Baked Sweet Potato
A perfectly Baked Sweet Potato is a real treat. Naturally sweet, creamy, and ready for your favorite toppings, these baked sweet potatoes are one of our favorite sweet potato recipes. Enjoy them as a side dish or main course!
Every time I bake sweet potatoes, I wonder why I don’t make them more often. They are so delicious on their own, that they almost need no adornment. But with a pat of butter, a sprinkle of sea salt, and a smidge of pure maple syrup or brown sugar, a baked sweet potato is pure heaven.
Baking sweet potatoes in the oven brings out their natural sweetness and develops the most irresistible oven-roasted caramelized flavor. I love to serve them as a healthy side dish, alongside Baked Salmon or Air Fryer Chicken Breast.
These baked sweet potatoes are also delicious stuffed with toppings, for an easy lunch or dinner. You can even use this sweet potato recipe to make a Sweet Potato Casserole or mashed sweet potatoes. Below you’ll find more ideas for ways to serve your baked sweet potatoes.
How to Bake Sweet Potatoes
Baking sweet potatoes in the oven is easy just like baked potatoes. To get started, preheat your oven to 425° F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Scrub the sweet potatoes under cool running water and pat them dry with a clean kitchen towel. Place the sweet potatoes on the baking sheet. Poke the top of each potato with a fork.
Bake the sweet potatoes until they are tender when pierced with a fork or knife. Then serve and enjoy!
How Long to Bake Sweet Potatoes
The cook time for a baked sweet potato depends on its size:
- Small Sweet Potatoes: 30-40 minutes at 425° F.
- Medium Sweet Potatoes: 40-50 minutes at 425° F.
- Large Sweet Potatoes: 50-60 minutes at 425° F.
I recommend that you start checking on your sweet potatoes after they have been in the oven for 30 or 40 minutes, depending on how big they are. Use a fork or knife to poke the potatoes to see if they are tender.
Baked Sweet Potato Recipe Tips
While this sweet potato recipe is super simple, I’ve learned a few tricks for making sure that your sweet potatoes come out perfect every time.
- Don’t wrap the sweet potatoes in foil. Wrapping the potatoes in foil is not necessary to help them cook, and it will cause the skins to become unpleasantly soggy. Without foil, the skins can crisp up in the oven.
- Line the baking sheet with parchment paper for easy clean up. Nobody wants to spend their time scrubbing burnt sweet potato juices off of a baking sheet!
- For the best baked sweet potatoes, cook them until they are very tender. When you poke the potatoes with a fork, they should feel very soft. They will have the best soft, creamy texture inside!
- If you want the potato skins extra crispy, you can place the potatoes under the broiler for a few minutes after they are cooked through. Just be sure to remove the parchment paper from the pan so that it doesn’t burn.
Ways to Serve Them
Most often, I serve baked sweet potatoes with a bit of butter, sea salt or kosher salt and black pepper. You can also add a sprinkle of brown sugar or a drizzle of maple syrup for extra sweetness. If you haven’t tried sweet potatoes with cinnamon and a spoonful of Honey Butter, it is truly delightful!
- Side Dish: A baked sweet potato is the perfect side dish for many meals, including Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin, Air Fryer Salmon, Baked Pork Chops and Baked Chicken Thighs.
- Main Dish: Stuffed sweet potatoes make a nutritious, easy meal. Try stuffing them with black beans, salsa or guacamole, and Greek yogurt or sour cream. Or enjoy them topped with Instant Pot Pulled Pork, Carnitas or Crockpot BBQ Chicken.
More Sweet Potato Recipes
Looking for more sweet potato recipes? Here are a few of our favorites!
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
- Sweet Potato Chili
- Vegetarian Enchiladas
- Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes
- Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potato
Baked Sweet Potato
Ingredients
- 4 sweet potatoes
For Serving (Optional)
- butter, salt and pepper
- pure maple syrup or brown sugar
- honey butter
- salsa
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425° F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Scrub sweet potatoes and pat them dry. Place potatoes on the prepared baking sheet. Use a fork to poke a few holes in the top of each sweet potato.
- Bake sweet potatoes until very tender when pierced with a fork: 30-40 minutes for small sweet potatoes, 40-50 minutes for medium sweet potatoes, and 50-60 minutes for large sweet potatoes.
- Cut in half and serve as is, or add toppings as desired, such as butter, salt and pepper, a drizzle of maple syrup, a sprinkle of brown sugar, or use in your favorite sweet potato recipes.
Notes
- This method may be used to cook more or less sweet potatoes.
- Optional: To make the skins extra crispy, you can place the sweet potatoes under the broiler for a few minutes after baking. Remove the parchment paper before broiling so that it doesn't burn.
Can the sweet potatoes be made ahead and then reheated for the meal?
Yes, they can. The skin will soften up if made ahead. I recommend storing them in an airtight container in the fridge with a paper towel underneath to absorb extra moisture.