These Air Fryer Roasted Sweet Potatoes are truly the greatest way to cook sweet potatoes. They’re boiled before being air fried so they’re silky smooth and tender inside and beautifully seasoned and charred on the outside!
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I’m not going to sit here and tell you that these are super crispy roasted sweet potatoes. Unlike regular roast potatoes, whether they’re cooked in the oven or air fried, sweet potatoes simply do not lend themselves to crisping. So instead of trying to make them be something they’re not, lets embrace what they are.
You might wonder why I insist on boiling the sweet potatoes before air frying them. It is an extra step and it creates a little extra washing up. And the reason is very simple – it makes for a much better finished dish than if you just throw sweet potatoes straight in the air fryer for a long time.
They come out totally edible but have a tendency of being sort of stringy and kind of dry. It’s difficult to describe but I promise you, the 2 step method makes for far superior roasted sweet potatoes. Try them and let me know if you agree.
How to Serve
I find roasted sweet potatoes to be incredibly versatile. I’ll as soon serve them with a roast dinner as I will a Mexican rice bowl, ribs or steak and coleslaw or with a Japanese inspired meal. Try some of these recipe combinations.
- Sticky rice, sesame tenderstem broccoli and sweet chilli salmon.
- Griddled sirloin steak and bell peppers with a creamy mushroom sauce.
- Coriander and garlic green rice, air fried chicken wings and peach salsa.
- Air fired thin pork chops, creamy coleslaw and a lovely green salad with caesar dressing.
This isn’t to say the roast dinner should be overlooked! I often serve roasted sweet potatoes as well as regular roasted potatoes, especially for Christmas dinner. Mix and match with my other Sunday roast recipes or recreate the images of this page by serving with:
- Cheesy leeks
- Air fried cauliflower
- Steamed broccoli
- Air fried lamb shoulder with gravy
- Simple buttered white cabbage
Ingredients
Sweet Potatoes
There are lots of varieties of sweet potato and they’re popular all over the world. They can be white, orange or even purple fleshed. But by far the most common and popular here in the UK is the brown skinned version with an orange interior. And that’s what I’ve used here.
Their size can vary wildly but you can use any size to make roasted sweet potatoes. You do need to peel them first and then consider how you’re going to cut them. You are looking for chunks around 4-5cm/1.5″ in size. It isn’t life or death, you just want to make sure they’re all roughly the same size. And note that they will shrink when cooked so do cut them a little larger than your instinct might say.
Oil
As I often do, I have kept this recipe extremely simple to allow the flavour of the sweet potato to shine. I simply use a vegetable oil but you can use can use any oil you prefer. It is worth taking into account any potential added flavour. For example I wouldn’t use coconut oil if serving with a roast dinner. Or olive oil if planning to serve with Asian flavours.
You also shouldn’t baulk at the amount of oil in the recipe. It isn’t a mistake, a good amount of oil is really what helps to give any roasted potatoes that outer shell and lots of flavour.
Seasoning
I’ve included two types of salt in the recipe. The first is fine salt which is added to the water the sweet potatoes are first cooked in. You can use any cheap free flowing table salt. There is no benefit to using a more expensive salt in cooking water.
There is benefit to using sea salt flakes like Maldon when you are going to be eating the salt. Sea salt flakes have a mild flavour that really enhances the flavour of the food you are seasoning which is what you’re really looking for. If you have sea salt or another salt that isn’t flakes, halve the quantity given in the recipe as free flowing salt or smaller grains is stronger when measured by volume.
You can absolutely season the sweet potatoes with more than just salt. Choose spices or herbs which compliment what you’re serving them with. Here are a few ideas that I use regularly:
- Serve with Japanese meals – Shichimi togarashi (Japanese 7 spice mix)
- Serve with lamb – Garlic salt, finely chopped rosemary and lemon zest
- Serve with Tex Mex or Latin American meals – Cumin, oregano, paprika, garlic salt and chilli flakes.
- Serve with Middle Eastern meals – Garlic salt, aleppo pepper and cumin.
Allergen Information
This recipe is free from egg, dairy, gluten and nuts.
Please note that this recipe may contain other allergens not referred to above and any variations suggested have not been tested unless otherwise stated. For more information regarding any dietary information provided on this website, please refer to my Nutritional Disclaimer.
How Long to Air Fry Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Before air frying, I first boil the sweet potatoes in salted water for around 15 minutes. Use a small sharp knife to check and take them off the heat once they are just soft all the way through to the middle. You do need to be careful to not overcook them as they will totally fall apart once you drain them. Sweet potatoes are more fragile than regular potatoes.
Once they’re drained, dried, tossed in oil and seasoning, they air fry in around 15 minutes. This gives them a great colour and whilst not exactly a crispy outer, a good and tasty one!
How to Air Fry Sweet Potato From Frozen
If you want to get ahead, I would recommend following the recipe almost in its entirely but only air frying for around 5 minutes. This will give the sweet potatoes time to form a cooked outer layer which will stop the potatoes from falling apart from frozen.
Free freeze the part cooked potatoes on a tray then move them to an air-tight bag or container once they’re frozen. This will prevent them from freezing into a big clump and means that you can just cook as many as you want when you want to.
To cook the pre-prepared sweet potatoes from frozen, they will take around 15 minutes to defrost, heat through and colour nicely on the outside.
Leftovers – Storage & Reheating
Leftovers will keep in the fridge for several days and can be re-air fried incredibly successfully. They only take around 5 minutes to come back to their former glory.
They also freeze very well, you can reheat from frozen and they will take around 5 to 10 minutes.
Common Air Fryer Questions – A Brief Guide to Air Frying
- What exactly is an air fryer?
- What are the benefits of using an air fryer?
- Are all air fryers the same?
- Is an air fryer always better to use than an oven?
- Do air fryers need to be pre-heated?
- What is the best temperature to air fry at?
- What setting is best to use? Air fry, bake, dehydrate, etc…
- Can food be cooked from frozen in an air fryer?
- Can I reheat food in an air fryer?
- Are air fryer liners a good idea?
The Air Fried Feast Community
Come on over to Facebook and join my community discussing all things air fryer. Get involved in sharing your experiences and trials, help out others and find out what wonderful things everyone is cooking in their air fryers!
What Exactly is an Air Fryer?
Very simply, an air fryer is a small convection (fan) oven. The benefit is that the hot air is circulated all around the food being cooked which speeds up the cooking time and cooks the food more evenly.
What are the Benefits of Using an Air Fryer?
Size, time and energy usage. Air fryers are ideal for cooking smaller quantities. Heating up a space that the food just fits into requires less energy and means that the heat source is much closer to the food. Combining these two things can speed up the cooking time.
Are all air fryers the same?
Nope! The term air fryer is now used very broadly. I consider there to be 4 main types:
Basket Air Fryers
These are what I would consider to be the most common, especially in the UK. A boxy type unit has a pull out drawer/basket. Food isn’t usually visible whilst cooking.
Some larger models have two drawers so different items can be cooked at different temperatures or for different times.
This is the type that you’ll see in the images in this recipe. I mostly use a Cosori Lite 3.8L (CAF-LI401S) with a 3.8 litre capacity. The square(ish) shaped basket is 21cm x 21cm and 24cm on the diagonal. It isn’t an overly expensive or fancy model.
I’ve also recommended to several friends and family the model with a slightly larger basket. This is the Cosori 4.7L (CAF-L501) with a 4.7 litre basket. The unit is no larger than the 3.8 litre model on the outside but does have a larger internal basket capacity. I’ve since bought this version to use for some recipes where my smaller model was just too small. I’ll always note this in the recipe.
Rotary Air Fryers
Round air fryers with a paddle in the centre that rotates to move the food. This is the type I used for years – the most common is a Tefal Actifry.
Rotary types are not usually good for recipes where the food is breaded, glazed, likely to break up or in a tray/container. They do however make the best chips and roasted veg.
My 2 in 1 version like the one I’ve linked also has a rotating tray for things that could be broken up by a paddle, but the height clearance with the lid isn’t deep enough to use it to cook some items like sausage rolls. I’ve now actually retired by Actifry in favour of having my two basket type fryers.
Mini Oven Air Fryers
These usually have a glass door, shelves and overall are really quite large. You can cook quite a decent quantity of food in them so are best if regularly cooking for multiple people. They often come with extra features like a rotisserie spit or kebab skewers.
Multicookers with Air Fryer Functions
Some like Ninja 11 in 1 and some of the earlier versions with a few less functions, have an air fryer option. They mostly operate the same as a basket fryer but the basket drops in the top rather than sliding in like a drawer.
Some electric pressure cookers like Instant Pots can also air fry when used with a specific lid.
Is an air fryer always better to use than an oven?
As much as I do love air frying, the honest answer to this is no. And the more detailed answer is that it will always depend on what you’re cooking, how much of it you’re cooking and what type and size of air fryer you have.
Once you need to cook in more than 2 batches, it often makes more sense to use an oven. If you already have the oven on to cook other items, it may make more sense to throw one more item in rather than using an additional appliance.
I don’t think either method is often necessarily better than the other. The important point to note is that there is absolutely no difference in the finished product.
Do Air Fryers Need to Be Pre-Heated?
The answer to this is rather annoying – it depends. It depends entirely on your model and type of air fryer. The best advice I can offer is to check your manual and follow their guidance. My Cosori models have a preheat function. I press a button and it heats at 205c/400f for 4 minutes.
It’s also worth noting that regardless of whether you are supposed to pre-heat or not, if you are cooking in batches, it is quite likely that anything after the first batch will cook a little quicker because of the retained heat. It is best to check on them before the cooking time is completed.
What is the best temperature to Air Fry at?
It will always depend on what you are cooking and from what state. All of my air fryer recipes don’t use temperatures above 200c/390f because many of the most common fryers in the UK don’t go above this. Mine goes to 230c/450f and I use this temperature a lot but it is no help for me to share recipes which many people can’t use.
What setting is best to use? Air fry, bake, dehydrate, etc…
Not all air fryers have different settings like this. When they do it usually relates to the fan speed. The default setting to use will always be “air fry” so unless something else is specifically stated in the recipe, always use the air fry option.
There are other air fryers that have an additional heating element which cooks from underneath rather than just the top. Just as with the other settings, unless you are using a recipe which states to use a second heating element, stick with just using the top down air fry option.
Of course if and when you become more confident with air frying, using recipes and the settings of your air fryer, you can start adapting them to suit.
Can Food Be Cooked From Frozen In An Air Fryer?
Absolutely! To cook from frozen you usually will need to reduce the cooking temperature and increase the time to make sure your food is cooked right through to the middle.
It is best to check my individual recipes for cooking from frozen advice as some items are a little different. And there are occasionally exceptions to the rule.
Can I Reheat Food In An Air Fryer?
Yes. As a general rule I reheat food for roughly 1/3 of the original cooking time at the same temperature. Or at 10 degrees lower for half the time for larger items.
Are Air Fryer Liners a Good Idea?
Unless otherwise stated, I do not use liners when air frying. Basket and rotary type air fryers are designed to be used without liners. Mini oven types will generally require some kind of tray like with a regular large oven although most come with crisper racks to use.
There are many air fryer liners available including quite thick silicone ones. These will affect the cooking times and possibly temperatures of your cooking/baking. I also don’t like how cooking juices are prevented from dripping through the basket rack. This can stop food from crisping all the way around.
When I do want to collect the juices, I mostly use some foil, or occasionally a foil tray which can be washed and reused.
If you do prefer to use them, once you have got a feel for how they affect your cooking and baking, you may need to make adjustments to the recipe accordingly.
More Air Fryer Recipes
All my recipes with instructions for how to cook or bake them in the air fryer can be found in my Air Fryer Recipe Index.
Don’t forget to let me know in the comments if you try making this recipe – I want to know what you think and if you made any substitutions, how did it turn out?
Still Have Questions?
Simple! Just contact me and I will do my best to help as quickly as I am able. Head over to my Contact Me page, any of my social media channels or post a comment at the bottom of this page and I’ll see what I can do.
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The Recipe
Air Fryer Roasted Sweet Potatoes (Parboiled Recipe)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 750 g Sweet Potatoes
- 2 tsp Fine Salt
- 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
- 2 tsp Sea Salt Flakes
Instructions
- Put a kettle of water on to boil.
- Half fill a medium saucepan or bowl with cold water.
- Peel roughly 750g Sweet Potatoes and slice off the tails. Make sure to cut off any brown or nasty spots on the potatoes.
- Cut each potato into chucks around the size of a golf ball. You can vary the number of cuts on each potato depending on its size. You also don’t have to cut everything straight. The more faces and edges to a potato chunk, the more opportunity for crispiness.
- It is best to work one potato at a time and place the chunks into a medium pan or bowl half-filled with cold water. This will prevent the potatoes from discolouring as you work.
- Once the kettle has boiled and everything is cut, drain the cold water out of the pan.
- Cover the sweet potatoes with boiling water in a saucepan. Add 2 tsp Fine Salt and give it a stir.
- Boil the potatoes on a medium high heat for roughly 15 minutes. Test the potatoes with a small knife. They want to be almost cooked through.
- As the potatoes are nearly cooked, start the preheat setting on your air fryer if required.
- Drain the sweet potatoes well and leave them to sit for a minute and steam. You want as much water to evaporate off as possible.
- Sprinkle over 2 tsp Sea Salt Flakes and 1 tbsp Vegetable Oil.
- Gently turn the sweet potatoes in the oil and salt so they are all well coated.
- Move the potatoes to the air fryer. I do this with tongs to prevent them from breaking up.
- Air fry for 15 minutes at 200℃/390℉.
- Use your tongs to turn the potatoes over. Or if you are preparing these ahead of time, this is the point to stop cooking and store the roast sweet potatoes until you want to finish the cooking and serve.
- Air fry for a further 5 minutes at 200℃/390℉. If after that time you want them to have even more colour, keep cooking until you're happy with them.
Notes
- This recipe is tested in a Cosori Lite (CAF-LI401S) with a 3.8 litre capacity. The square(ish) shaped basket is 21cm x 21cm and 24cm on the diagonal.
- Not all models advise preheating is required. Please follow the recommended instructions for your model. Mine has a specific preheat setting which is 4 minutes at 205c.
- For this recipe, I managed to fit in around 750g (18 roast) sweet potatoes with more than enough room for air flow. I could potentially fit another 150g with just enough space left.
- As all air fryer models are a little different, you may find that you can fit more or less in at a time. Some models include stacking shelves which will increase capacity.
- Required cooking times and temperatures can also vary between models and brands. If you know that your air fryer runs a little hotter than most recipes suggest, use a lower temperature. And vice versa. Equally if you find that food cooks more quickly in your machine than instructions usually state, reduce the cooking time (or check it earlier) and vice versa.
Diane says
My husband is loving sweet potatoes at the moment so I have these a go and he said they were delicious!
Dave says
These turned out so well, thanks for the recipe.
Sisley says
Par boiling them made such a difference. I loved these so much.
Lesley says
What a great way to cook sweet potatoes, it was so quick and easy.