Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potato
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Learn how to bake sweet potatoes in your air fryer in about 30 minutes. I love how perfectly fluffy and tender they turn out every time!
You may already be familiar with my air fryer sweet potato fries, but have you tried using it to bake a whole sweet potato? It tastes like classic oven-baked sweet potatoes. This is because the air fryer uses convection heat, which helps the natural sugars caramelize faster.
I took inspiration from my classic air fryer baked potato recipe, but tweaked it both in cooking time and prep. It really doesn’t need much to make it shine: just salt and either oil or butter. Now, I know not all potatoes are the same, so I tested the cooking time in three different air fryers (I used to have four until my Chefman died) to provide you with accurate cooking times. This has most recently been re-updated to reflect the changes.
They make a fantastic side dish, great for meal prep (my partner and sister both love a cold sweet potato as part of their lunch), or they can be cooked and blended down to use in some baking (hello, sweet potato brownies or chocolate cake).
Table of Contents
Air fryer baked sweet potato recipe highlights
- Quick and easy. Flip, wait, flip, and that’s it! In less than thirty minutes, the potatoes are cooked to golden perfection.
- Healthier. Compared to oil and butter-roasted potatoes, these have a fraction of the calories! Also, sweet potatoes are packed with fiber, vitamins, minerals, slow-releasing carbohydrates, and tons of potassium (source).
- Perfect texture. Crispy skin with a soft and creamy inside.
Key Ingredients
I’m including some notes on the main players. For the full printable recipe, jump to the recipe card below.
- Sweet potatoes. When choosing sweet potatoes, look for ones with firm skin and very few, if any, wrinkles. In terms of types, I’ve successfully made these with orange garnet potatoes, Japanese sweet potatoes, and even Beauregard.
- Olive oil or avocado oil. I tested these with some butter rubbed on them, and preferred the oil. Use the butter as a topping!
- Toppings. Anything and everything. Keep things sweet with cinnamon, maple syrup, and butter, or go the savory route with some sour cream, cheese, black beans, salsa, and chives. Of course, nothing beats a sprinkle of pecans, mini marshmallows, and brown sugar.
How to make baked sweet potatoes in the air fryer
Step 1- Prep work. Start by poking holes in sweet potatoes with a fork. Then, toss them in olive oil, salt, and pepper before air frying.
Step 2- Air fry. Next, put them in the air fryer basket and cook for 18-20 minutes or until they are fork-tender.
Step 3- Slice and serve. Finally, cut in the middle to release some steam. Add some butter and/or your favorite toppings.
Sweet potato size and air frying time
The ideal temperature to bake the sweet potatoes is 400°F (200°C). Cooking time may vary, though, based on how big or small the sweet potatoes are. As mentioned earlier, I tested out a bunch of sizes (weight) in several air fryers so that I can provide an accurate air frying time for them.
- 3-4 ounces: This is my go-to sweet potato size (I get them in big bags at my grocery store). These take around 27-30 minutes, total, to get all caramelized and soft in the middle.
- 4-5 ounces: 30-35 minutes
- 5-6 ounces: 35-40 minutes
- 6-10 ounces: 40-55 minutes
Please note: These times were tested in a Cosori Air Fryer, Ninja Air Fryer, and Phillips XL Air Fryer. Different makes and models will vary.
Five tricks I swear by
This is recipe is almost impossible to mess up, but just in case, I’m covering off on 5 top tips that ensure success from the very get-go:
- Shake the air fryer several times during the cooking process so all sides of the sweet potato are evenly cooked.
- Don’t overcrowd the air fryer. If needed, I suggest air-frying the potatoes in batches.
- You must poke holes in the sweet potatoes to prevent them from bursting in the air fryer (trust me, it isn’t fun!).
- Know when it’s done. Besides using the fork test, when the skin starts to wrinkle and you notice little beads of caramelized sugar appear (no, that’s not water!), that’s when you know it’s ready.
- Don’t wrap the potatoes in foil! Wrapping sweet potatoes in tin foil is a fabulous idea when oven-baking, but they actually don’t work well for the air fryer. It softens the skin, which in turn yields soggy sweet potatoes.
Frequently asked questions
No, there is no need to soak the sweet potatoes before air frying. Firstly, they don’t have the same amount of starch as regular white potatoes do. They are also being kept whole, so there’s no need to crisp up a thin interior. Thirdly, moisture retention matters more than crispiness. If you soak, you risk drawing out some moisture, which will result in dry potatoes.
No air fryer? No problem. You can follow the same process as my stuffed sweet potatoes, which are baked in the oven, or my microwave sweet potato, which cooks in the microwave. Just skip the stuffing step (unless that is what you’d like!).
Diced or cubed sweet potatoes (around 1/2 to 1 inch thick ones) will take around 13-17 minutes to cook in the air fryer. Don’t forget to shake the basket several times, so the sides crisp up nicely.
✅ Nutrition reviewed
Nutrition information has been reviewed by registered dietitian Felicia Newell, MScAHN, RD, CPT.
Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potatoes
Video
Ingredients
- 4 sweet potatoes washed and scrubbed, see notes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper Optional
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400°F (200°C).
- Poke holes in the sweet potatoes, then rub them with olive oil and salt.
- Place them in the air fryer basket and air fry for 28-30 minutes, or do the fork test: insert it into the thickest part and if it slides out easily, it's done. If it isn't, continue air frying in 3 minute increments.
- Let the sweet potatoes sit for 5 minutes, before slicing and serving.
Notes
- Sweet potato cook time: The air frying time is based on a 3 to 4-ounce sweet potato. Please see the body for estimates on different weights.
- TO STORE: Put the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
- TO FREEZE: Place the cooked and cooled potatoes in a ziplock bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- TO REHEAT: Ideally, reheat the sweet potatoes in the air fryer, but they are fine microwaved too.
Nutrition
More air fryer vegetables
- Air fryer brussels sprouts
- Air fryer carrots
- Air fryer cabbage
- Air fryer spaghetti squash
- Air fryer acorn squash
- Air fryer cauliflower
- Air fryer frozen broccoli
- Air fryer frozen green beans
- Air fryer asparagus
- Air fryer zucchini
Originally published September 2022
I am SO glad that I saw your post on air fryer recipes!!! I’ve cooked sweet potatoes in my Ninja air fryer several times! It’s the only way I will continue to cook them. It’s just hubby and I but I’ll usually cook 4 and refrigerate the remaining for later in the week. I’ve also started roasting small red potatoes in the air fryer…so much quicker and easier than heating up the oven! You are my go to for recipes!
I still dont know what did you put that yellow on top. Margarine? Cheese?
This one looks nice. If I make usual potatoes in air fryer, the recipe is similar or something different?
These turned out great! My sweet potatoes were pretty big so it took a bit longer but worked well!!
Sweet potatoes are one of my favourite carb sources. I will make this.
What temp?
I agree thank
You for believing in others and encouraging first time for any person which I believe marks a great teacher and a person who wants any person to succeed which the world needs more people that help the broken people believe that they are capable to do anything nothing is impossible and you do not need experience we learn when we try and try again fear is weak and does nothing good in the world and it prevents people to believe.
What temperature?
200c/400F
great, love sweet potatoes and haven’t yet tried them in an air fryer, thank you