Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Name: Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 lbs sweet potatoes (about 3 large potatoes), cut into ½-inch cubes; 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste; ½ teaspoon garlic powder; ½ teaspoon onion powder; ½ teaspoon paprika; ¼ teaspoon black pepper; 1 tablespoon arrowroot flour, optional for extra crispiness; 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Here’s how to make the best crispy roasted sweet potatoes in under 30 minutes! With my secret ingredient, these sweet potatoes get beautifully crisp right in the oven. The perfect healthy side dish the whole family will love!

A large pile of crispy roasted sweet potatoes on a sheet pan.

If you’ve had one too many soggy sweet potatoes, I feel your pain. We love roasting sweet potatoes around here, but it’s almost impossible to get them to crisp up when roasted without becoming burnt. Until now.

When it comes to the carbohydrate content in potatoes, sweet potatoes contain more sugar and less starch than white potatoes. When heated, starch sort of gels on the surface and creates a crispy outer shell. Sugar, on the other hand, becomes burnt.

To encourage the sweet-tasting tuberous root to form a little crisp around the edges, you just need to add a dusting of starch! My secret ingredient is arrowroot flour, but you can also use cornstarch. Coating the potatoes before you toss them in oil will add the missing starch to the outside. This will in turn create the best crispy roasted sweet potatoes right out of the oven.

Below, I’ve included some of my other tips and tricks for roasting sweet potatoes. Consider this your comprehensive guide to all things cooking sweet potatoes in the oven!

Jump to:

Ingredients Notes

Ingredients for the recipe, including dices sweet potato, oil, and spices.

Sweet potatoes – Any orange variety will work for this recipe. Garnet and Jewel are my favorite for roasting sweet potatoes in the oven.
Sea salt – I like to use an unprocessed sea salt like Real Salt.
Arrowroot flour – The secret to crispy roasted sweet potatoes? Arrowroot flour! You can also swap this for cornstarch. It’s the way to get that perfectly crispy exterior while still remaining tender on the inside.

How to Make Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes

I love how easy it is to make this as a side dish. Just cut, toss, and roast! Here’s how to do it in five easy steps:

Step by step instructions for how to mix the spices and roast the sweet potatoes.

Prep: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Mix: In a small dish, combine the sea salt, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and black pepper.
Coat: Place the potato pieces in a large bowl. Add the arrowroot and toss the potatoes until evenly coated. Add the olive oil and mix until no more starch is visible and the pieces are evenly coated. Add the spice mixture and toss to coat.
Bake: Transfer the sweet potatoes to the prepared baking pans and spread them ½ inch apart. Bake for 25-30 minutes, flipping halfway to ensure the potatoes cook evenly and become crispy.
Serve: Season with an extra pinch of salt if desired. Enjoy!

How to Cut Sweet Potato For Roasting

How to cut sweet potatoes into even cubes.

Cutting the sweet potatoes into equal-sized cubes will help them cook evenly. You do not need to peel potatoes before roasting them as the skin provides good texture. Here’s my easy step by step processes for how to cut sweet potatoes before you cook them:

Clean the potato with a small vegetable scrubbing brush and pat dry.
Lay the whole sweet potato on your cutting board and cut crosswise into large rounds.
Lay one of the rounds flat on your cutting board. Cut the round in half, then cut each half in half again. This will give you four strips. If you have a rather large sweet potato, you can cut additional strips if needed. For the smaller rounds, you may only need to cut in half once, or cut into three strips instead of four.
Cut the strips into cubes. Repeat with remaining rounds.

Recipe FAQs

Should I peel my sweet potatoes before baking?

This is really just a matter of preference, so it’s entirely up to you! Regardless, you do not have to peel sweet potatoes before roasting. Sweet potato skins are perfectly safe to each, and contain fiber, antioxidants, and nutrients. I typically leave the skin on because it adds a nice texture and helps the sweet potatoes get a little extra crispy. It’s also one less steps and much faster!

Do I need to boil sweet potatoes before roasting?

You do not need to worry about boiling sweet potatoes before roasting them. Boiling sweet potatoes is great when you’re making a casserole or filling, or making mashed potatoes. When roasting sweet potatoes, just cut them into even-sized cubes and lay them on a sheet pan. With the right ingredients and exposure to drier heat, you’ll get a nice crispy exterior.

What are the best sweet potatoes for baking?

Sweet potatoes vary in their density, moisture, and sweetness. The best sweet potatoes for baking are the “moist” varieties, including Jewel and Red Garnet. Both varieties cook up tender and sweet, and are widely available at grocery stores. Other varieties, such as Hannah, Japanese, or Purple, are a bit drier and do better with other cooking methods such as boiling.

Super crispy sweet potatoes on a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Tips for the Perfect Crisp

Cut your cubes evenly. Take your time to evenly cut your sweet potato into cubes. If you end up with larger cubes, you’ll have some undercooked and soft potatoes.
Toss in arrowroot or cornstarch. This is the secret ingredient to making the potatoes nice and crispy. It adds a layer of starch, which helps create that irresistible crisp. Make sure to coat your potatoes evenly before adding the oil and spices. When coating the potatoes in oil, stir until you don’t see any more flour.
Use parchment paper. Make sure to line your sheet pan with parchment paper. This will help the sweet potato caramelize and get a nice golden color.
Don’t crowd the pan. Crowding the pan is a one-way ticket to soggy potatoes. The tight squeeze will steam the potatoes instead of letting the exterior crisp up. For that reason, you will need to use two sheet pans for this recipe—one for each pound of sweet potatoes. Make sure they are in an even layer on the sheet pan, too! No overlapping. Every cube should get equal exposure to dry heat.
Give them a flip. The side touching the parchment paper will naturally caramelize better, so give all of the potatoes a 180 degree flip halfway through.
Cook long enough. Resist the urge to bring those sweet potatoes out too early! Typically, you’ll need the full 30 minutes of roasting when it comes to sweet potatoes. Once you pull them out of the oven, let them cool for five minutes or so to let them crisp up.

How to Serve

Add to salads
Toss in burrito bowls or make sweet potato tacos (my fav!)
Serve as a side to burgers or barbecue
Use as a base for main dishes like my egg roll in a bowl instead of rice
Include in breakfast bowls

A bowl of sweet potatoes right out of the oven ready to serve.

Storage, Reheating, and Freezing

TO STORE: Store any leftovers in the fridge in an airtight storage container for up to 5 days.

TO FREEZE: To freeze, let the potatoes come to room temperature, then place them in an airtight storage container or freezer safe zip-top storage bag. It will keep in the freezer up to three months. Let it defrost in the refrigerator before reheating.

TO REHEAT: For the best texture, I recommend reheating sweet potatoes in the oven at 400 until warm, about 10 minutes. You can also reheat it in the microwave in 15-20 second intervals until warm.

More Dinner Recipes

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest!

Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review