These Sautéed Sweet Potatoes are amazingly crispy on the outside and soft and mushy within! Pan-fried slowly over the stove top, these crispy, golden browned sweet potato slices, packed with warm spices, are a quick vegan side dish perfect for holidays!
Sweet potatoes have always been a favorite of mine, and I give all the credit to the 'Shakarkandi chaat bhaiya' in the Delhi markets. This sautéed sweet potato recipe was my first attempt at making them at home in a new way. I used only black pepper, lemon juice, and kala namak to keep the flavor simple and tasty.
This easy recipe for Savory Sweet Potatoes roasted in olive oil is a great side dish that can be had along with a meal too. Add a dash of honey or maple to make them sweet or your favorite seasonings to temper it. Roast them, bake them, or pan-fry them; they are always a hearty treat.
The prep time and baking time are reduced when you make this stovetop simple recipe. I have used steel wok. One may use cast iron pan or skillet as well.
Serve the warm sweet potato pieces by stuffing them in a loaf of bread or have them as is. Trust me this would be your favorite side dish soon!
More Easy Side Dishes: Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans, Sweet Potato Fritters/ Tikki, Sweet Potato Chaat from my blog.
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Ingredients
- Sweet Potato- is the star ingredient of this recipe. The local produce works best.
- Salt, Black pepper- This recipe uses Black salt (Indian) as it has the perfect umami flavor that is needed for snacks.
- Red Chili Powder- adjust the heat.
- Lemon Juice- The fresh lemon juice squeezed over the roasted sweet potatoes adds perfect tangy flavor.
- Olive Oil
How To Make Sauteed Sweet Potatoes
Step 1 Wash and Chop
Wash the sweet potato under the tap as it may be muddy. Let it dry for a while. Peel and wash again.
Slice it in thin as we would pan-fry it in minimum oil. If you are deep frying them, about ½ inch slice would work. If you like crispy sweet potatoes and need a quicker recipe, be generous with oil.
I have sliced it in the round. you may chop them into little cubes (or ½-inch cubes) as well.
Step 2 Saute In Wok
In a heavy-bottomed wok, heat the olive oil. Once it's warm, add spices. Quickly add sweet potato cubes or slices and salt. Mix well and let it cook on simmer or medium heat for about 5-10 min. Cover it with a lid for quick cooking. Keep a close watch and keep stirring so that the cooking is uniform. The sweet potatoes would be fork tender soon and would be easily cut by a spatula. Pls, note that cooking time can vary a bit if you are using some other skillet or change the cooking method to baking or air frying.
If you are making a large batch, you may scale up the oil and spices and can make it ahead of time as well.
You may add lemon juice when they are almost done.
Step 3 Serve It
Let them sit in the wok for about 2 min or till they are at room temperature for best results. Sprinkle cilantro or coriander leaves and serve warm with a choice of dip. Enjoy this savory side dish!
Expert Tips
- When sauteing the sweet potatoes in a skillet or a wok, covering it with a lid, helps cook faster.
- Make sure to use a heavy-bottomed skillet or an iron skillet as this recipe uses minimum oil and being starchy, sweet potato might stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Once almost done, let it sit in the pan covered with a lid.
- If you like sweet potatoes very crispy, you may preferably bake them or fry them in more oil than used in this recipe. More oil makes a thin crispy layer on the outside.
- For pan frying, make sure to slice thin for uniform cooking, or else the sweet potato will be raw from within.
Recipe FAQs
For making crispy sweet potato fries, spread them evenly in a skillet or a baking dish. Coat them generously with oil for a perfect crisp bite!
Slice the sweet potato in thin and cover the pan with a lid while cooking on slow flame.
Storage Suggestions
You may store the leftovers in a dry container with a lid in the refrigerator for about 3 days. For reheating, let them sit on the kitchen counter for half an hour and reheat in the oven for about 5-10 min or pan-heat them for 3 min on a simmer.
You may freeze them in a freezer-safe container for about a week or 10 days.
How to Serve Crispy Sweet Potato
Serve these skillet sweet potatoes with a salsa dip and team them with following for a light lunch-
Stories From Kitchen
Sweet Potato or as we call it Shakarkandi is a wonderful snack that we had since childhood. In every Indian markets, there is always a snack corner and we get shakarkandi chaat from it. Slowly roasted over coals, peeled and chopped in large chunks, topped with spices and lemon juice, this chaat is utterly delicious.
More Vegan Side Dish-
- Quick Bhindi Fry Recipe (Indian Okra Fry)
- Kala Chana Recipe (Black Chickpeas Curry)
- Methi Paratha Recipe
Have you tried this recipe? Please leave a comment below and let me know what sides you served it with! If you loved it, feel free to share this post with your friends who love simple Indian cooking.
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Easy Sautéed Sweet Potatoes
Equipment
- 1 heavy bottomed wok pan would work too
Ingredients
- 1 cup sweet potato 200 gm
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon black pepper can adjust the heat
- 1 teaspoon salt can adjust as per taste
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice fresh
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder adjust the heat
Instructions
- Wash the sweet potato under tap as it may be muddy. Let it dry for a while. Peel and wash again. Slice it in thin as we would pan fry them in minimum oil. If you are deep frying them, about ½ inch slice would work. If you really like crispy sweet potatoes and need a quicker recipe, be generous with oil.I have slice in round. you may chop them in any shape.
- In a heavy bottomed wok, heat the olive oil. Once it's warm, add salt and spices and sweet potato. Mix well and let it cook on simmer for about 5-10 min. Cover it with a lid for quick cooking. Keep a close watch and keep stirring so that the cooking is uniform. The sweet potatoes would be tender soon and would be easily cut by spatula.
- Let them sit in the wok for about 2 min or till warm. Sprinkle lemon juice and serve warm with a choice of your dip and Enjoy!
Notes
- When sauteing the sweet potatoes in a skillet or a wok, covering it with lid, helps cook faster.Since sweet potatoes are starchy, they might stick to bottom of the wok. Add more oil and saute on slow flame.
- Make sure to use a heavy bottomed skillet or a iron skillet as this recipe uses minimum oil and being starchy, sweet potato might stick to the bottom of the skillet.
- Once almost done, let it sit in the pan covered with a lid.
- If you like sweet potato very crispy, you may preferably bake them or fry them in more oil than used in this recipe. More oil makes a thin crispy layer on the outside.
- For pan frying, make sure to slice thin for uniform cooking or else the sweet potato would be raw from within.
Hema Jain says
perfect recipe. I made it for my son and it gathered so quickly. Amazing snack. thanks so much for sharing
Deepti says
wow, Hema! Such a quick recipe for kids. Thanks for letting me know.
Tressa says
Such a simple, easy side dish. Thank you for sharing!
Deepti says
I am glad that you liked it! Thanks so much, Tressa!
Karina says
What a fun snack and side dish! So quick and easy perfect for busy weeknights dinner. Looks delicious!
Deepti says
Thanks so much, Karina! Keep visiting for more!
Tiffany says
I love sweet potatoes and this is a great and easy recipe to enjoy them for dinner.
Deepti says
Thanks so much, Tiffany! so glad to know!
Charlotte says
This pan fried sweet potato recipe is so good I like it as a side dish! I love how crispy it gets and it's so simple to make. Thanks for a great recipe!
Deepti says
Thanks so much for the lovely words! I am so glad to know this!!
Amy says
Thanks for sharing these amazing techniques for achieving crispy sweet potatoes. It worked! My family loved them and I'll be making them again!
Deepti says
I am so glad to know this, Amy! Thanks so much for sharing with me! Keep visiting for more recipes..