A perfectly Baked Sweet Potato is easier than you think! Learn how to bake sweet potatoes quickly and easily with my foolproof method! Sweet and fluffy on the inside with a delightfully crispy skin, these baked sweet potatoes make the perfect side dish for every occasion. Go sweet OR savory – your choice! Looking for more tasty side dishes? Make sure to try my famous Cranberry Sauce and  Twice Baked Potato Casserole!
Baked Sweet Potato
If there ever was a perfect side dish to any and every meal, the baked sweet potato would have to be it. Unlike a traditional baked potato, the sweet potato has the option of going sweet or savory (more on that below), packs a ton of vitamins and nutrition, and is arguably the most kid-friendly vegetable on the planet.
Whether you’re serving this up with your Thanksgiving feast, or simply tonight’s ordinary dinner, you’ve just got to love a baked sweet potato.
How To Bake Sweet Potatoes
This easy baked sweet potato recipe is my very favorite way to enjoy this kid-friendly vegetable. Whether you take them the savory route with a sprinkle of salt and pepper and a slice of butter OR go the sweet route and top them with a little brown sugar and cinnamon AND of course a little butter, you really can’t go wrong.
Baking sweet potatoes is incredibly easy but each step is important, so don’t skip!
- Wash AND dry the sweet potatoes. Drying is super important because we want the skin to crisp up nicely during baking. Can you eat sweet potato skin? YES! And it’s super good for you. Can dogs eat sweet potato skin? YES! So even if you don’t finish your potato, you can give the leftovers to your pup, if that’s your kind of thing.
- Poke holes all over the sweet potato. I do 4 fork pricks up one side, flip the sweet potato over, and do it again. So 8 pricks total.
- Drizzle the sweet potatoes with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt or kosher salt.
- Give the potatoes a good rub making sure the entire surface is covered with oil and seasoned properly. (I don’t use pepper on the outside of my potato because if my sweet tooth kicks in and I decided to cover and smother the sweet potatoes with brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon, I’m in a pickle.)
- Bake the potatoes on a baking sheet. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or foil to avoid the clean up. Sweet potatoes make a MESS. No joke. See the pictures below if you doubt me.
- Serve and enjoy!
How Can You Tell When a Sweet Potato Is Done?
Sweet potatoes cannot keep a secret. When they’re done, the whole world will know it.
They start to ooze out their sweet caramelized juice, wrinkle up a bit, and if you want to for sure make sure, just stab one with a fork or knife. The knife should slide in easily when a sweet potato is fully cooked.
How Long To Bake Sweet Potatoes?
How long do you bake sweet potatoes? It depends on two factors:
- the size of your sweet potato
- and oven temperature
I like to bake my sweet potatoes at 400F for about 45 minutes.
The range tends to be between 40 minutes and 1 hour depending on the size of the sweet potato.
I really do try to make sure all of my potatoes are roughly the same size and shape when making oven baked sweet potatoes. This means they will all get done at the same time and we can eat dinner together – winning!
How To Bake Sweet Potatoes In Foil
There is only one distinct difference between this baked sweet potato recipe with and without foil – the skin.
The skin tends to not crisp up when it’s wrapped in foil. The rest of the process remains the same though. Just wrap the sweet potatoes in foil before placing in the oven. You will still want to use a baking sheet because the juices tend to find their way out of the foil.
A baked sweet potato microwave style?
- Yes, this too can be done.
- Wash and dry the sweet potatoes
- Pierce several times with a fork
- Wrap in a damp paper towel
- Microwave on high for 5 to 10 minutes on a microwave safe plate (flip potatoes halfway through)
Tips and Trick for the Best Sweet Potatoes
- Choose sweet potatoes that are roughly the same size and shape so cooking time will be the same.
- Line your baking sheet with parchment paper or foil for easy clean up.
- Let potatoes cool for about 5 minutes before serving.
- Baked sweet potato calories? 143. So feel free to load these babies UP!
- Top with butter, salt and pepper or sour cream and chives for a savory sweet potato.
- Top with butter, brown sugar, and a sprinkle of cinnamon for a lovely sweet version.
What To Serve with Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Delicious Turkey Meatballs
- Crockpot Turkey Breast
- Stuffing Recipe with Sausage Cranberries and Apples
- The BEST Dinner Rolls
- Nana’s Famous Green Bean Recipe
How To Make Baked Sweet Potatoes
Baked Sweet Potato (How To Bake Sweet Potatoes)
Ingredients
- 4 sweet potatoes medium size, long and thin
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp sea salt or kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Set aside.
- Wash and thoroughly dry sweet potatoes. Poke several holes in each potato with a fork - I do 8 pokes.
- Drizzle sweet potatoes with olive oil and sprinkle on salt. Gently rub the olive oil and salt onto the sweet potato skin making sure to cover the entire potato.
- Place sweet potatoes on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes or until the potatoes easily yield to an inserted fork or knife.
- Let cool for five minutes before splitting open and topping with your favorite toppings.
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Ivory says
Amazing. I grew up eating these yummy gift from God potatoes. We ate them all kinds of ways. Everyone in our family loved eating them. Thanks for sharing
Tonda Wyant says
Whenever I’m not in a hurry, my family agrees that Sweet Potatoes and Russet Potatoes are absolutely delicious prepared in a crockpot! I rub them with oil, wrap them in foil, and puncture them with a fork. Depending on the size, cook for 4 -6 hours. They turn out as fluffy as a cloud!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
So yummy this way!
Patricia Neville says
I tried cooking two same sized sweet potatoes in the microwave. The were delicious except that all the ends were hardened and inedible. Any suggestions?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
That would be because that is the smallest part of the sweet potato and it overcooks in the microwave.
Angela says
Sweet Potatoes are super healthy & SO delicious! I scrub mine clean, dry them well with paper towels & let then air dry. I then ‘lightly’ spray them w/butter flavored cooking spray & sprikle ’em ‘lightly’ all over w/Kosher Salt. The skin comes out nice & crispy, just the way we like. YES, DO eat the skin, since a huge amount of vitamins are contained in the skin of ALL vegetables (& also in the skin of fruits). Any way you choose to top your Sweet Potatoes, they’ll be delicious!
J says
Thanks for commenting on the skin——I eat potatoes skin—Have always wondered about sweet potatoes
K Ann Guinn says
So simple and so good! I love the idea of using either sweet or savory toppings. I tried the sour cream and chives topping and it was great (even better because I used fresh chives from my herb garden and plain Greek yogurt for the sour cream; next time I’ll use my homemade yogurt, too). Thanks for sharing this great cooking technique.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I have chives in my garden too! They are so delicious with sweet potatoes for sure!
Kaye Wellman says
Butter and lime zest with a squeeze of lime juice
Yum!
Bonnie says
Talk about perfect! Instructions very easy to follow, too. I have always wanted to know how to get one baked like the steak houses do it and now I know how! I used olive oil, sea salt, and pepper and rubbed them down good. I also did the 8 pris and then decided since mine ws so large, I pricked mine a few more times. 400 degrees for 45 minutes was spot on. I also was abe to eat the skin which was yummy. I always eat the skin on a white potato but now I know how to bake a sweet potato so I can eat the skin on it.
Thanks so much!
Bonnie
Carla says
Thank you!!!!!!
K Kiernan says
Dear Pinhead,….I mean Trish
If I’m looking up a simple recipe to bake Sweet Potatoes what makes you think it’s more important for me to know that you like to put brown sugar on your potato skins than to know what temperature to bake them at? If I’m looking for a friend to discuss favorite foods, the joys of brown sugar,….etc I’ll talk to my husband. The man can cook like a house on fire. In fact, he could prepare a meal over the flames of the aforementioned home that would make Wolfgang Puck weep with joy. But, at 3am when he’s fast asleep, I’m not about to wake him up to ask a simple question. That’s why I have you. So maybe in future you could put the oven temperature at the beginning of a recipe so we can preheat the oven whilst stabbing innocent sweet potatoes into submission. Just a suggestion.
Have a lovely day,
Karen
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
It’s literally the first line in the recipe card instructions Karen. Have a lovely day Karen.
Julie says
Are you kidding me?? This is not a recipe! It’s ridiculous most people know how to bake a freaking baked potato whether it’s sweet or a russet! Don’t waste our time just to get validation for your site on Pinterest.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Validation for my site on Pinterest? Not even sure what that means lol. Also Julie, not everyone does know how to do that as evidenced by the millions of people searching for that type of recipe. Not even sure how you ended up here since you clearly don’t need the recipe… Have a great day!
Seasons01 says
Nummy!!
Butter, brown sugar, and a little salt. Love it!
Dianne Mari says
I love potatoes and I’d love to try this recipe………..
great idea….
Connor Hobart says
So simple and easy, yet really tasty and nutritious. Thanks for the helpful recipe!
Alexis says
Hi,
Just want to ask, if my oven’s temperature is only until 250 degrees, how long should I cook the sweet potato?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Are you sure? Fahrenheit? If it is, I guess just cook until tender!
Sydney says
Perfectly baked sweet potatoes! I use this method with russets and sweet potatoes alike, it’s hard to mess it up! I’m baking some sweet potatoes for my boyfriend as I type this, I’ll be putting some brown sugar, butter and cinnamon on them and we’ll have them for dinner. Feels a bit like having dessert for dinner but I love that sweet potatoes are so good for you!