plate, and there are others that completely steal the show. These Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss definitely fall into the second category. While they are technically a side dish, they often become the first thing people reach for when dinner hits the table.

Living in Colorado, we cook outside year-round. Whether it’s the middle of summer or a snowy weekend, the Pit Boss Navigator gets plenty of use in our backyard. One thing I’ve learned through years of grilling and smoking is that potatoes love the pellet grill. The combination of dry heat, consistent temperatures, and a touch of wood-fired flavor creates potatoes with crispy skins and fluffy interiors every time.

As a busy teacher and dad of twins, I’m always looking for recipes that feel special without requiring complicated ingredients or techniques. These potatoes check every box. They’re affordable, easy to prepare, and can be made ahead of time if needed.

The best part is that they pair with almost everything. Serve them with grilled steaks, burgers, chicken, pork chops, brisket, tri-tip, or even a simple weeknight protein and you’ve got a complete meal.

When we made these recently, the creamy filling, crispy potato skins, smoky bacon, and sharp cheddar cheese made them an instant favorite. They’re rich, comforting, and exactly the kind of food people remember.

Why You’ll Love These Twice Baked Potatoes

Restaurant Quality at Home

Twice-baked potatoes are a steakhouse classic for a reason. They deliver incredible flavor and texture while still using simple ingredients most people already have in their kitchen.

Perfect for Entertaining

These potatoes can be assembled ahead of time and finished on the grill right before serving. That makes them ideal for cookouts, holidays, and family gatherings.

Great Use of the Pit Boss Navigator

The Pit Boss Navigator maintains consistent temperatures that help create fluffy potato interiors and crispy skins. Using the grill also frees up valuable oven space when you’re cooking multiple dishes.

Easy to Customize

Add different cheeses, swap seasonings, include extra bacon, or top them however you like. Once you understand the basic process, the possibilities are endless.

What Makes Twice Baked Potatoes Different?

If you’ve never made twice-baked potatoes before, they’re exactly what they sound like.

First, whole potatoes are baked until perfectly tender. Then the potato flesh is removed, mixed with butter, cheese, sour cream, seasonings, and other ingredients. The filling is returned to the potato skins before being baked a second time.

That second bake is what transforms them from a simple baked potato into something much more special.

The filling becomes creamy and rich while the tops develop a beautiful golden crust. The skins stay slightly crisp and sturdy enough to hold all that delicious filling.

It’s the best of both worlds.

Why Cooking Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss Works So Well

Consistent Heat

One of the biggest advantages of using a pellet grill is temperature consistency. The Pit Boss Navigator maintains steady heat throughout the cook, which helps the potatoes cook evenly.

Crispy Potato Skins

The dry circulating heat inside the grill helps create potato skins that are pleasantly crisp without becoming tough.

Light Wood-Fired Flavor

While potatoes won’t absorb as much smoke as meat, they still pick up subtle wood-fired notes that enhance the overall flavor.

Keeps the Kitchen Cool

During the summer, I prefer cooking outside whenever possible. Using the Pit Boss keeps heat out of the kitchen and lets me focus on enjoying time outdoors with the family.

Ingredients for Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss

This recipe uses straightforward ingredients that work together to create incredible flavor.

Main Ingredients

• 8 large russet potatoes
• 8 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced
• Pit Boss Cowboy Butter seasoning
• My Garlic Junkie Seasoning
• Kosher salt
• Neutral oil

Optional Garnishes

• Additional sour cream
• Extra bacon
• Green onions
• More shredded cheddar cheese

Choosing the Best Potatoes

Russet potatoes are the clear winner for this recipe.

Their high starch content creates fluffy interiors that mash beautifully and absorb butter, cheese, and cream without becoming gummy.

Look for potatoes that:

• Are similar in size
• Have firm skins
• Have no green spots
• Feel heavy for their size

Choosing potatoes of similar size helps ensure they finish cooking at the same time.

Equipment Needed

One of the things I love about this recipe is how little equipment it requires.

Recommended Equipment

• Pit Boss Navigator Pellet Grill
• Thermapen or instant-read thermometer
• Large mixing bowl
• Potato masher
• Sharp knife
• Spoon
• Sheet pan
• Cooling rack

The thermometer is especially important because temperature is the secret to perfectly cooked potatoes.

The Secret: Cook to Temperature, Not Time

Many baked potato recipes rely entirely on cooking time. I don’t.

Instead, I cook potatoes until they reach an internal temperature of 205°F to 210°F.

When potatoes reach this range, the starches fully break down and become incredibly fluffy and creamy.

During this cook, we checked the potatoes using a Thermapen and found them right around 202°F. A few more minutes on the grill brought them into the ideal range.

This simple step eliminates the guesswork and delivers perfect results every time.

How to Make Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss

Step 1: Prepare the Potatoes

Wash and dry the potatoes thoroughly. Lightly coat them with neutral oil and sprinkle generously with kosher salt. The oil helps crisp the skins while the salt adds flavor and texture.

Step 2: Preheat the Pit Boss

Set your Pit Boss Navigator to 400°F. Allow it to fully preheat before adding the potatoes.

Step 3: Bake the Potatoes

Place the potatoes directly on the grill grates. Cook until they reach an internal temperature between 205°F and 210°F. Depending on size, this usually takes about an hour.

Step 4: Prepare the Potato Shells

Remove the potatoes from the grill and allow them to cool slightly. Slice each potato lengthwise. Carefully scoop out most of the interior while leaving enough potato attached to the skin to maintain structure. Place the potato flesh in a large mixing bowl. Reserve the skins.

Step 5: Build the Filling

Add:

• Butter
• Sour cream
• Cowboy Butter seasoning
• Garlic Junkie
• Bacon
• Some of the cheddar cheese
• Heavy cream

Mash everything together until smooth and creamy. Add heavy cream gradually until the filling reaches your desired consistency.

Step 6: Restuff the Potatoes

Fill each potato shell generously with the mixture. Don’t be afraid to mound the filling slightly above the skin. That’s part of what makes twice baked potatoes so impressive.

Step 7: Add Cheese

Top each potato with shredded sharp cheddar cheese. The Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar used in this cook provides outstanding flavor and melts beautifully.

Step 8: Return to the Grill

Place the stuffed potatoes back onto the Pit Boss. Cook until the cheese melts and begins turning golden brown.

Step 9: Garnish and Serve

Finish each potato with:

• Sour cream
• Green onions
• Additional bacon if desired

Serve immediately.

Why Pit Boss Cowboy Butter Seasoning Works So Well

Instead of relying solely on salt and pepper, we used Pit Boss Cowboy Butter seasoning in the filling.

This seasoning adds:

• Butter flavor
• Garlic
• Herbs
• Mild spice
• Savory depth

It transforms the filling from ordinary mashed potatoes into something much more memorable.

Combined with cheddar cheese and bacon, it creates a rich, savory flavor profile that works perfectly in this recipe.

Tips for the Creamiest Filling

Don’t Skimp on Butter

Butter provides richness and helps create a smooth texture.

Use Warm Ingredients

Room temperature sour cream and melted butter blend more easily into the potatoes.

Add Cream Slowly

Heavy cream should be added gradually. It’s easy to add more but impossible to remove once added.

Avoid Overmixing

Mix until smooth but don’t aggressively whip the potatoes. Overmixing can make potatoes gluey.

Make-Ahead Instructions

One of the biggest advantages of this recipe is that it can be prepared ahead.

You can:

1. Bake the potatoes.
2. Prepare the filling.
3. Stuff the potatoes.
4. Refrigerate for up to 24 hours.

When ready to serve, simply top with cheese and finish on the Pit Boss.

This makes them ideal for holidays and parties.

Serving Suggestions

These potatoes pair beautifully with:

Beef

• Reverse seared ribeye
• Tri-tip
• Tenderloin
• Burgers
• Brisket

Pork

• Pork chops
• Pulled pork
• Pork tenderloin
• Baby back ribs

Chicken

• Beer can chicken
• Smoked chicken thighs
• Grilled chicken breasts

Seafood

• Cedar plank salmon
• Grilled shrimp
• Lobster tails

Other Side Dish Inspiration

Here are some other side dish recipes to add to your summer BBQ rotation:

• Wood Fired Brussels Sprouts
• Cheesy Garlic Junkie Bread
• Scalloped Potatoes
• Korean Corn Cheese
• Blistered Shishitos

And some variations to suggest for these twice baked potatoes:

• Loaded BBQ potato: add pulled pork and BBQ sauce
• Jalapeno Popper: mix in diced jalapenos and cream cheese
• Southwest Style: add pepper jack cheese and green chiles
• Buffalo Chicken: add shredded chicken and buffalo sauce
• Brisket Twice Bakes: top with chopped brisket, BBQ sauce and extra cheese

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Thoughts

Sometimes the simplest recipes end up becoming family favorites, and that’s exactly what happened with these Twice Baked Potatoes on the Pit Boss Navigator.

They’re creamy, cheesy, loaded with bacon, and packed with flavor from the Cowboy Butter seasoning. Cooking them on the Pit Boss gives you perfectly baked potatoes with crisp skins and fluffy interiors every time. Using an internal temperature target of 205°F to 210°F removes the guesswork and guarantees success.

Whether you’re serving them with a weeknight steak dinner, bringing them to a cookout, or making them for a holiday meal, these potatoes always disappear fast.

Give them a try on your Pit Boss Navigator and let me know what toppings and variations your family comes up with. If you’re anything like us, they’ll quickly become a regular part of your backyard cooking rotation.