Cooking Basics: Roasted sweet potatoes

Ok, so maybe the idea of roasted sweet potatoes doesn’t get you all stirred up like, say, a pan of red velvet brownies cut into heart shapes or something equally charming. But let me defend the merits of the roasted sweet potato: sweet potatoes are available year ’round, they’re easily made delicious when prepared correctly, and they’re loaded with health benefits.

If you’re like me, you were raised eating these potato powerhouses around Thanksgiving and Christmas, and then largely ignoring them for the rest of the year. Also, your mom may have boiled them in preparation for sweet potato casserole. I am a proponent of boiling them for that sweet, gooey casserole, but when it is time for regular meals, when you’re looking for a side for, say, a thick, juicy center-cut pork chop and some collard greens (we’ll talk about my new-found love for those greens soon), then you’ll want to avoid the boil, and use the roasting method.

Why? Because roasting the cubes of sweet potato in the oven yields a wonderful chewiness to each piece of potato. There’s no dissolving potato flesh, as with boiling. The flavor of the sweet potato is preserved…no, enhanced…by roasting, while boiling removes much of the flavor. So I hope you’ll give them a go.

Here’s how:

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

1 large sweet potato per person to be served
olive oil
seasoning of your choice (good ideas: a bit of dried rosemary, sage or thyme, or a no-salt spice blend of your choice)

Method:

Wash, peel and chop raw sweet potatoes into about 3/4 to 1 inch dice. Drop into a bowl.
Drizzle a tablespoon or two of olive oil over the sweet potatoes, and toss to coat thoroughly. Lightly season, if desired.
Spread the oiled potatoes out on the baking sheet in a single layer, and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. (if at the end of 30 minutes you feel you would like the chunks softer, roast for another five minutes.
Related: Roasted sweet potatoes with sage-brown butter sauce

After I made a large pan of these potatoes, I served them for family dinner, and there were a couple of servings left over. I had them for breakfast for a few days. With collard greens….and a farm fresh egg cracked over the top, and then I covered the skillet and let the egg cook in the steam. ~sigh

I have always been a fan of savory food for breakfast. Eating something sweet like pancakes or pastries, while I enjoy them, leaves my stomach feeling out of sorts. Not a great way to start the day, so I have expanded my horizons! What do you prefer for breakfast?

Soon, very soon, I’m going to help you love collard greens, like I do. Stop arguing, it’s going to happen. 😉