These Easy Pan Fried Sweet Potatoes are amazingly crispy from outside and soft mushy within! Sauteed in a skillet/ wok, these crispy sweet potato slices, packed with spicy savory flavors, are a healthy side dish perfect for holidays!

The Elegant recipe of Savory Pan Fried Sweet Potatoes roasted in olive oil and topped with Black Salt and Black pepper are a wonderful snack that can be had along with meal too. Roast them, bake them or pan fry them, sweet potatoes are always a hearty treat.
If you need a quick recipe that gathers in no time, you may try this recipe of easy sauteed sweet potatoes. The prep time and baking time are totally reduced when you make this stove top recipe. Add a dash of honey or maple to make them sweet, if you like it. You may also like Sweet Potato Fritters/ Tikki and Eggless Sweet Potato Pie from my blog.
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Why Would You Love This Recipe?
- Indulge in Healthy Side Dish.
- A Simple yet Delicious Recipe
- Kids Friendly
- Rich in Vitamin A and C.
- Vegan and Gluten Free
- Minimal Ingredients and just 15 min recipe!
- Make Ahead of time.
- Scalable Recipe
- Customize to add any flavor or spices.
- The Best Roasted Sweet Potato Recipe Ever!
Ingredients
- Sweet Potato- is the star ingredient of this recipe. The local produce works best. Wash them thoroughly and peel before using. You may do this step a day in advance too. I prefer using the gard variety- its purple from out and light yellow within. Choose the one which is firm and clean. The variety which is not firm won't turn out to be crispy enough.
- Salt- This recipe uses Black salt (Indian) as it has perfect umami flavor that is needed for snacks. You may use kosher or table salt as well.
- Black Pepper- balances the sweetness of sweet potatoes and add a hint of spicy flavor to it. I love the blending flavors of sweet, salt and spicy. Feel free to adjust the heat.
- Red Chili Powder- I love spicy snacks and this red chili does perfect justice to it. Feel free to adjust the heat. For me, it's really mild spicy but our appetite for spicy may differ significantly. So start with very little quantity and increase if need be.
- Lemon Juice- The fresh lemon juice squeezed over the roasted sweet potatoes add perfect tangy flavor.
- Olive Oil- Olive oil adds earthy flavor. You may use any vegetable oil, coconut oil or ghee.
Variations
- Air Fryer Sweet Potatoes- The sauteed sweet potato are made using oil as much as needed. If you want less oil to be used, you may air fry them. Place them at even gaps in the basket and brush gently with oil and spices and air fry for about 20 min at 400 F.
- Baked Sweet Potato Nuggets- For more crispy flavor, bake these sweet potatoes in an OTG or an oven at 200 degrees C for about 10 min. Flip them in between.
- Loaded Sweet Potato Fries- Make a spicy treat by adding cheese, peppers and sauces over the crispy sweet potato.
- Add another spice- You may add cinnamon spice or coat them with honey or maple syrup for sweet flavors.
- Add another green- Top this healthy snack with chopped cilantro or coriander leaves.
Storage Suggestions
You may store the leftovers in a dry container with lid in the refrigerator for about 3 days. For reheating, let them sit on kitchen counter for half an hour and reheat in oven for about 5-10 min or pan heat them for 3 min on simmer.
How to Serve Crispy Sweet Potato
Serve these healthy skillet sweet potatoes with a salsa dip and team them with following for a light lunch-
Expert Tips
- When sauteing the sweet potatoes in a skillet or a wok, covering it with lid, helps cook faster.
- 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.
FAQs
Yes, sweet potatoes are amazing when deep fried. For a healthy version, this recipe pan fries them slowly over stove top and they turned out delicious too!
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.
Detailed Recipe with Steps
Step 1 Wash and Chop
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. Please note deep frying would need more oil and won't be very healthy. 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.
Step 2 Saute In Wok
In a heavy bottomed wok, heat the olive oil. Once it's warm, add spices. Quickly add sweet potato and salt. 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.
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 warm. Sprinkle cilantro or coriander leaves and serve warm with a choice of your dip and Enjoy!
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.
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If you make this recipe, share the image of it on our Instagram account @veg.buffet or Twitter account @vegbuffet.
Pan Fried Sweet Potato Recipe {Vegan, Gluten-Free & Healthy}
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. Please note deep frying would need more oil and won't be very healthy. 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.
- 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..