How to Cook a Sweet Potato in the Oven

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Sweet potatoes can be easily cooked in the oven and enjoyed with a few simple seasonings. To make roasted sweet potato pieces, cut up the potato into cubes first before coating the pieces with oil and seasoning. Then bake the sweet potato pieces until they are crispy, and you will have an easy side-dish that goes well with many different meals! To bake sweet potatoes whole, pierce through the skin several times using a fork. Then bake the sweet potatoes until they are tender, and top them with butter, salt and pepper.

Ingredients

Baking Whole Sweet Potatoes

6 medium sweet potatoes
6 tbsp (85 g) of unsalted butter
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste

Makes 6 servings.

Roasting Sweet Potato Pieces

2 large or 3 small sweet potatoes
2 tsp (9.9 mL) of grapeseed or avocado oil
1 tsp (3.1 g) of garlic powder
1 tsp (5.7 g) of salt
1 tsp (2.3 g) of black pepper

Makes 4 servings.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Baking Whole Sweet Potatoes

1
Preheat the oven to 400 °F (204 °C) on a regular bake setting. Turn the oven on and set it to the required temperature. Many ovens will indicate when the preheating process is done, however if your oven doesn’t, waiting for approximately 15 minutes will do.^{[1]
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2
Scrub and wash the sweet potatoes. Rinse each potato under cool, running water. Scrub away any remaining dirt.^{[2]
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- Keep the skin on the potatoes, as they don’t need to be peeled to be cooked.
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3
Pierce each sweet potato several times with a fork. Push the fork into the sweet potato. Make several incisions along each sweet potato.^{[3]
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- This will help the sweet potato to cook evenly all the way through.
4
Place the sweet potatoes on a lined oven tray. Cover an oven tray with parchment paper, a non-stick baking mat, or foil. Spread the sweet potatoes out on the tray and make sure that they aren’t touching.^{[4]
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- This ensures that all sides of the sweet potatoes cook properly.
5
Bake the sweet potatoes for 45 minutes. Set the oven timer for the required amount of time. Remove the sweet potatoes from the oven when they are tender. Use a fork to check the tenderness.^{[5]
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- Check the sweet potatoes regularly as they get closer to being ready, so that you can take them out of the oven at exactly the right time.
6
Top the sweet potatoes with butter, salt, and pepper. Use a sharp chef’s knife to make a slit down the top of each sweet potato. Place 1 tbsp (14 g) of unsalted butter on each sweet potato. Then season each potato with salt and pepper to taste.^{[6]
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- Try topping the potatoes with shredded cheddar, crumbled feta, chopped fresh basil, sliced red onions, corn, chili, taco meat, or ham pieces just to name a few.^{[7]
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- Cooked whole sweet potatoes can be stored by wrapping each potato individually in foil, and then placing these either into freezer bags or an airtight container.^{[8]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Roasting Sweet Potato Pieces

1
Preheat the oven to 400 °F (204 °C). Turn the oven on and set the temperature. The oven will indicate when it has finished the preheating process.^{[9]
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- If your oven doesn't have an indicator that lets you know when it's ready, letting the oven preheat for approximately 15 minutes will do.
2
Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes. Hold each sweet potato under cool, running water. Use a scrubbing brush to remove any dirt that may remain on the skin.^{[10]
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- Pat the sweet potatoes dry with a paper towel or tea towel once you have washed them.
- You don’t need to peel the sweet potatoes, as they can be cooked and enjoyed with the skin on.
3
Cut the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise. Place the sweet potatoes on a sturdy chopping board. Then use a sharp chef’s knife to slice each sweet potato into half.^{[11]
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- Sharpen your kitchen knives regularly to ensure that they are safe to use.
4
Slice each sweet potato half into 4 long strips. Place the flat side of the sweet potato halves on the chopping board. Carefully slice each half lengthwise into 4 pieces.^{[12]
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- Don’t worry about getting the slices exactly perfect. Estimating will do, and the sweet potato pieces will still cook evenly.
5
Chop each slice into 0.5 in (1.3 cm) cubes. Use a sharp chef’s knife to cut each slice crosswise into cubes. The number of cubes that you get from each slice will depend on the size of the sweet potato.^{[13]
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- Don't worry about making sure that the cubes are all exactly the right size. As long as they roughly match, this means that they will cook evenly.
6
Spread the sweet potato pieces out on a lined oven tray. Cut a sheet of parchment paper that is large enough to fit the oven tray. Scatter the pieces evenly over the tray, and make sure that none are overlapping.^{[14]
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- You can also use either foil or a non-stick baking mat instead if you don’t have parchment paper.
7
Coat the sweet potato pieces with oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Use 2 tsp (9.9 mL) of grapeseed or avocado oil to lightly drizzle over the sweet potato pieces. Then sprinkle 1 tsp (3.1 g) of garlic powder, 1 tsp (5.7 g) of salt, and 1 tsp (2.3 g) of black pepper over the pieces.^{[15]
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- Once you have drizzled oil over the sweet potato pieces and seasoned them, give them a small toss on the tray with a fork or spoon to coat each piece in the oil and seasoning.
- Grapeseed or avocado oil is best to use, as these are able to withstand the high heat that you will be using.
8
Bake the sweet potato pieces at 400 °F (204 °C) for 25-30 minutes. After around 15 minutes, flip the pieces over to make sure that both sides are cooked evenly. When the sweet potato pieces look crispy, this means that they are done and can be removed from the oven.^{[16]
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- Pair your sweet potatoes with dipping sauces like salsa, barbeque sauce, pesto, or ranch sauce to experiment with different flavors.^{[17]
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- You can store any leftover roasted sweet potato pieces in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 12 months.^{[18]
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Community Q&A
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Question

What’s the difference between yams and sweet potatoes?

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Many people use these terms interchangeably, but yams and sweet potatoes are actually distantly related. Yams can grow much larger and have a much thicker skin than true sweet potatoes. They have flesh that is white, yellow, purple, or pink. They are also drier and less sweet than sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes are sweet, moist, and tend to have orange or white flesh.
Question

Are sweet potatoes good for you?

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Sweet potatoes are rich in fiber and a variety of nutrients, such as iron, calcium, selenium, and vitamins B, C, and A. They have lots of antioxidants, which may help reduce your risk of developing cancer and other diseases. However, eating too many of them may cause kidney stones in some people.
Question

Can you eat sweet potato skin?

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Yes, the skin is edible and rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals! Just wash it carefully to get rid of any contaminants, such as dirt, bacteria, and pesticides.