Quick and Easy Air Fryer Roasted Sweet Potatoes with three ingredients in ten minutes. Delicious side dish or topping for salads and tacos!
Whether it's Cherry Tomato Sauce or Roasted Sweet Potatoes, I'm all about using simple ingredients and eliminating unnecessary steps to save time. 😅
I've been making roasted sweet potatoes at least once a year, ever since I discovered a simple oven roasted version in a Cooking Light Cookbook years ago.
But it wasn't until I met the air fryer (yes, I was skeptical at first, lol) that I started making roasted sweet potato chunks more often, simply because air frying is so easy!
And it turns out that when you cut the pieces of sweet potato small enough and cook them just right, they turn a little crispy on the outside and stay soft on the inside. Perfection, if you ask me!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Quick and Easy The key to making air fryer roasted sweet potatoes in less time and with less oil by is cutting them in small chunks and air frying them.
- Simple Ingredients Sweet potatoes, olive oil, and salt. That's it-not kidding!
- Kid-Approved Roasted sweet potatoes have a natural sweetness that taste even better with a hint of salt. Two of my kids like spice, so I sprinkle cayenne on some, but not the rest.
Dietitian Tip
If your kids don't like mashed sweet potatoes, it doesn't mean they won't like these roasted sweet potatoes or sweet potato fries. 😅
Sometimes it's the texture of food, other times the flavor. And, oftentimes, it's repeated exposure to foods that increases acceptance.
Ingredient Notes
- Sweet potatoes A root vegetable that can be found in the produce section of most grocery stores. They typically have an orange flesh and are high in fiber and a variety of vitamins and minerals. Leave the skins on when roasting.
- Olive Oil A little goes a long way when roasting vegetables. I use extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil when making this recipe.
- Salt In my opinion, it's the pinch of salt added that makes these so tasty. Use sea salt or table salt.
Seasoning Ideas
- Cayenne Pepper My personal favorite seasoning combination when making roasted sweet potatoes is salt and a dash of cayenne pepper. They add great flavor to sweet potatoes. Just remember that a little goes a long way, so there is no need to add much more than a dash of cayenne.
- Tajin If you are feeling adventurous, Tajin seasoning can be used in place of cayenne to give the sweet potatoes more of a citrus flavor.
- Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, and Chili Powder This is a popular seasoning combination when roasting sweet potato chunks. I prefer this recipe as is with just salt and pepper, but others love them with more flavor. 😊
How to Make Roasted Sweet Potates in an Air Fryer
Here's a quick overview of the steps to make roasted sweet potatoes in the air fryer. For the full list of ingredients and specific instructions, scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Slice the sweet potatoes, then cut each slice into small rectangular-shaped pieces. The pieces should be about one-half to one inch in length.
- Place sweet potato chunks, a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and pepper in a bowl and toss to coat.
- Spread sweet potatoes out in a single layer on an air fryer rack fit for your air fryer.
- Air fry for eight minutes. Serve and enjoy!
How to Serve Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Roasted sweet potatoes can be served with pretty much anything from burgers and barbeque chicken to salmon, sandwiches, and wraps. In fact, some restaurants have started to offer roasted sweet potatoes as a side in place of French fries - love it!
Here are a few other delicious ways to serve them.
- Tossed in a quinoa or kale salad.
- As a taco or burrito topping.
- Make a grilled wrap with roasted sweet potatoes, black beans, and cheddar cheese.
- Top a hearty Fall salad with roasted sweet potatoes. Roasted sweet potatoes are one of my favorite toppings when I'm in the mood for a hearty salad around the holidays.
Helpful Tips
- Scrub the skins of the sweet potatoes well before cutting them into chunks.
- Use a good quality knife to make it easier to cut through the sweet potato.
- To roast sweet potato wedges, increase the cook time by 2-3 minutes.
- Larger chunks (more than about one-half inch cubes) will take longer to cook.
- Kids are more likely to eat a vegetable that is cut into small pieces.
- The cayenne pepper is optional. Some kids enjoy foods with 'spice', others do not.
- Update: I want to clarify something in response to a comment at the bottom of this post. This air fryer roasted sweet potatoes recipe makes sweet potato chunks as crispy as possible without having to soak them first. To make sweet potatoes with truly crispy edges, you would probably need to soak them in water for about an hour to remove excess starch before air frying them, just like you would do to make crispy sweet potato fries.
- I use a Cuisinart Digital AirFryer Toaster Oven. Different air fryers may require small adjustments in cooking temperature and/or cook time.
- If you do not have an air fryer or you want to make one big batch of roasted sweet potatoes, these sweet potatoes can be roasted in the oven in a single layer on a baking sheet at 425 degrees for about twenty minutes.
Questions You May Have
No, you do not need to soak the sweet potatoes for this recipe. Soaking sweet potatoes is a recommended step when making homemade sweet potato fries, but not when you are roasting small chunks of sweet potatoes in an air fryer (or oven).
Nope! Leaving the skin on when you roast sweet potatoes increases the fiber content, saves prep time, and helps the sweet potato chunks keep their shape.
Once the sweet potato chunks have cooled to room temperature, store them refrigerated in an airtight container.
Leftovers can be enjoyed cold or warm. To reheat leftover roasted sweet potato chunks, place them back in the air fryer at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for two minutes.
More Easy Side Dishes
- Homemade Unsweetened Applesauce
- Easy Roasted Broccoli in Air Fryer
- Easy Air Fryer Tortilla Chips
- Easy Caprese Bruschetta
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 sweet potato One large, sweet potato or two small, sweet potatoes (about two cups when cut into pieces). Scrub well and leave the skins on.
- 2 teaspoon olive oil extra virgin
- 1 pinch salt table salt or sea salt
- 1 dash cayenne pepper optional
Instructions
- Slice sweet potato into one-quarter inch round pieces. Then, cut each slice of sweet potato into small rectangular shaped pieces. See notes.
- Place sweet potato chunks and olive oil in a medium or large bowl and toss to coat.
- Spread sweet potato pieces out in a single layer on the air fryer rack fit for your air fryer.
- Sprinkle salt on top of the sweet potatoes. Can also add a dash of cayenne pepper if you like spice.
- Air fry at 400°F for 8 minutes. Large pieces or sweet potato wedges may take an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Cutting sweet potatoes into small rectangular pieces reduces cooking time and it makes sweet potatoes more appealing to kids. See the step-by-step instructions photo in the recipe post for how I cut sweet potatoes into small pieces.
- As for the cayenne pepper, a little goes a long way. If you or your kids don't like spice, don't add cayenne pepper. I often put cayenne on half and leave the other half simply salted, because one of my kids likes spicey food and the others do not.
- Larger pieces of sweet potato will take longer to cook.
- Narrow sweet potatoes have more skin proportionate to flesh. To ensure a consistency desirable to kids, peel about one-quarter to half of the skin off before slicing.
- Use a good quality knife to make cutting through the sweet potato easier.
- Always follow the manufactures instructions on how to use your air fryer safely.
- I use a Cuisinart Digital AirFryer Toaster Oven. Different air fryers may require small adjustments in temperature and/or cook time.
Mike says
The sweet potato squares were tasty and soft in the inside but not crispy.
Kristi says
Exactly how they should be! Thanks for letting me know!