Roasted Sweet Potatoes
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Published Nov 11, 2023, Updated Nov 27, 2024
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These roasted sweet potatoes are perfectly tender on the inside with crisp, caramelized edges. They’re delicious and make for an easy side dish that you can pair with just about any meal.
Roasted sweet potatoes are a staple in our household. We have them for dinner often and I’ve been making a batch every week (sometimes twice a week) while doing my meal prep. I’ll have a big pot of quinoa cooking, eggs boiling, these little gems roasting all while chopping veggies for the week. Doing a bit of prep work like this makes tossing together meals throughout the week a breeze and is a total game changer when it comes to healthy eating.
When sweet potatoes are roasted this way they turn out crispy on the outside while soft and pillowy on the inside. If you decide to peel them (like I recommend) they simply melt in your mouth.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy to Make: With just a few simple steps, this recipe is perfect for beginners.
- Versatile: These roasted sweet potatoes can be a side dish or incorporated into various meals.
- Healthy: Packed with essential vitamins and minerals, it’s a nutritious choice.
- Tasty: The caramelization from roasting brings out the natural sweetness of the sweet potatoes.
- Customizable: Feel free to add your favorite herbs and spices to match your taste preference.
- Meal Prep Friendly: Make a big batch and enjoy throughout the week as a time-saver!
Ingredients Needed
- sweet potatoes – two medium-sized sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into even chunks. Make sure the pieces are roughly the same size so they roast evenly.
- avocado or olive oil – this helps the sweet potatoes get crispy and caramelized in the oven. Avocado oil has a higher smoke point, but olive oil works well for flavor too.
- sea salt – enhances the natural sweetness of the sweet potatoes. A little goes a long way.
- ground pepper – adds a subtle spice. Feel free to adjust to your taste.
- optional seasonings – if you’re feeling adventurous, try adding cinnamon for warmth, chili powder for a smoky flavor, or cayenne pepper for a little heat.
Roasted Sweet Potato Variations
You can’t go wrong with the classic oil and sea salt, but sometimes I like to spice it up and add some flavor variations! Here are some ideas:
- fresh herbs like parsley, thyme – I love adding fresh herbs to everything!
- cinnamon + cayenne pepper – sweet, savory and spicy
- cinnamon, salt + maple syrup or honey – sweet and salty
- seasoned salt (like garlic salt!) – adds great flavor
- garlic powder + black pepper – savory with a hint of sweet from the potato
- cumin + chili powder or paprika – another delicious savory option
How to Roast Sweet Potatoes
Step 1: Prep your sweet potatoes by peeling and chopping them into medium-sized chunks. Try to make them around the same size so that they all cook cohesively.
Step 2: Toss your chopped sweet potatoes with oil and salt + pepper in a large bowl to combine.
Step 3: Pour sweet potato cubes onto a baking sheet. You can line the baking sheet with parchment paper for easy clean-up if you want!
Step 4: Bake for 30-45 minutes at 400ºF, tossing once halfway through until sweet potatoes are fork tender. Remove from the oven, taste and season with additional salt if needed.
Brittany’s Tip
In this recipe I recommend peeling the sweet potatoes, but often times I don’t peel them. It just depends on my mood.
How to Eat Roasted Sweet Potatoes
In my opinion, there is no wrong way to eat roasted sweet potatoes. They’re so versatile and work for just about any meal! I personally love having roasted sweet potatoes for breakfast or as a side dish for dinner. Here are some ideas to incorporate roasted sweet potatoes into your routine:
- Served with eggs – you can create a delicious hash with sweet potatoes + eggs or just eat the potatoes on the side like this hormone balancing breakfast bowl.
- As a salad topper – I love adding warm (or cold) roasted sweet potatoes to my salads! I even have a recipe for sweet potato croutons.
- As a snack – sometimes I reheat them in the oven, but I honestly LOVE roasted sweet potatoes cold, straight from the refrigerator.
- In an egg bake or frittata – Throw your prepped sweet potatoes in an egg dish for extra fiber. Try my roasted sweet potato frittata recipe.
- In chip dip – I’ve made this Southwestern chip dip with sweet potatoes and highly recommend it!
- In soup – when in doubt, I add leftover roasted veggies to soup! Here’s a delicious sweet potato soup recipe you could try.
- In a grain bowl – roasted sweet potatoes are delicious added to a grain bowl with rice, quinoa or farro. One of my favorites is this quinoa salad with kale and roasted sweet potatoes. This buddha bowl is also a delicious way to incorporate roasted sweet potatoes.
- In tacos – swap the cauliflower for sweet potatoes in this cauliflower tacos recipe.
How to Store and Reheat
To store leftovers, let the sweet potatoes cool completely and then place in an airtight container. The sweet potatoes will last up to one week in the refrigerator.
Like I mentioned earlier, I like eating my sweet potatoes cold sometimes but you can easily reheat them in a toaster oven, air fryer or traditional conventional oven to maintain crispiness.
Frequently Asked Questions
Many grocery stores use the terms “yam” and “sweet potato” interchangeably, but the two are actually quite different. Real yams have rough brown skin, starchy white flesh and a long, cylinder shape. Sweet potatoes usually have smooth, thin orange skin with orange, white or purple flesh. They’re shorter and wider than yams and have a much sweeter taste. Even if you buy a “yam” at the grocery store you’re more than likely actually buying a sweet potato as yams aren’t widely available at grocery stores throughout the U.S.
When shopping for sweet potatoes, look for firm, unwrinkled skins. Sweet potatoes come in all different colors – creamy white, deep orange and purple. I usually buy Beauregard, Jewel or Garnet sweet potatoes just because those varieties are typically available at my local grocery stores. That said, Beauregard sweet potatoes tend to be stringier so when given the option I go for Jewel or Garnet.
Sweet potatoes are a powerhouse vegetable! They’re packed with fiber and vitamins and minerals such as potassium, calcium, vitamin A and vitamin C. They’re also high in antioxidants which help protect your body against free radical damage.
Studies have shown sweet potatoes positively impact gut, brain, eye and immune health. And some studies have shown that certain antioxidants in sweet potatoes may protect against certain cancers. Bottom line? They’re SO good for you and delicious! Now you have no excuses to not incorporate them into your diet. (Source)
More Sweet Potato Recipes to Try
- Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole
- Roasted Sweet Potato Salad
- Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- Sweet Potato Hummus
- Healthy Sweet Potato Skins
- 5-Ingredient Sweet Potato Curry
- Mashed Sweet Potato
More Roasted Vegetables to Try
- Roasted Root Vegetables
- Roasted Summer Squash and Zucchini
- Roasted Butternut Squash
- Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Roasted Honeynut Squash
- Roasted Kohlrabi
- Easy Oven Roasted Potatoes
- Smashed Potatoes
- Oven Baked Potato
Be sure to check out all of my sweet potato recipes as well as the full collection of side dishes here on EBF!
If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.
Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into even chunks
- 1 – 2 Tablespoons avocado or olive oil
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
- optional seasonings: cinnamon, chili powder, cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Chop sweet potatoes into medium-sized chunks. Not too small, but not too big either. Try to make them around the same size so that they are all done cooking at the same time.
- Place sweet potatoes, oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl and toss to combine. Pour onto a baking sheet and cook for 30-45 minutes, until fork tender, tossing once half-way through. Remove from oven, taste and season with additional salt if needed. Serve warm or store leftovers in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Cut evenly for best results: When chopping the sweet potatoes, try to keep the pieces uniform in size. This ensures they cook evenly and you won’t end up with some pieces undercooked while others are too crispy.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan: Make sure the sweet potatoes are spread out in a single layer on the baking sheet. If they’re too close together, they’ll steam instead of roast, and you won’t get those crispy edges.
- Optional seasoning ideas: Feel free to play around with the seasonings! Cinnamon is great for a sweeter, cozy flavor, while chili powder or cayenne pepper will give the sweet potatoes a nice spicy kick.
- Crispier potatoes tip: For extra crispy sweet potatoes, crank up the oven to 450ºF for the last 5 minutes or so, but keep a close eye on them to prevent burning.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Great recipe! I have tried it and it tastes amazing!
Excellent! I am so glad you gave this recipe a try and are loving it, Jerod. Thanks for your review + star rating I appreciate it!
very nice post thank you
Nice Blog!
Thank you so much!
great work well done
Thanks! I so appreciate the feedback 🙂
Every time I have roasted sweet potatoes in the past, they turned out dry. Not these! They were crispy, yet fluffy, and I love that I can use various seasonings. Thank you for this recipe! It was a hit.
Ahh yay!! So glad you enjoyed this recipe, Larissa. 🙂