Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes become even sweeter as they roast. A sprinkling of fresh thyme and a twist of lemon brightens up the flavors of this side dish.

Table of Contents

Is a Yam the Same as a Sweet Potato?
Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Do you boil sweet potatoes before roasting?
Do sweet potatoes need to be peeled?
Can you prep sweet potatoes ahead of time?
SOME OTHER RECIPES WE ARE SURE YOU WILL LOVE

The perfect side dish!

From the sweet taste of the roasted sweet potatoes, you would think we added a heap of sugar. Wrong! The roasting process brings out their natural sugary sweetness. The lightly caramelized edges of the crispy roasted sweet potatoes add an extra layer of addictive deliciousness.

This is one of the best tasting side dishes on the planet. Roasting sweet potatoes on a sheet pan in the oven has got to be among the easiest techniques other than baking them in their skins. Roasted sweet potatoes cubed into 2-inch squares with crisp, caramelized edges. Is it any wonder they are so favored?

Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Is a Yam the Same as a Sweet Potato?

A yam is very different from a sweet potato. Most of the time the “yams” that you see in your local grocery store are actually sweet potatoes. Why they call them yams? I don’t know. A true yam is a pretty ugly tuber. It has a more irregular shape and a brownish grey skin. It is very dry, starchy, and far from sweet. Yams are also toxic if you eat them raw.

The weird shapes of the Garnet and yellow tubers that you see in the grocery stores are actually both sweet potatoes. In America, the reddish-brown skin of the sweet potato with orange flesh is usually thought of as a yam but it is, in fact, a variety of a sweet potato.

The beige colored potato with pale yellow flesh is also a sweet potato. They are both very nutritious and delicious prepared in a variety of recipes.

When choosing the most nutritious sweet potato, select the red-skinned Garnet with the orange flesh. The deeper the orange color of the flesh, the more beta-carotene. The orange flesh of the Garnet sweet potato has more beta-carotene than carrots.

Before and After

Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes:

Cut the sweet potatoes into 2-inch cubes, add them to a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Roast in a hot 425°F oven for 20-minutes. It’s as easy as that!

Serve these roasted sweet potatoes as a side dish with a sprinkling of fresh thyme leaves. Adding a drizzle of lemon juice brightens up the flavor even more.

Do you boil sweet potatoes before roasting?

You don’t need to boil these cubed sweet potatoes before you roast them. This is an easy one-step recipe. Just season the sweet potatoes and slide them in a hot oven to roast. The potatoes get cut small enough that they roast very quickly. They will be soft and tender on the inside and crispy on the outside.

Do sweet potatoes need to be peeled?

You don’t have to peel the sweet potatoes as long as you scrub the dirt off the skin. However, we highly recommend peeling these little nuggets for the best texture.

Can you prep sweet potatoes ahead of time?

You can prep these sweet potatoes ahead of time and they will be just fine. Toss them with the oil and seasonings then set them aside until you are ready to roast them. If you won’t be roasting them for a couple of hours then it is best to keep them in a covered container and store them in the fridge.

A drizzle of lemon and a dusting of fresh thyme.

IF, you have leftovers, serve these crispy roasted sweet potatoes as a breakfast hash with bacon crumbles and a poached egg….add to a salad or a grain bowl. They are also wonderful as a snack either cold or warmed in the oven or microwave. Enjoy!

SOME OTHER RECIPES WE ARE SURE YOU WILL LOVE:

Sweet Potato Flatbread

Sweet Potato Waffles, Duck Eggs and Smoked Salmon

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Are you counting Weight Watchers SmartPoints? This is only 1 WWSP per serving.

If you’re on Slimming World this is 2 Syns per servings.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Oven roasted sweet potatoes become even more sweet as they roast. The natural sweetness is enhance and the roasted cubes have, caramelized edges and creamy inside. A sprinkling of fresh thyme and a twist of lemon brightens them up.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 30

Servings: Servings

Calories: 102kcal

Author: Pat Nyswonger

Ingredients

2 large sweet potatoes about 2-1/2 pounds
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon coarse grain salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2-3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1/2 fresh lemon

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425°F.
Peel the skins from the sweet potatoes and cut into 2-inch cubes.
Add the sweet potatoes to a baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil. With your hands, massage the oil into the potatoes to coat each one with oil.
Spread the cubes out in one layer. Do not crowd them.
Season generously with salt and pepper.
Bake until golden brown and tender when pierced with a fork, 18 to 22 minutes.
Transfer to a serving dish, sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves and squeeze lemon juice on top.

Notes

The sweet potatoes will cook evenly by cutting them all the same size.
The sweet potatoes can be reheated in either the oven or the microwave.
If reheating in the oven, preheat to 425°F and place them on a baking sheet, heat for 5-minutes to re-crisp.
To extract more juice from a lemon, stick the fork tines into the lemon and twist. Do this in several places and it breaks up the lemon flesh quickly for mega juice.
Store leftover potatoes in a covered container for up to 5 days in the refridgerator