Sweet potatoes are often relegated to being a Thanksgiving side dish, but they're so much more. In fact, in addition to being super nutritious, they're also quite versatile. If you're looking for some tasty ideas to incorporate them into your meals year-round, look no further. Here are a few ideas to get your culinary juices flowing. Behold, five surefire ways to whip up tasty taters.
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How to Prepare Sweet Potatoes
The first step to cooking the perfect sweet potatoes is determining how to prepare them. Sweet potatoes can be great for side dishes and quick weeknight meals because they don’t require much prep work. Even if you decide to roast them in the oven, it’s often as simple as cutting them up and placing them on a baking sheet.
How you prepare your sweet potatoes is going to depend on the cooking method you choose. You might choose to peel them or leave the peel on, depending on your preferences and the recipe you’re using. Aside from cutting up your sweet potatoes, the only other preparation needed is usually scrubbing the outside of the potatoes to remove any dirt.
Benefits of Sweet Potatoes
You might be looking for an easy way to cook sweet potatoes simply because you like them. It’s no surprise since sweet potatoes can be pretty delicious! However, sweet potatoes also have a ton of health benefits and can be a nutritious part of any meal. Considering the many nutrients you’ll find in sweet potatoes, they may be beneficial for:
- Gut health
- Brain health
- Inflammation
- Vision health
Sweet potatoes are filled with nutrients such as beta carotene, which is an antioxidant that’s good for your vision, and vitamin A which may help with inflammation in the gut. No matter how you eat them, sweet potatoes offer many nutrients that aren’t found in other vegetables.
How to Roast Sweet Potatoes
Roasting sweet potatoes in the oven is one of the most delicious and simplest ways to cook them. If you cut them up and season them ahead of time, you end up with perfectly cooked sweet potatoes in much less time than it takes to cook them whole.
You can also get the perfect crisp on your sweet potato rounds by roasting them in the oven. Here are the steps to roasting the perfect sweet potatoes:
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F
- Cut up your sweet potatoes into chunks and toss them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and other desired seasonings
- Place them on a baking sheet or roasting pan
- Cook sweet potatoes for 30-35 minutes until they’re tender and golden brown
- Remove sweet potatoes from the oven and allow them to cool
Roasting sweet potatoes is a simple way to cook them and you can experiment with a variety of flavors. You might keep it simple with olive oil, salt, and pepper or you can try a sweeter flavor by drizzling them with maple syrup.
How to Microwave Sweet Potatoes
While microwaving doesn’t always lead to the best texture, if you’re in a pinch, microwaving your sweet potatoes is the quickest way to cook them. Microwaving sweet potatoes makes them perfectly tender and you can cook enough for the whole family in less than 10 minutes.
If you’re craving sweet potatoes but don’t have time to roast them in the oven, follow these steps to microwave your sweet potato:
- Wash the outside of the sweet potato
- Take a fork and pierce the sweet potato several times
- Place the sweet potato on a plate or microwave-safe dish and cook it for 5 minutes, turning it over halfway through
- Remove the sweet potato if it’s tender and can be pierced easily with a fork
- If not, continue to cook your sweet potato for an additional 30 seconds until finished
- Cut the sweet potato and add desired toppings and seasonings
While microwaving sweet potatoes won’t give you the same texture as grilling or roasting them, it is a quick and easy option if you don’t have time to use another method.
How to Grill Sweet Potatoes
While sweet potatoes may not be the first vegetable you think of throwing on the grill, they can be a healthy alternative to some other sides you might see at a barbecue. Also, grilling sweet potatoes can give them a unique flavor.
Here’s the best way to grill sweet potatoes:
- Heat the grill to medium-high heat
- After slicing the potatoes into rounds ¼ to ½ inch thick, season them and toss them in olive oil or another similar type of oil
- Place the sweet potatoes on the grill
- Cook them for 5-7 minutes on each side
- When the sweet potatoes are tender and you can easily pierce them with a fork, remove them from the grill
After grilling your sweet potato rounds, you can serve them as is, add them to a salad, or even serve them as a side with a homemade dressing. The exact amount of time it will take will depend on the type of grill you have, so check them periodically to prevent them from burning.
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How to Boil Sweet Potatoes
There are many ways to cook sweet potatoes, but boiling them is a fool-proof method and is quick enough for busy weeknights or last-minute meals. It’s also a healthy way to avoid any added oils or other unnecessary ingredients.
Here’s the best way to boil sweet potatoes:
- Add water to a large pot and bring it to a boil
- Salt the water to taste
- Add whole sweet potatoes or sweet potato chunks to the pot
- Bring the heat down to medium-high
- Boil sweet potatoes until they are tender and cooked all the way through (about 15-20 minutes for chunks or 40-50 minutes for whole sweet potatoes)
Prior to boiling your sweet potatoes, you can peel them and cut them up or you can throw the whole sweet potatoes in there with the peel on. How you prepare them will depend on what you’re using them for. Keep in mind the cooking time will change based on whether they’re whole or cut in slices.
How to Steam Sweet Potatoes
Steaming sweet potatoes is another easy way to cook them at home. This method is similar to boiling but in this case, the steam actually cooks the sweet potatoes, not the water.
Here’s a simple way to boil sweet potatoes:
- Place about an inch of water in a pan or skillet
- Cut up your sweet potatoes
- Once the water starts to boil, add your sweet potatoes to the pan
- Keep the water boiling and cook them for about 25-30 minutes, until they’re tender
- Once they’re ready, drain and remove them from the pan
If you have a steamer basket, all you have to do is place the sweet potatoes in the steamer basket and add it once the water is boiling. You can also use a metal strainer in place of a steamer basket.
Finding the Perfect Sweet Potato Dish
Sweet potatoes can be a delicious and nutritious vegetable to add to any meal. No matter what’s for dinner, you can add steamed sweet potatoes to a salad or protein bowl, mash them for a sweet side, or even cut them up and make roasted sweet potato fries.
The best thing about sweet potatoes is you can easily add them to any meal if you’re in a pinch, but you can also make a more elaborate sweet potato dish if you have more time. Sweet potatoes are full of nutrients and can be a beneficial part of any meal.