Sweet, melty, buttery smashed sweet potatoes made easily in your air fryer! A delightful side dish made in a small batch to serve two, or it can be scaled up in a larger air fryer.
Introducing Smashed Sweet Potatoes!
So we’ve done smashed potatoes and we’ve done smashed broccoli… What next? Smashed sweet potatoes! These are an absolute treat of a side dish. Sweet, buttery, melty, just wonderful in every way.
The result is a little different to smashed white potatoes, because sweet potatoes are so soft they don’t get all crunchy. So what you get is soft insides which melt in the mouth, with a slightly caramelized outer layer. You can flavor these any which way you like, to make them work with whatever genre of dinner you’re serving.
They are a breeze to make in the air fryer, and this recipe makes just enough for two as a side dish or snack.
Ingredients
- Sweet potato. This recipe works with one sweet potato, making it a great side dish for two people to share.
- Butter and honey. After smashing the sweet potatoes we add a melted butter and honey. The sweet potato drinks it up, giving lots of flavor and a sweet caramelized finish outside.
- Seasonings. I add some smoked paprika and garlic powder for extra flavor. You can add cajun or Mexican seasonings if you prefer, or anything else you like.
Make it vegan
The butter can be replaced by olive oil or vegan butter, and the honey can be replaced by maple syrup.
Top Tips for Air Frying Smashed Sweet Potatoes
- The sweet potatoes cook in an 8×8 inch cake pan within the air fryer which I find to be the easiest way since you can remove the pan when it comes time to smash the potatoes down.
- I use an Instant Vortex which fits the cake pan comfortably, and I’d expect most medium-large air fryers to be able to take this sized pan. If your air fryer takes a larger pan, go ahead and scale up if you wish.
- All air fryers are different! Your cook time may vary a little. Just keep an eye on things, you can’t get this too wrong.
Pair me with…
Air Fryer Smashed Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1 small sweet potato, chopped into small rounds or cubes
- olive oil, for brushing
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tsp honey
- spices and seasonings, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 180C / 360F.
- Add the sweet potato to an 8×8 inch cake pan. Brush very lightly with olive oil. Place in the air fryer for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, place the butter and honey together in a small bowl. Microwave for 15-30 seconds until melted and set aside.
- Remove the sweet potatoes from the air fryer and use a small glass or ramekin to gently press on each piece of sweet potato to smash / break / misshape it. You don't want it to fully collapse – you just want it a little misshapen, and you want some of the soft flesh to be exposed.
- Add any spices and seasonings you're using to the top of the sweet potatoes and then spoon the honey butter over the top of each sweet potato.
- Put back in the air fryer for another 10-15 minutes until the tops are caramelized.
