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Roasted Sweet Potatoes
![Roasted Sweet Potatoes](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2023/01/09/multimedia/as-roasted-sweet-potatoes-1-0703/as-roasted-sweet-potatoes-1-0703-articleLarge.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
- Total Time
- 50 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 4small or medium sweet potatoes (8 to 10 ounces each), scrubbed then halved lengthwise
- 2tablespoons neutral oil (such as canola or grapeseed), plus more as needed
- Salt
Preparation
- Step 1
Line a sheet pan with parchment or foil. On the sheet pan, toss the sweet potatoes with oil and a generous pinch of salt. Arrange cut-sides down, place on the middle rack of the oven, and heat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Step 2
Roast, without flipping, until the cut sides are sticky and a knife inserted slides through easily, 30 to 45 minutes. Caramelization on the cut sides will vary depending on your oven and type of sweet potatoes: To brown further, warm a drizzle of oil in a skillet over medium heat; add the potatoes cut-sides down and sear until as browned as you’d like.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
Sweet potatoes can be hard to cut -- I put them in the microwave for a few minutes to soften them slightly. Then cut, brush the cut sides with olive oil using a pastry brush, face down on parchment paper and then into the oven. Mine take about 25 minutes.
They are sweet potatoes, which are tubers like potatoes. Yams are roots and they are an entirely different plant--they are not actually sweet. Real yams are not generally available in the U.S.--they are native to parts of Africa. Canned "yams" are mislabeled--they are sweet potatoes. It was a strange marketing ploy years ago to call them yams instead of sweet potatoes.
Best sweet potatoes are garnets or jewels.
My favorite variety is the Japanese sweet potatoes which has a purplish skin and a white inside. It’s a bit starchier than garnet. (Hannah sweet potatoes are also great.) I prefer them oven roasted for the carmelization and when I have time, I cube them and toss with olive oil / grape seed oil, salt, pepper and cinnamon. We love them and my son often asks for them this way. You can add roasted walnuts and a drizzle of maple syrup for extra yum.
I like to string 2-3 whole sweet potatoes on a metal skewer and roast them vertically in the wood stove, with the same caramelization one would get from an oven but mixed with a slightly smoky flavor.
I add a sprig of fresh rosemary under each cut half. It adds a wonderful aroma while roasting.
I’ve started with an already 425 oven and gotten toasty results, but tried this way today with my Japanese all purples which are more starchy. Yum! Resulted in deliciously creamy and carmelized potatoes. Thanks!
These were great! Each potato had lacy, crunchy sugar bits at the bottom, which I haven’t seen with sweet potatoes before.
Brett, I’m pretty sure those temps refer to internal temp of the food, as measured during the baking process.
Unlike a potato (edible tubers of the nightshade family), the sweet “potato” is a large edible root within the morning glory family. They’re also different from yams, which are edible tubers within the lily family and native to Africa and Asia. Chances are the “yams” found in your local supermarket are actually a variety of sweet potato. True yams are distinguishable by their blackish/brown, bark-like skin and white or purple-toned flesh. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/food-feature
Popped one large sweet potato, halved, into the air fryer and a short time later had a delicious ’meal’. Leftovers chopped up with a bit of oil and ground garlic & sea salt. Warmed in the air fryer - easy and tasty! Yummy!!
Wonderful recipe.
Really good - very sweet, perfectly baked and everyone enjoyed.
Followed the recipe. It was so easy. I used locally grown sweet potatoes that caramelized beautifully.
1. I turn them over, "smoosh" them together a little and sprinkle with brown sugar, then add a pat of butter and return to the oven for a little bit. (I know -- I know - - they're already sweet but a little sugar makes them dynamite. 2. FORGET the variant they call "Asian White" or similar names. They border on being a regular potato.
Good but I burned them before they caramelized. Watch them!
Honestly the best way to do sweet potatoes. So simple, but always wows the crowd. Caramelized and crispy!
Love this!
Good & easy. Don’t need butter, they’re so rich and creamy.
Brilliant
I didn't think the bother of cutting them in half raw would be worth it, but it was. Thanks Ali.
I brushed with olive oil and a slight touch of hoisin sauce.
Wonderful easy recipe. I used Koimo sweet potatoes which are asian, white and firmer than regular than orange sweet potatoes. The cut surface caramelized beautifully and the inside was firm and creamy. Started with a cold oven and baked for closer to 50 minutes.
I often roast sweet potatoes at 400+ in only about 25 -30 minutes.
I cook my sweet potato in Coconut Oil it's delicious twist.
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