Whether serving them as a side dish, stuffing them to create a meal, or mashing them up for a casserole, these air fryer baked sweet potatoes will simplify your meal prep! In less time, with less oil, you’ll have perfectly baked sweet potatoes with crispy skin and a warm and fluffy center!
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I have been having tons of fun experimenting with my Ninja Foodi. First, I made air fryer baked potatoes, and now it’s my new favorite way to cook them. It takes less time, and they turn out perfect with crispy skin and a light and fluffy center.
So, why not do the same with sweet potatoes? There are so many different ways to use sweet potatoes, and when you need them cooked in a hurry, using your air fryer will save you time! Plus, they come out even better than if you bake them in the oven with an extra crispy skin and fluffy light center!
💗 Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Only four simple ingredients
- Crispy skin
- Light and fluffy center
- Use it in all your favorite sweet potato recipes.
- Enjoy them as a side dish.
- It takes less time than oven-baked.
- Using the air fryer frees up the oven for other uses.
- The air fryer doesn’t overheat the house in the summer months.
🥣 Ingredients and Notes
Sweet Potatoes: Depending on the size of your air fryer, choose sweet potatoes that will fit. If you have a small air fryer opt for smaller ones, but if you have a large capacity air fryer you can get away with using larger sweet potatoes.
Olive Oil: If you like a crispy skin on your baked sweet potatoes, massaging a bit of oil will help give them that nice crispiness. I recommend about half a teaspoon for each potato.
Salt and Pepper: Sprinkling the outside of your sweet potato with salt and pepper will give it a touch of seasoning.
Tools and Equipment
Air Fryer: There are so many air fryers on the market today. Some are simple with a temperature and time gauge, while others are more complicated with pre-set buttons and multifunctions. Choosing the right air fryer for you will depend on how many people you plan to serve regularly and whether you want pre-sets or other functions.
👩🏻🍳 How to Make an Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Wash and dry sweet potatoes. Rub half a teaspoon of olive oil into the skin of the sweet potatoes using your hands.
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper evenly.
- Place in the air fryer basket. Be sure not to overcrowd.
- Set the air fryer to 400° Fahrenheit. Bake for 40 minutes. At the 20-minute mark, flip the potatoes over using tongs. Check for doneness at 40 minutes by piercing them with a fork. If they are not fully cooked, add 10 minutes or more time as needed until the skin is crispy and the center is cooked through.
- Slice down the center, fluff with a fork, and add your favorite toppings, such as vegan butter and coconut sugar.
📝 Expert Tips
- Choose the right size sweet potato for your air fryer.
- Make sure to clean your sweet potatoes thoroughly. They may have quite a lot of dirt and grime. Using a vegetable brush will help remove any dirt. Dry them with a kitchen towel. Be sure they are completely dry before adding the oil, salt, and pepper. If they are wet, the skin will not crisp.
- I do not recommend poking them with holes or wrapping the potatoes in foil. This will steam the potatoes. If you want crispy skin, leave them as is when you put them in the air fryer. You can, however, line the bottom of your basket with aluminum foil to help with clean-up.
- Do not overcrowd or stack the potatoes on top of one another. They need space in the air fryer to cook evenly.
- Flip the potatoes halfway through the cooking time to ensure an even bake on all sides.
- Do not try to flip with your bare hands! They are hot! Use tongs.
- Cut the skin down the center, and fluff the flesh with your fork. Add your favorite toppings! See below for some of my favorite variations!
❓ Recipe FAQS
It takes approximately 40 minutes to bake a large sweet potato in the air fryer. You may need to increase the time if the center is not yet tender.
Bake sweet potatoes in the air fryer between 375-400° Fahrenheit to achieve a crispy skin and a soft inside.
Yes, they are rich in vitamins and nutrients. A 200 gram sweet potato has 4 grams of protein, 6.6 grams of fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, vitamin B6, potassium, copper, and niacin. Because sweet potatoes are so high in fiber, and also are high in antioxidants, they help promote the growth of good bacteria that helps with a healthy gut! Sweet potatoes are high in beta-carotene which helps prevent vision loss.
🍴 How to Serve
After baking these sweet potatoes, you can serve them as a side dish. Here are some of my favorite variations…
- Add butter and coconut sugar. (As featured in the photos).
- Fill with your favorite easy vegan chili and top with vegan sour cream and chives.
- Stuff them with black beans and corn and top with avocado like in these Vegan Stuffed Sweet Potatoes.
- Top with chopped pecans and a drizzle of maple syrup.
You can also bake them and then use the filling to make mashed sweet potatoes or a hearty soup!
📖 Variations and Substitutions
No air fryer, no problem! Of course, you can bake sweet potatoes in the oven if you do not have an air fryer. I recommend placing them on a baking sheet and baking for 60 minutes at 400 F.
Don’t want crispy skin? If you prefer skin that is easy to peel off your sweet potato, you might not want crispy skin. In that case, wrap your sweet potatoes in aluminum foil, and poke a few times with a fork. This will steam the potatoes and create soft skin.
🫙 How to Store
Store: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Reheat: When ready to eat again, transfer to the air fryer, and bake for 10 minutes at 350° Fahrenheit. It will warm up the center, but the skin will not be as crispy as when made fresh.
🎥 Video
⚖️ Serving Size
This recipe is for two sweet potatoes. It makes two large servings, or 4 half servings.
😋 More Air Fryer Recipes!
Recipe
Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potato
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 2 teaspoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Optional Toppings
- 1 tablespoon butter or vegan butter
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar or brown sugar
Instructions
- Wash and dry sweet potatoes. Rub ½ a teaspoon of olive oil into the skin of the sweet potatoes using your hands.
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper evenly.
- Place in the air fryer basket. Be sure not to overcrowd. Give them about an inch of space between each one.
- Set the air fryer to 400° Fahrenheit. Bake for 40 minutes. At the 20 minute mark flip the potatoes over using tongs. Check for doneness at 40 minutes. If they are not fully cooked, add 10 more minutes or until the skin is crispy and the center is cooked through.
- Slice them down the center, fluff with a fork, and add your favorite fillings such as butter, and brown sugar.
Notes
- Choose the right size sweet potato for your air fryer.
- Make sure to clean your sweet potatoes thoroughly. They may have quite a lot of dirt and grime. Using a vegetable brush will help remove any dirt. Dry them with a kitchen towel. Be sure they are completely dry before adding the oil, salt, and pepper. If they are wet, the skin will not crisp.
- I do not recommend poking them with holes or wrapping in foil. This will steam the potatoes. If you want crispy skin, leave them as is when you put them in the air fryer.
- Do not overcrowd or stack the potatoes on top of one another. They need space in the air fryer to cook evenly.
- Flip the potatoes halfway through the cooking time to ensure an even bake on all sides.
- Do not try to flip with your bare hands! They are hot! Use tongs.
- Cut the skin down the center, and fluff the flesh with your fork. Add your favorite toppings! See below for some of my favorite variations!
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Jeannie
I ended up baking two sweet potatoes for 45 minutes and they were perfect!! I paired with a pork steak it was a delicious meal. Thanks for the recipe.
Jessica Formicola
I just got a new air fryer for Christmas, and I can’t wait to try making these sweet potatoes in it! Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Jessie
OMG!!! So much easier than baking and so good! Thank you for this. my air fryer has changed my life for sure.
Cathleen
Okay, so this is convincing me to get an air fryer!! This looks amazing, thank you so much for this recipe 🙂
Tara
You had me at less time and less oil! That texture looks absolutely amazing. Love the sprinkling of coconut sugar too.
Anjali
I had no idea how easy and fast it was to make baked sweet potatoes in the air fryer!! These turned out perfectly, and made for a great side dish for our dinner last night!