These Broccoli-Cheddar Loaded Baked Potatoes are the PERFECT dinner! Imagine a savory, seasoned baked potato stuffed with chopped broccoli, cheddar cheese, and bacon... then topped off with a beautiful homemade cheese sauce. They look so fancy but are honestly REALLY simple to make - let's get into it!

A hand scooping a bite of broccoli cheddar loaded baked potato, with more loaded potatoes in the background.

Let's be real - my Broccoli Cheddar Loaded Baked Potatoes literally gave me life on a super cold and dreary day.
I had some potatoes in the pantry and thought about how low-maintenance they are - you can just set them in the oven and leave them alone while they bake. Voila, this tasty Fall or Winter dinner recipe was born!

Making Stuffed Potatoes at Home

My Stuffed Loaded Baked Potatoes start out with a simple method of baking the potatoes for 45 minutes until the insides are soft. Then, scoop out the potato mash into a bowl. Add chopped cooked bacon (leave out if vegetarian), chopped broccoli, shredded cheese, and a bit of sour cream & milk; stir it all together with some seasonings.

Stuff your potato filling back into the shells, throw them back in the oven, and quickly make this homemade cheese sauce - which turned out way better and easier than anticipated. I've found that most recipes call for you to shred your own cheese to avoid that clumping that comes from the starch on pre-shredded... However, you can actually do it either way! See below for my method on a perfectly silky smooth homemade cheese sauce.

Pop these babies out of the oven and pour that homemade cheese sauce on top - and you're in heaven. For real. These are so easy but super warm and filling. I've never been that person who would spend money at a restaurant for stuffed potatoes because they're so simple to make - so you definitely have to give this homemade version a try!

Four broccoli cheddar loaded potatoes on a silver baking pan.

How to Make Homemade Cheese Sauce

Let's get into it - this is going to look so fancy once we finish, but it's really super easy. First up: the type of cheese.

I definitely suggest using a cheddar block and shredding yourself (I used a microplane for super fine shreds) if you can get your hands on one. However, I've also made this a quicker way by using the finely-shredded bagged cheese you can find at the grocery store!

We are going to simply heat some milk and our cheese over medium-low heat, stirring continuously. Then as it begins to become a smooth sauce, add in a dash of hot sauce and a couple of shakes of turmeric for a beautiful orange color.

If your cheese sauce is too thin? Add some flour, starting out at one tbsp., and stir really well. If it is too thick for your taste? Add a touch more milk or veggie stock to thin it out. And that's it!