Learn how to make Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes with perfect caramelization on the outside and a tender soft inside. The perfect healthy side dish, topping on salads, filling in buddha bowls or stuffed in wraps.

Sweet potatoes are probably one of the most versatile vegetable, especially during the autumn and winter season. They’re delicious in casseroles, mashes, twice baked, soups and stews and are the perfect vehicle to stuff practically anything in. However, they are especially delicious when roasting them to crispy caramelized perfection, which is what todays post is all about.

What You Need

Sweet Potatoes: you can find many varieties of sweet potatoes at your grocery store but my favourite types to roast with todays method are Jewel and Garnet. Choose firm sweet potatoes without growth sprouts or patchy colours on their skin.
Oil: either coconut oil or olive oil.
Corn Starch: my secret weapon for the crispiest roasted sweet potatoes!
Nutritional Yeast OR Coconut Sugar: this also helps with the crispiness of the roasted sweet potatoes while giving it some extra flavour.
Spices: salt, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, etc.

How to Make Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes

How to Cut Sweet Potatoes for Roasting

There are a couple of different ways you could cut your sweet potatoes to roast in the oven such as thin sticks for sweet potatoes fries, roasted sweet potato wedges, roasted sweet potatoes halves or even just a whole roasted sweet potato. Naturally, the bigger the sweet potato cuts the longer time it will need to bake. For this recipe, we’re making roasted sweet potato chunks so the best size I’ve found is cutting them into 1/2 inch cubes.

Peel the Sweet Potato: this is optional, but recommended for best texture and flavour.
Slice off Thinner Ends & Rounded Side: again, optional but I find cutting off one rounded side off makes it easier to slice into rounds in the next step because it stays sturdier on the cutting board.
Cut into Rounds: slice the sweet potato into 1/2 inch thick rounds.
Cut into Cubes: cut each sweet potato round into 1/2 inch equal sized chunks.

So now that we’ve got the most difficult part down, the rest is easy peasy!

How to Roast Sweet Potatoes

Cut the Sweet Potatoes: into 1/2 inch chunks (as instructed above)
Season and Coat: toss the sweet potatoes in oil, corn starch, nutritional yeast and seasonings.
Bake: at 425 degrees fahrenheit, flipping the sweet potatoes every 10 minutes to encourage even cooking and caramelization.

crispy roasted sweet potatoes on a baking tray

Tips for Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Sharpen Your Knife: it’ll make cutting the sweet potatoes much easier and actually less dangerous because you’ll be able to slice through the sweet potato without putting a ton of pressure on it- usually causing knives and hands to slip.
Use a Large Baking Sheet: crowded pans = steaming vegetables = mushy soggy vegetables. Ensure the sweet potatoes have enough room and are not overlapping to encourage crispy caramelization.
Flip Every 12-15 Minutes: Try not to flip too often as that disturbs the caramelization process but you also want to flip them because it encourages even baking.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes FAQ

How to Pick a Good Sweet Potato

Sweet potatoes are available all year around but they are the tastiest in the fall throughout winter. Here are some handy tips to picking out sweet potatoes perfect for roasting:

Choose Orange or Red Skinned Sweet Potatoes: these are perfect for roasting with this method as they’re sweeter and less starchy so won’t dry out. Sometimes these are mislabeled yams.
Check the Skins: choose firm sweet potatoes with smooth skins without any discolourations, wet/soft spots or bruises.

Do you have to boil sweet potatoes before baking?

You can boil your sweet potatoes before baking and it does speed up the baking time… however boiling them also takes some time so why not save yourself some dishes and just throw them all in the oven? 🙂

Do you have to peel sweet potatoes before roasting?

Again, personal preference but I find the texture and flavour for this particular method to be best when the sweet potatoes are peeled.

How to Store Leftover Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Once fully cooled, place in a air tight container covered in the fridge for up to 4 days.

What to Serve Roasted Sweet Potatoes With

Chickpea Sweet Potato Buddha Bowls
Quinoa Salad
Tacos
Burrito Bowls
Salads

If you bake up these perfectly Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment and rating below or by tagging me on Instagram @Okonomikitchen, I love seeing all of your tasty recreations!
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