Can You Cook Sweet Potatoes With The Skin On? [Is It Better To Do It?]

If you want to cut down your meal prep time, you may wonder if you can skip peeling sweet potatoes before cooking them. Can you cook sweet potatoes without peeling their skins?

You can cook sweet potatoes with the skin on. Boiling and oven baking are the two most common methods for cooking sweet potatoes with the skin on. The skins of sweet potatoes aren’t just edible; they’re nutritious as well. There are many benefits to keeping sweet potato skins on when you cook them.

Let’s discuss why cooking and eating sweet potatoes with the skin on is a good idea. Let’s also see the most popular and delicious ways to cook sweet potatoes with their skin on.

Can You Cook Sweet Potato Without Peeling Them?

You may be used to peeling sweet potatoes before cooking them because of traditional dishes like gazed sweet potatoes on Thanksgiving.

However, there are loads of other ways to cook sweet potatoes without peeling them.

Sweet potatoes can be boiled, baked, roasted, fried, or steamed with their skins on!

Keeping the skin on while you cook them has a number of benefits.

Not only does it make meal preparation quicker and easier, but it ensures that the sweet potatoes stay moist and packed with nutrients.

How Long Does It Take To Boil Sweet Potato With The Skin On?

Depending on the size of the sweet potato, it can take between 30 and 50 minutes to boil a whole sweet potato until it’s fully cooked through.

Is It Okay To Eat Sweet Potato Skin?

Many people wonder if it is okay to eat sweet potato skins after you have cooked them with the skin on.

Not only is it okay to eat them, but they taste great and are good for you!

It’s safe to eat raw or cooked sweet potato skins, as long as you wash the sweet potato well before cooking it.

All the different types of sweet potato – white, orange, and purple-flesh varieties have edible skin.

Is It Better To Cook Sweet Potatoes Without Peeling Them?

When you leave the peel on a sweet potato, it keeps the moisture inside as it cooks and concentrates the sweet potatoes’ nutrients.

Keeping the skin on helps them cook more evenly (avoiding hard spots in the middle).

Even if you need peeled sweet potatoes for a recipe, cook them with the skin on first because they are easier to peel once they have been boiled.

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Benefits Of Eating Sweet Potato With The Skin On

There are several benefits of eating a sweet potato with the skin on.

Sweet potato skins contain lots of fiber. This helps you feel fuller and more satisfied after a meal.

Fiber helps to manage cholesterol levels and regulate sugar.

You can’t get these benefits from sweet potatoes if you peel them.

Sweet potatoes are rich in antioxidants – vitamin C, vitamin E, beta carotene, and chlorogenic acid.

The nutrients are concentrated in the skin and just below it.

They help to prevent damage to our cells, lowering our risks of diseases.

Methods Of Cooking Sweet Potato With The Skin On

There are many different ways to prepare sweet potatoes without peeling them.

Here, we explain the most popular ways to cook sweet potatoes with their skin on.

1. Boil Or Steam Sweet Potatoes With The Skin On

The best way to cook sweet potatoes is to boil or steam them.

You can boil them whole, but it takes about 30 to 50 minutes, depending on the size of the sweet potato.

It is quicker to cut them into cubes and then boil or steam them.

Follow these steps to boil sweet potatoes:

1. Without peeling them, prepare the sweet potatoes by cutting off any woody bits and the ends.
2. Chop them into bite-sized pieces, roughly the same size, so that they all cook at the same rate.
3. Put the sweet potatoes in a pot and fill it with water to just cover them. Add a dash of salt, and cover the lid while you bring them to a boil.
4. The sweet potatoes should be tender after around 20 or 25 minutes. Check if they are cooked by piercing them lightly with a fork.
5. Drain away the cooking water as soon as they are cooked using a colander.

To steam sweet potatoes, prepare them as described above and then cook them in a pot with a steamer basket.

Use about an inch of water and let them cook for half an hour.

2. Bake Or Roast Sweet Potatoes With The Skin On

Roasting cubed sweet potatoes or baking them whole with their skin on are definitely the tastiest methods of cooking sweet potatoes.

Follow these steps to roast or bake sweet potatoes in the oven:

1. Keep the sweet potatoes whole or cut them into bite-sized pieces.
2. Poke holes in the skin if you keep the sweet potatoes whole.
3. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
4. Coat the sweet potatoes in olive oil and add a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and garlic to taste.
5. Put the sweet potatoes into the oven on a baking sheet or roasting tray.
6. It takes about 45 minutes for cubed sweet potatoes to cook.
7. A whole sweet potato takes 45 minutes to an hour to bake, depending on its size.

3. Make Sweet Potato Fries Or Wedges With The Skin On

After cleaning the tubers and drying them, slice them into wedges or fries.

Coat them in olive oil, salt, and pepper.

You can use an air fryer for cooking your sweet potato chips, or you can fry them in a pot of oil.

Can You Cook A Sweet Potato With The Skin On In The Microwave?

It takes ages (45 minutes to an hour) to cook a whole sweet potato with the skin on in the oven, so you may think it wise to take a shortcut and use the microwave.

Even though it’s technically possible to cook sweet potatoes in the microwave, it certainly isn’t the best method to cook them.

Sweet potatoes never cook evenly in a microwave, so they come out with hard lumps in the middle.

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Always Scrub Sweet Potatoes If You Are Leaving The Skin On

Before preparing and cooking sweet potatoes for a recipe, the first thing you should do is wash them.

You need to scrub the skins thoroughly to ensure no grit ends up on your plate.

Place the sweet potatoes in a colander in the sink and run water over them while you scrub them with a clean vegetable brush.

Dry them before baking them whole to ensure the skin gets nice and crispy.