Perfectly crispy on the outside, soft and creamy inside, air fryer sweet potato fries may just change your 5 PM snack game for good. Super tasty and incredibly quick - these take under 20 minutes. Plus, thanks to their perfectly crispy texture, no one would be able to tell that these aren’t deep-fried.
Instead of reaching for that pack of chips when the 5 pm hunger strikes, try making a batch of these air fryer sweet potato fries this week. Made using just a few basic ingredients and requiring very little prep time, you will find yourself turning to this recipe often.
- They’re ready in 20 minutes and are the perfect dipping food
- Loaded with fibre, vitamins and minerals, you can munch on these guilt-free.
- By leaving the skin on, you can pack in an extra dose of nutrients and fibre.
- Sweet potato fries are low on starch as compared to regular spuds and turn out crispy even without any soaking.
- Even with a teaspoon of oil, you get crispy fries each time thanks to the use of an air fryer. The device cooks food by circulating hot air around it, which results in a beautiful crispy exterior.
The Air Fryer is amazing really - I love it so much because I get the same results as the oven but faster. Our go-to snacks these days are Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets, Air Fried sweet and spicy Broccoli Sprouts and these sweet potato fries obviously!!
Ingredients you will need
Just 4 ingredients to make these Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries:
Sweet potatoes – Even though it is possible to make delicious fries with both white and orange sweet potatoes, this particular recipe turns out better with the orange ones. The white ones are slightly drier than the orange ones.
Oil – While olive oil is a commonly preferred choice when making this recipe, you can replace it with just about any oil. Though using an oil with a high smoke point (like avocado, sesame, canola or peanut) makes sure the nutrients are retained better
Seasoning – The best thing about this sweet potato fries recipe is that it tastes amazing even with just salt. But make sure to add some garlic powder, paprika, peri-peri, etc depending on your mood and what you have at home. For a little variation, you can try the dressing of these chilli lime sweet potato wedges and instantly take this dish a notch higher.
Add-Ins: I love my sweet potato fries with just these ingredients, but sometimes I like to add some chilli powder/ paprika/ chipotle powder for an extra kick of spice. I also like to top these fries sometimes with grated parmesan for a hit of umami. Nutritional yeast would also be a great add into the seasoning mix!
How to make Crispy Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
1. Wash and rinse the sweet potato well. Cut the sides off the sweet potato. You can use the cut sides in soups or stews
2. Based on the thickness of the sweet potato, slice it into 3-4 slices of ¼ inch thickness each
3. Cut each sweet potato lengthwise into fries that are ¼ inch in thickness
4. One medium-sized sweet potato will generally give you 12-15 fries
5. Toss the sweet potato fries in oil, salt and garlic powder or any other seasoning you want to use
6. Place the sweet potatoes in the air fryer basket in a single layer. Making sure they don't overlap will ensure you get crispy fries
7. Flip them halfway through the cook to make sure they are cooked evenly on both sides. Here's how roasted/air fried sweet potato fries look. They are a light golden brown and crispy crispy crispy.
Top tips to make the best ever sweet potato fries in an air fryer
- For really crispy fries, pay attention to the way you cut your fries. Cut them to a thickness of ¼ inch and hand cut them instead of using a mandolin. In my experience, it's hard to cut sweet potato fries with a mandolin and they end up breaking while cutting
- Avoid overcrowding and place them in a single layer. Overcrowding will make them steam and they will become limp and soggy instead of crispy.
- Flip your fries halfway so that they cook evenly on both sides.
- Stick to the recipe when it comes to the amount of oil. Too much oil will make them soggy and too little won’t crisp them up properly
FAQ
01. Why won’t my sweet potato fries get crispy?
If your fries aren’t getting crispy, it's probably because you are adding too many at one go. Place them in a single layer and ensure they don’t overlap. Overcrowding leads to the formation of steam and prevents your fries from getting crispy. .
02. Should sweet potato fries be soaked before frying?
No, this isn’t necessary at all. Traditional potatoes are loaded with starch, which is why they should be soaked before frying to get rid of the excess starch. But since sweet potatoes don’t have as much starch, soaking them first doesn’t make any difference to the final result/crispiness of the fries.
03. How do I make frozen sweet potato fries in the air fryer?
Apart from cooking frozen sweet potatoes for a little bit longer, the entire process is similar. Cook them for an extra 5 minutes, check to see if they’re cooked, and add another minute or two if needed.
04. Why are my sweet potato fries soggy in the air fryer?
One of the main reasons for soggy sweet potato fries is overcrowding your air fryer. In order to achieve crispy fries, make sure to place all the fries in a single layer. It is also important to flip the fries halfway through to promote circulation and even cooking.
05. What kind of oil is best for air fryer sweet potato fries?
The delicious flavour and many health benefits make olive oil a common choice when it comes to making this recipe. However you could use just about any oil and receive amazing results.
These air fryer sweet potato fries are the perfect snack for your entire family - quick, simple and healthy! The best thing about these fries is that while they taste delicious with just plain ol’ ketchup, you can always add an extra bit of zing by serving them with this garlicky yoghurt dip or the spicy nacho cheese sauce.
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Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Medium Sweet Potato cut lengthwise into ¼inch thickness
- 1 Teaspoon Olive Oil
- 1.5 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1-1 ½ Teaspoon Salt
- 1 Teaspoon Paprika optional
Instructions
- Peeling the sweet potato is optional. Cut off the ends and then slice it into 3-4 parts lengthwise about ¼” thick and then cut them into fry-shaped pieces about ¼″ thick. Try to cut them into similarly sized pieces so the fries will cook evenly.
- Preheat your Air Fryer to 190C/375F. Mine has a built-in preheating function that takes 3 minutes to preheat.
- Add in olive oil, garlic powder, salt and paprika to a mixing bowl. Add the cut sweet potato pieces and toss until combined.
- Place them in a single layer in the Air Fryer basket, and air fry for 11-12 minutes at 190C/375F, flipping them once halfway.
- Serve immediately with ketchup or your choice of dip
Notes
- Sweet potatoes – This recipe turns out better with the orange sweet potato than white sweet potato. The white ones are slightly drier than the orange ones.
- Oil – replace olive oil with just about any oil. Though using an oil with a high smoke point (like avocado, sesame, canola or peanut) makes sure the nutrients are retained better
- Seasoning – The best thing about this sweet potato fries recipe is that it tastes amazing even with just salt. Feel free to add some garlic powder, paprika, peri-peri, etc For a little variation, you can try the dressing of these chilli lime sweet potato wedges and instantly take this dish a notch higher.
- For really crispy fries, pay attention to the way you cut your fries. Cut them to a thickness of ¼ inch and hand-cut them instead of using a mandolin. In my experience, it's hard to cut sweet potato fries with a mandolin and they end up breaking while cutting
- Avoid overcrowding and place them in a single layer. Overcrowding will make them steam and they will become limp and soggy instead of crispy.
- Flip your fries halfway so that they cook evenly on both sides.
- Stick to the recipe when it comes to the amount of oil. Too much oil will make them soggy and too little won’t crisp them up properly
Nutrition
This article has been researched and written by Urvi Dalal
Melanie B. says
These came out soft and tasty! I'm sure they didn't crisp because I used too much oil and overcrowded the air fryer - but they were still a very tasty side to the soup we had. Will make again and I bet they'll be even better!
Diane Chapman says
Although I love your recipes, not all of us can afford the extra appliances. I don't have an airfryer or onepot, I have a small electric fan oven in my microwave, slow cooker, a pressure cooker and a bottled gas hob. That has to be it for now and if any apart from the hob break down I will survive without. Please try giving alternatives where possible. Thanks.
wayne chamberlain says
hi
when i cut a round object i put the flat side down to make it more stable.
thank you and good luck
wayne
wayne chamberlain says
NaCl
wayne chamberlain says
hi,
if you have high blood pressure you should go a little bit lighter on the salt. otherwise you have a lot of good food ideas. thank you and have a good day.
Pgm says
super recipe