The Best Way to Peel Sweet Potatoes

Are there certain ingredients that you're hesitant to cook with because of the prep they involve? Take sweet potatoes for example. Healthy, delicious, and versatile with their signature sweet flavor. But who wants to deal with peeling them?

This post will solve your peeling problems forever! Read on to learn the best way to peel sweet potatoes. You'll also get tips on how to cook them, which tools are easiest to use, and even some recipes featuring sweet potatoes!

Jump to:

• ❔ What's the Best Way to Peel Sweet Potatoes?
• 🍠 Best Sweet Potatoes to Buy
• 💧 How to Prepare Sweet Potatoes
• 💡 How to Peel Cooked Sweet Potatoes
• 💡 How to Peel Uncooked Sweet Potatoes
• ⚙️ Different Tools to Peel a Sweet Potato
• ⏲️ Various Ways to Cook Sweet Potatoes
• 🔑 Key Tips for Preparing Sweet Potatoes
• 🏥 Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes
• ⏳ The Best Way to Store Sweet Potatoes
• 👩🏻‍🍳 Sweet Potato Recipes You'll Love 
• 🥔 Other Vegetables Similar to Sweet Potatoes
• ❄️ Storing Sweet Potatoes in the Refrigerator
• 💭 Conclusion
• 💬 Reviews and Comments

❔ What's the Best Way to Peel Sweet Potatoes?

The versatility of sweet potatoes makes them one of the most popular vegetables. They can be enjoyed in a wide range of dishes—from a simple baked sweet potato, to soups and stews, to salads, to steamed or roasted with other veggies on the side. Sweet potatoes are an excellent fiber source and contain many vitamins and minerals.

Sweet potatoes can be eaten alone or combined with other ingredients to create unique and flavorful recipes. They can be baked, roasted, steamed, stewed, and fried! However, peeling sweet potatoes can be challenging if you don't know the right way to do it.

Find out how to peel sweet potatoes quickly and easily so you can enjoy this nutritious vegetable whenever you want!

🍠 Best Sweet Potatoes to Buy

The key is buying uniform-sized potatoes so that they cook evenly. Before you buy sweet potatoes, keep these things in mind:

• Choose firm sweet potatoes without cracks, bruises, mold, or other dark spots.
• Avoid buying soft-skinned or wrinkled sweet potatoes. A smoother texture is optimal.
• Keep them unwashed until you're ready to cook them, as they will last longer.

💧 How to Prepare Sweet Potatoes

Wash the sweet potatoes in a bowl of cold water. They don't require any peeling before cooking/baking; a quick rinse under cold or warm water will do the trick. However, hot water can cook part of the sweet potato, making it more challenging to cut up later.

So, if you're planning on cooking your sweet potatoes soon after cleaning them, stick with cold or warm water for rinsing.

You can use a vegetable brush to scrub the skin of any dirt or blemishes with firm strokes, then use a knife to cut off any unsightly parts of the sweet potato. Do not soak them in water, as it will cause them to soften and become mushy when cooked.

Don't wash your sweet potatoes until you're ready to cook them. If you wash them too early, they absorb too much water and can develop rot. Wash with cold water only! Do not use hot water; this will start the cooking process before you want it to happen.

Cook in the sweet potato skins as they are easier to peel after cooking and retain more nutrients than peeled ones (they also taste better). If you'd like to include sweet potatoes in soups or stews, or for something like sweet potato pie, peel them before cooking so you won't have trouble removing them.

Poke holes in your sweet potatoes with a fork or sharp paring knife. This will allow moisture to escape while cooking.

Most people prefer unpeeled potatoes because they tend to taste better and retain more vitamins and minerals during baking than those with their skin removed beforehand. If you prefer your potatoes peeled, cut off a thin slice from each end, then use a vegetable peeler or paring knife to remove the skin in strips.

💡 How to Peel Cooked Sweet Potatoes

1. Slice both ends off of the sweet potato with a sharp knife.
2. Use a paring knife to cut down the center of the sweet potato's skin lengthwise, being careful not to cut all the way through it.
3. Peel the sweet potato by gently folding back both sides and then pulling off the skin as you go around it. The skin will magically slide right off if you do this correctly!

💡 How to Peel Uncooked Sweet Potatoes

1. For best results, you should scrub the raw sweet potatoes before peeling them to remove any residual dirt or bacteria from the skins.
2. Once this is done, use a sharp knife to cut off their ends and then begin peeling with a vegetable peeler to avoid taking off too much of the flesh.
3. After you've removed all of the skin, your sweet potato can be cut into cubes or slices as desired using a paring knife.

⚙️ Different Tools to Peel a Sweet Potato

• A Potato Peeler: A great way to peel sweet potatoes in a pinch. Use the vegetable peeler or a serrated vegetable peeler to remove the skin from either side of the sweet potato until it is completely peeled. This may be your best option if you're working with small or medium-sized sweet potatoes. Do this over a cutting board for easier cleanup.
• Paring Knife: If you're having trouble getting all the skin off your potato, use a paring knife to touch up your work. Or you can use it to peel the entire potato in place of a vegetable peeler.
• Scrubbing Brush: If you're using a scrubbing brush for your sweet potatoes, gently use it! It is not necessary to apply much pressure when scrubbing your tubers. Move in circular motions over their surfaces until they're spotless of dirt and other debris that may have gotten lodged between those cracks and crevices after washing them off.

📌 Use these handy tips to find out the best way to peel sweet potatoes! Your preferences might differ, so be sure to experiment and find out which tools and methods work best for you.

⏲️ Various Ways to Cook Sweet Potatoes

You can prepare sweet potatoes in many different ways. Sweet potatoes can be boiled, roasted, and steamed. Roasting is the most popular method of sweet potato preparation, while baking is the most nutritious way to cook them.

Steaming sweet potatoes is also an excellent and easy way to cook them if you're watching your weight! They are low in sodium and calories, which makes them an ideal vegetable for people who want to lose weight.

How to Boil Sweet Potatoes

1. To boil sweet potatoes, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. (You can also steam sweet potatoes in the microwave.)
2. Add the whole sweet potatoes and boil for 20-30 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork.
3. When the sweet potatoes are tender, drain them in a colander and let them cool slightly. Slice the potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out their flesh with a spoon.

The Best Way to Bake Sweet Potatoes in the Oven

1. To bake, preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash the potatoes to remove any dust.
2. The next step is to pierce the sweet potatoes all over with a fork. It is not necessary to peel sweet potatoes before baking and roasting because their skin is safe to eat when cooked (although some people do choose to peel them).
3. Place them on a baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until very tender when pierced with a knife.
4. Let them cool before peeling so that you don't get burned by steam escaping from inside the potato if it is baked in its skin (or peeled).
5. Once the sweet potatoes are cool enough to handle, remove the skin using your hands.

🔑 Key Tips for Preparing Sweet Potatoes

• Rinse your sweet potatoes before peeling to remove any dirt stuck to the sweet potato, making it harder to peel.
• Peel from root to tip. Starting at the top of your sweet potato, use a sharp peeler (preferably a serrated one) or a paring knife to remove most of the skin in strips until you reach the bottom of your potato.

🏥 Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are fantastic for you! They include lots of minerals like copper, magnesium, and potassium, as well as important vitamins like vitamin C.

Full of protein and fiber, sweet potatoes are also great when it comes to keeping you full.

Not only that, but they can aid in digestion, help maintain weight (whether you're aiming for weight loss or weight gain), support your immune system, and reduce various kinds of inflammation!

⏳ The Best Way to Store Sweet Potatoes

They should be stored in a cool, dry place. They will last for several weeks if stored this way. It's not recommended to store sweet potatoes in the refrigerator because it will make them tough when cooked.

Instead, please keep them in a cool dark place with plenty of ventilation. If you have space on your countertop, put them there; otherwise, opt for an open cabinet or shelf near the windows (but not directly under them).

Sweet potatoes can be stored for up to 5 weeks but should ideally be used within two weeks for optimum freshness and flavor—after all, who wants to eat shriveled-up skins of sweet potatoes?

🥔 Other Vegetables Similar to Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are not the only vegetables with a reputation for being difficult to peel. Yams, potatoes, and butternut squash are all root vegetables that can be hard to peel. You might want to use the same method on them as sweet potatoes if you're having trouble getting through the tough exterior of these vegetables.

Yams and sweet potatoes are considered root vegetables, but their similarities end there. They may look similar in shape—long and cylindrical—but they have different flavors and textures. Sweet potatoes are sweeter but less starchy than yams.

Pumpkins are another vegetable with a similar taste to sweet potatoes. They're great roasted or mashed and make a delicious addition to soups, stews, and pies!

Butternut squash has an earthy flavor and can be substituted for sweet potatoes in almost any recipe because it has a similar texture and consistency.

White potatoes (or regular potatoes) have more starch than sweet potatoes, a more neutral taste profile, and a creamy texture.

Is it necessary to peel sweet potatoes before roasting them?

When you roast sweet potatoes, you can leave the skin on. The sweet potato's skin is edible and contains nutrients that are good for you, so there's no reason not to eat them. The skin of sweet potatoes is a good source of fiber and antioxidants, so you can leave the skins on when roasting them.

Roast them with their skins for maximum nutrition and flavor. If you prefer even more crunch, add some olive oil before baking them in the oven. However, if you're making something for picky eaters like toddlers or babies, peeling the sweet potato before roasting it will definitely be your best bet.

❄️ Storing Sweet Potatoes in the Refrigerator

Most of the time, sweet potatoes are best stored in a cool, dry place at room temperature. It's important to note that it's not recommended to store sweet potatoes in the refrigerator because it will make them hard and tough when cooked.

If you keep sweet potatoes in a cool, dark place (like your pantry), they’ll last for up to 2 months without spoiling. Keep them in airtight containers.

💭 Conclusion

Peeling sweet potatoes is easy when you use the right tools, but it can be tricky if you don't know how to peel them correctly.

If you want to ensure that your sweet potato peels come off quickly and in one piece, follow these tips from an experienced home cook!