Baked Sweet Potato
This Baked Sweet Potato recipe will teach you the best tips and tricks for getting perfectly baked sweet potatoes plus I’ve included the best toppings for baked sweet potatoes you won’t want to miss!
Baked sweet potatoes are a perfect side dish for any meal. For more delicious sweet potato recipes, try my Roasted Sweet Potato Quinoa Bowls, Easy Sweet Potato Casserole, and Sweet Potato Hummus.
Why This Recipe Works
- Perfectly baked sweet potato. This baked sweet potato recipe will teach you how to prepare the sweet potatoes and how long to bake them to get the perfect texture and bake.
- Favorite sweet potato toppings. Included in my Recipe Tips section is a list of all my favorite toppings for baked sweet potatoes.
Ingredient Notes
- Sweet Potatoes: You can bake as many as you’d like. Mine were a bout 10-11 oz in size.
- Toppings for Sweet Potatoes: Butter, brown sugar, pecans, honey butter, cinnamon, marshmallows, salt and pepper. See my Recipe Tips section for more toppings for baked sweet potato.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat oven and prep sweet potatoes. Heat oven to 425°F and line a baking tray with parchment paper for easy cleanup. Scrub the sweet potatoes under running water. Dry the skin with a paper towel then poke holes in each sweet potato with a fork, a few on each side.
- Bake. Place potatoes on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a fork slides into the thickest part of the potato with no resistance. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
- Add baked sweet potato toppings. Serve the baked sweet potato fillings either in serving bowls on directly on top of the potatoes. Top with a little brown sugar, butter or honey butter, cinnamon, or marshmallows! Serve warm. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
The trick to knowing how to bake sweet potatoes is simply patience. They do take a while to bake in the oven. However, the good news for you is that you can just plop them in the oven and they can cook while you play with your kids, clean the house or watch an episode of your favorite show. That’s right! They take about 50-60 minutes to bake in the oven, which is the length of one Great British Baking Show episode, so that just seems meant to be. 😂
Medium-sized sweet potatoes are the best as they will become starchier the larger they get. Sweet potatoes with tight skin and few blemishes are the best.
You don’t want to wrap the potato in foil! It makes the skin slimy. But you do want to use a rimmed baking sheet because the potatoes will ooze as they bake.
Don’t forget to poke a few holes in the sweet potato before baking. This simple step allows steam to escape from the potato, which in turn prevents the potato from exploding.
Once the potato is baked, the skin will be a little puffy, meaning it will look like it’s been separated from the inside of the sweet potato.
The baking time will vary slightly depending on the size of the sweet potato. If baking sweet potatoes that are smaller, start checking them around 45 minutes.
Toppings for Baked Sweet Potato
There are so many toppings and ways you can eat a classic sweet potato here are a few ideas:
- Butter, salt and pepper
- Marshmallows
- Brown sugar and cinnamon
- Greek yogurt or dollop of sour cream
- Pecans or any other nut variety
- Egg, bacon, and salsa for a breakfast style sweet potato
- Chili
- Taco ingredients, for a taco stuffed sweet potato
In my family we like to eat our baked sweet potatoes with a little butter (always), brown sugar and a touch of cinnamon. I think it tastes delicious and is the perfect side dish for fall. (But, I confess I love baked sweet potatoes all year long!)
Make Ahead, Storing, and Freezing
You can make baked sweet potatoes ahead of time, but it’s best to serve them warm.
Store extra baked sweet potatoes in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. You can also scrape the flesh (the inside) of the sweet potato out and store that in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. Discard the sweet potato skins.
I wouldn’t freeze whole baked sweet potatoes. However, you can remove the flesh of the sweet potato out of the skins and store that in a freezer safe bag or airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Remove and let thaw in the fridge overnight. Warm in the microwave before eating. Top with your favorite baked sweet potato fillings.
Recipe FAQs
This answer will vary depending on the size of your potato. The larger the potato, the longer it will need to bake, but generally about 50-60 minutes at 425°F, or until a fork can slide through the thickest part of the potato without resistance. Keep in mind, if you’re baking a small sweet potato, you will want to check if they’re done around 45 minutes.
Technically yes, but it’s much better to bake sweet potatoes at high heat.
Medium-sized sweet potatoes are the best as they will become starchier the larger they get. The Spruce Eats says sweet potatoes that have tight skin and don’t look wrinkly are the best.
Sweet potatoes are high in fiber and vitamins and minerals. They are a healthy side dish option, depending on your toppings of choice. 😉 I’ve always been a believer that the more color you can add to your diet the better. These potatoes definitely have a beautiful color!
While you can usually find sweet potatoes at the grocery store year-round, sweet potatoes are in season during the winter months between October and January.
Yes and no. 😂 You have white sweet potatoes and orange sweet potatoes, purple sweet potatoes (yep, you read that right) and yams. They all come from the same family, but there are some differences — mostly in the ways they are used. However, according to Bon Appétit, yams and orange sweet potatoes aren’t different at all!
More Side Dishes
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon
- Sheet Pan Roasted Root Vegetables
- Brown Sugar Roasted Carrots
- Brown Sugar Roasted Carrots
Baked Sweet Potato
Ingredients
- 3 medium/large sweet potatoes - mine were 10-11 oz each. You can bake more than 3 potatoes (I just had 3 on hand).
- brown sugar - optional, for serving
- marshmallows - optional, for serving
- ground cinnamon - optional, for serving
- butter - optional, for serving
- salt and pepper - to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil, for easy clean up.
- Clean the sweet potatoes by scrubbing underneath running water. Dry the skin.
- Poke each sweet potato with the tines of a fork.
- Place on baking sheet and bake for 50-65 minutes or until the thickest part can have a fork inserted with no resistance.
- Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
- Serve with butter, salt and pepper, or marshmallows, or brown sugar and cinnamon.
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