These sweet potato fries are perfectly crispy and crunchy, just like you’d get at a restaurant! Sweet potato fries can be deep fried, or oven baked to golden brown perfection. Serve your fries alongside grilled meats or sandwiches and watch the rave reviews come in.
You can never go wrong with french fries, whether they’re baked, wrapped in bacon, or turned into nachos. This sweet potato version is sweet, savory and totally irresistible!
When I go out to eat, I always have to order the sweet potato fries. I can’t get enough of that sweet and savory flavor! Homemade sweet potato fries are quite simple to make, and I think they taste even better than what you’d get at a restaurant.
How do you make sweet potato fries?
To make these fries, first wash and peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into sticks. Rinse them twice in cold water. Boil the fries to get them a little tender and then dip them in a batter made of cornstarch, water, salt and pepper. Now they are ready to be fried until golden. Once they are done frying, dry them on paper towels and sprinkle on a little salt and pepper. Serve them hot and crispy!
Tips for sweet potato fries
- To cut the sweet potato fries use a fry cutter (if available) or use a sharp knife to cut as evenly as possible.
- When selecting sweet potatoes, look for ones that have a more uniform width and do not taper to points. This will help you cut more fries that are the same length.
- Choose red sweet potatoes (labeled as yams in some markets) for the classic sweet potato fry look and taste.
- When frying, stir the fries to make sure they don’t clump together or stick to the side of the pot.
Baked sweet potato fries
To make baked sweet potato fries, wash and peel the sweet potatoes then cut them into sticks. Coat the fries in a mixture of salt, pepper and cornstarch. Toss the fries in olive oil and they are ready for the oven. Bake them in a single layer on a sheet pan and remember to flip the fries so that every side is crispy. When they are done, serve them hot with a little sprinkled salt and pepper.
Flavor variations
I love the classic sweet and savory flavor of these fries, but you can punch up the flavor with these variations.
- Try serving the fries with a little garlic butter on top. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 1/2 teaspoon fresh minced garlic, salt, pepper and 2 teaspoons chopped parsley.
- Sprinkle a store bought Mexican spice blend, or make your own with one teaspoon each of chili powder, paprika, salt and cumin and a half a teaspoon each of garlic powder, onion powder and oregano.
- You can season the fries with a Cajun spice blend, or make your own mix with one teaspoon each of garlic powder, paprika and salt and a half a teaspoon each of black pepper, cayenne pepper, onion powder, oregano and thyme.
- For a Caribbean flavor, pour on some pre-made jerk spice, or prepare your own with 1 teaspoon each of thyme, salt, pepper and sugar with 1/2 teaspoon each of allspice, paprika and cayenne pepper and a 1/8 teaspoon each of cumin, cinnamon and garlic powder.
How to make your fries crispy
The keys to crispy fries are temperature and cornstarch. If frying the sweet potatoes, keep the oil as close to 350 degrees F as possible. The oil will likely cool when you place the fries in the oil. When baking fries, the 400 degree F heat will help dry and crisp the outside of the fries. The cornstarch used in the recipes also crisps up the fries.
Are sweet potato fries bad for you?
Aside from being delicious, sweet potatoes are brimming with vitamin A and manganese. They also have some vitamin C, E and B6. Sweet potato french fries have a few more calories than regular potato fries. The healthiest way to prepare these fries is to bake them. However, frying them can be a wonderful occasional crispy treat!
I love crispy, hot sweet potato fries with a sprinkling of just the right amount of salt. This recipe is a great way to make crispy, savory french fries with that wonderful flavor of sweet potato.
More delicious sweet potato recipes
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- Sweet Potato Hash
- Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Buddha Bowls with Sweet Potatoes
Sweet Potato Fries (Baked or Fried)
Ingredients
Fried Sweet Potato Fries
- 4 sweet potatoes medium size, orange or red color
- 2/3 cup cornstarch
- 6 cups vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons salt additional salt for seasoning the cooked fries
- 3/4 teaspoon pepper additional pepper for seasoning the cooked fries
- chopped parsley for garnish optional
Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- 4 sweet potatoes medium size, orange or red color
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons corn starch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt additional salt for seasoning the cooked fries
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper additional pepper for seasoning the cooked fries
- cooking spray
- chopped parsley for garnish optional
Instructions
Fried Sweet Potato Fries
- Wash and peel 4 medium sized sweet potatoes
- Cut the sweet potatoes into 3/8 inch wide sticks.
- Rinse the sweet potatoes in cold water twice. Discard the water between each rinse.
- Boil the fries in water for 4 minutes until slightly tender. Remove fries and place them in an ice bath.
- Prepare a batter for the fries by stirring together 2/3 cups of cornstarch with an equal amount of water in a bowl.
- Season the batter with 2 teaspoons of salt and 3/4 teaspoons of pepper.
- Dip the fries in the batter and let them rest for 2 minutes on paper towels.
- Heat a pot of vegetable oil to 350 degrees F.
- Deep fry the sweet potato fries in batches of 7-15 depending on the size of your pot. Make sure to break up clusters of fries and prevent fries from sticking to the pan as they cook.
- Cook the fries for 5-7 minutes or until golden.
- When the fries are done cooking, set them in a single layer on paper towels to drain.
- Season with additional salt and pepper to taste and serve them hot and crispy. Top with parsley if desired.
Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- Wash and peel 4 medium sized sweet potatoes.
- Cut the sweet potatoes into 3/8 inch wide sticks.
- Stir together the salt, pepper and cornstarch.
- Dredge the fries in the salt, pepper and cornstarch until coated.
- Toss the fries with olive oil until coated.
- Place the fries in a single layer on a sheet pan lined with foil and coated with cooking spray.
- Bake the fries for 15 minutes at 400 degrees F or until golden.
- Turn over the fries with tongs or a spatula and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until golden.
- Season with any additional salt and pepper to taste and serve the fries hot and crispy. Top with parsley if desired.
ell says
At what stage can i freeze them? can i fully cook and then freeze them then re cook when needed or do i freeze before putting in the batter before frying?
Sara says
I’d freeze them after they’ve been cooked!
stapuft says
instead of seasoning with black pepper, and parsley, i season mine with what i call “mayan cinimin sugar”
its your basic ciniman sugar mix, but add to it, salt, and any kind of spicy chili powder you have, i like cayanne or a mix of jalapenio and habeniro.
stapuft says
a squirt of lime also helps to make an excellent eating experience, sweet, salty, sour, spicy, savory, MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
Lis says
I love it served with salty ice cream ❤️
Kc says
When baking do you add water to the cornstarch mixture
Sara says
No you do not add water!
Alli says
Possibly a silly question (I’ve never done homemade fries of any kind before) – I’m doing the fried version. Do you dry the sweet potatoes after the ice bath? Or do they go straight from ice bath to being dipped in batter?
Thank you!
Sara says
Yes you’ll want to pat them dry!
Jessica Formicola says
I love that you included instructions for both baked and fried! I can’t wait to make these with dinner soon!
Denay DeGuzman says
Sweet potato fries are all the rage! With this easy recipe anyone can make them at home. Over here, our family will be enjoying them during the big game. I’m serving them with sliders.