Baked Sweet Potato

Learn how to bake sweet potatoes with these tips & tricks! Enjoy them with butter, salt & pepper, or in one of my favorite baked sweet potato recipes.

Baked Sweet Potato

When the air starts to get crisp in the fall, I start craving two things: a bowl of soup and a big, puffy baked sweet potato. Both are warming, cozy, and healthy. But while making butternut squash soup might be one of my favorite Sunday activities, a baked sweet potato is my weeknight standby. They’re incredibly easy to make, as your oven does 95% of the work. While they bake, you’re free to do as you please! Prep the remaining components of your meal, finish up with the day’s work, or catch up with family or friends. Then, take them out of the oven, top them to your liking, and dig in to a yummy baked sweet potato dinner!

How to bake sweet potatoes

How to Bake Sweet Potatoes

For a long time, I thought I didn’t like sweet potatoes. When I was growing up, I only ever had them in casserole form, smothered in marshmallows and brown sugar. Turns out, I love sweet potatoes, but I have to prepare them the right way! I like mine puffy, with caramelized edges and a crispy skin. Here’s how I make them:

  1. Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
  2. Use a fork to poke holes into the sweet potatoes, and set them on the baking sheet.
  3. Roast for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the skin has puffed up and you can easily pierce them with a fork.

The most important thing to note here is that I DON’T wrap them in foil. If you do, the sweet potato flesh will still cook, but the skin will be very moist and almost slimy. In order to get delectable, puffed up crispy skin and caramelization on the outside of each baked potato, place them onto the baking sheet bare!

If you’re in a hurry, you can also roast sweet potato halves for 30 minutes. Slice the potatoes in half lengthwise, rub them with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook cut-side up until lightly browned and tender.

Baked Sweet Potato

Oven Baked Sweet Potato Recipes

Of course, a perfect baked sweet potato with butter, salt, pepper, and a sprinkle of chives is great, but your options for baked sweet potato recipes don’t end there. To make one into a full meal, I like to stuff it with a flavorful veggie filling and a yummy sauce. Find my 4 favorite fillings for stuffed sweet potatoes here, or click the picture below.

If you’re serving your oven baked sweet potatoes as a side dish, pair them with your favorite protein or vegetarian chili. For a topping, stick to butter, Greek yogurt, or sour cream, or try adding a dollop of cilantro lime dressing, tzatziki, chipotle sauce, pesto, guacamole, or a drizzle of tahini sauce.

If you have leftover baked sweet potatoes, save the soft flesh for another recipe. I blend it into the frosting of my vegan chocolate cake, transform it into a luscious Alfredo sauce, use it to bind quesadillas, or mix it into hummus!

Do you have any favorite baked sweet potato recipes? Let me know in the comments!

Oven baked sweet potatoes

If you love this baked sweet potato recipe…

Try these 4 stuffed sweet potato variations (pictured above), baked sweet potato fries, sweet potato tacos, twice baked sweet potatoes, or this sweet potato casserole next!

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Baked Sweet Potato

rate this recipe:
4.97 from 481 votes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Learn how to bake sweet potatoes with this simple recipe! Serve them as a side dish or stuff them to make them a meal on their own.

Equipment

Ingredients

  • Sweet Potatoes

Topping ideas:

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 425°F and place a piece of foil on a baking sheet. Use a fork to poke holes into the sweet potatoes, set them on the baking sheet, and roast for 40 to 50 minutes, or until puffed up and soft inside when pierced with a fork.
  • Serve with desired toppings.

 

138 comments

4.97 from 481 votes (425 ratings without comment)

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Rate this recipe (after making it)




  1. Lauren
    11.03.2022

    Do I poke holes all around the potato? Or just one side is ok? (and place face up). Thanks!

    • Phoebe Moore
      11.04.2022

      Hi Lauren, you can poke holes all around the potatoes. I hope you enjoy the recipe!

  2. Evelyn
    09.26.2022

    3 stars
    Mine didn’t bake all the way and started turning black on the side it was lying on so then I flipped it but the other side was also black. The finished product wasn’t soft and mushy. I always have trouble baking sweet potatoes perfectly. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      09.27.2022

      Hi Evelyn, it sounds like your sweet potato didn’t bake all the way through. It’s ok if the back starts to get darker, the sugars will caramelize as it bakes. If you have a hard time judging done-ness you could try getting smaller sweet potatoes that would cook quicker. If you feel like they’re actually burning before getting soft, you could check that your oven temperature is accurate to what it’s reading. It could be running hot.

    • Kelly
      10.17.2022

      5 stars
      Hi Evelyn,
      You most likely didn’t do anything wrong.
      Same experience as you, my gas oven is 10 yrs old & has hot spots. Today I baked two larger sized for an hour , rotated them twice. They came out perfectly. Happy baking!

    • Kerry
      10.18.2022

      Try putting a cooling rack on top of the coolie sheet. ?

  3. laura
    09.26.2022

    5 stars
    Delicious! Also love with a squeeze of fresh orange juice, tiny bit of salt/ pepper and fresh rosemary.

  4. Robert Harding
    08.23.2022

    When do I put the brown sugar on my sweet potatos?

  5. Nkosinathi Mvemve
    08.23.2022

    5 stars
    Hassle free, easy to make, delicious. I would recommend it.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      08.26.2022

      I’m glad you enjoyed it!

  6. Colleen
    08.10.2022

    5 stars
    Thank you! I’ve always been intimidated by baking sweet potatoes like this because I thought it would be more complicated. These turned out perfect at 50 minutes. I topped with butter and cinnamon. Yummm!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      08.12.2022

      I’m glad your sweet potatoes were perfect!

  7. Beth
    06.05.2022

    5 stars
    I keep coming back to this! It’s perfect !

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      06.06.2022

      I’m so happy to hear!

  8. Emily
    05.07.2022

    Sweet potato newbie here. Do you have to rotate them part of the way through cooking? Or just leave them alone for the whole 40 to 50 minutes?

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      05.09.2022

      Hi Emily, for baked whole sweet potatoes, you can leave them alone. If I’m roasting them cubed and spread on a baking sheet, I’ll sometimes rotate it if one side is browning before the other.

  9. Amber
    04.28.2022

    1 star
    I had to keep adding time. After 50 minutes the potatoes were still very hard and we just ended up eating them the next day and not with dinner.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.30.2022

      Hi Amber, if your potatoes were larger it’s possible that they can take longer. Every vegetable is different.

  10. Marilyn Poirier
    02.14.2022

    5 stars
    These sweet potatoes were delicious. It was the first time I’ve ever eaten sweet potatoes skins.

  11. Julie Kropp
    01.29.2022

    Do I wash the sweet potatoes first before I bake them?

    • Jay
      01.29.2022

      Always, and remember to dry them also.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      02.01.2022

      yes, I always wash my vegetables.

    • April
      03.09.2022

      I do wash mines early & sit them aside to dry ahead of time

  12. Violet
    01.11.2022

    My sweet potatoes were perfectly cooked! I added a little ghee, almond butter, sliced bananas, and sprinkled chia seeds over it. So good!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      01.12.2022

      yum! I’m so glad you loved the method.

    • Alison
      02.22.2022

      Sliced bananas… I’m going to have to try that!!

  13. Jo Rudd
    01.05.2022

    5 stars
    This yield a perfectly cooked sweet potato! I added cinnamon and it was delicious paired with baked salmon and salad! Thanks so much for this.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      01.05.2022

      I’m so glad your sweet potato was perfect!

  14. Sue
    11.25.2021

    5 stars
    I so agree with you about not liking sweet potatoes with brown sugar and marshmallows! Butter, salt and pepper is all they need to be so yummy! I didn’t know not to wrap my sweet potatoes in aluminum foil. Thank you for stating this!

  15. Tanya
    11.24.2021

    Mmmmmm yes!!!!! So yummy!!!?

  16. Tanya
    11.24.2021

    5 stars
    This was absolutely helpful!!!! Especially when mentioning that you DON’T wrap the potatoes in aluminum foil in order to get the good crispy skins. I was unsure of that and this answered my question. ?

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      11.24.2021

      I’m so glad it was helpful!

  17. Terry
    11.10.2021

    5 stars
    During the depression Granny traded her sugar coupons for other staples. This stuck for generations and we didn’t do sweet tea or sweet potato’s with all the sugar added. My mom added coating the outside of the potato with oil before baking so that the skin is crispy and delicious.
    Love and always have prepared sweet potatoes with butter, salt pepper…..yum!
    It amazes me how sweet potatoes are touted as healthier than other potatos, then cups of sugar are added to recipes.
    Thanks for sharing this recipe.

    • DJ from love%20and%20lemons.com
      06.04.2022

      I have also added the step of coating the sweet potatoes with oil. This is the way I was taught and how I’ve been making them for over 30 years.

  18. Geo
    10.25.2021

    5 stars
    I put on my sweet potato: roasted Brussels sprouts, crumbled feta, toasted slivered almonds, bacon pieces and Craisins. It’s a whole meal. Whenever I serve them everyone wants the recipe.

    • Yvonne
      11.27.2021

      This looks amazing Geo! I’m going to try it next week!

  19. Bob
    09.28.2021

    5 stars
    Try baked sweet potatoes with butter and cinnamon, it’s awesome!

    • Tanya
      11.24.2021

      Mmmmmm yes!!!!! So yummy!!!?

  20. Tammy
    09.14.2021

    I love my sweet potatoes with cinnamon sugar butter, pecans and caramel. Its sooo good

    • RACHEL A LYONS
      11.03.2021

      THAT SOUNDS DELIGHTFUL, I PUT LIGHT BROWN SUGAR IN MINE. IT TASTES LIKE CARMEL.

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Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.