1. Thoroughly scrub the potatoes under running water to get the sand out. Pat them dry with a towel. Be sure to trim away any blemishes you find on the surface.
2. Poke each one at least 4 times in different places with a fork. Then, rub the potatoes generously with a mixture of olive oil, pepper, and salt.
3. Place the potatoes in a pan and microwave for 5 minutes. Then, take the tray out with oven mitts, flip each one, and microwave again for another 5 minutes. When done, they should pierce easily when poked with a fork.  But to be safe, add an extra 1 minute to the cooking time for each side.
4. When they’re done, set down and allow cooling for 2-4 minutes, and serve plain or with your favorite topping. You can also refrigerate the baked potatoes for up to 4 days, and reheat whenever you wish to eat them.

If you need visual directions on this, check out this video on making a baked potato in the microwave.