These days you can find sweet potato fries on many restaurant menus, but just ten years or so ago that wasn’t the case. I still remember the first time I ever tasted them- it was at McMenamins when we lived in Portland. They were were served plain with just a sprinkling of salt, and they were so good. I didn’t expect to like them but when I bit into that crispy, salty exterior and found a soft fluffy center, I was sold. I came home right away and tried a homemade version that was baked in the oven instead of fried. These Baked Sweet Potato Fries with Honey-Lime Dip are a fun side dish and healthy alternative to both traditional oil-fried fries and also regular potato dishes.
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
Sweet Potato Fries
- Sweet potatoes – Red/orange-fleshed varieties are what I use. White sweet potatoes will also work, but they are generally milker, starchier, and drier, so the fries may be a little more firm and crispy, but less sweet and flavorful.
- Olive oil – Or any light cooking oil.
- Seasonings
- cumin
- oregano
- coriander
- kosher salt
- black pepper
- parsley
Honey-Lime Dip
- Plain yogurt – Any plain, unsweetened yogurt will do. Regular or Greek. Greek yogurt will produce a slightly thicker dip than regular yogurt.
- Mayonnaise – Light or regular. I prefer a quality brand like Duke’s or Best Foods/Hellman’s.
- Honey
- Lime juice – Fresh is best! True lime will work in a pinch, but I would avoid bottled lime juice.
- Seasonings
- cumin
- oregano
- pasley
- onion
- kosher salt
How to Make Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- You’re going to slice those sweet potatoes into 1/4 inch match sticks to start. You can peel them or wash them and leave the skins on if you prefer.
- Those get tossed in olive oil and spices (cumin, oregano, and coriander, along with basic salt and pepper) and get laid out on a lined baking sheet, then get popped into a preheated oven.
- While the fries are baking, you’ll mix up your dipping sauce: pain yogurt, many of the same spices from the fries, honey, and fresh lime juice.
- The fries get flipped half way through baking to maximize crispiness. When they are done cooking, enjoy immediately with your honey-lime dip!
Storing and Other Tips
- These fries are best freshly made! If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge and enjoy within 2-3 days. Reheat in the air fryer or oven to restore some crispiness!
- A Note on Texture: I think it’s safe to say pretty much everyone enjoys a crunchy deep-fried traditional potato fry. It’s important to note that sweet potato fries, even when deep fried, do not produce the same crispy fry that white potatoes do. When you bake them, they are even less crispy. They are delicious, but I feel like expectations need to be managed if you are expecting a super crispy fry!
Frequently Asked Questions
Nope! Feel free to wash your sweet potatoes and cut them up with the skin on!
You should be able to, but you will likely need to cook them in batches if you are making the full recipe. I would preheat the air fryer to 380°F and arrange the prepared fries in a single layer. Air fry for 10-15 minutes, shaking the basket or flipping the fries every 4-5 minutes until the edges are browned and the insides are tender. You may want to reduce the oil slightly for the air fryer.
Nope! If you’re just making these for yourself, you can scale the recipe down to a single, small sweet potato. If you’re wanting to use the air fryer (see previous frequently asked question) this is a great way to do it. Use the serving adjustment buttons on the recipe card to adjust the recipe amounts for you.
Sure! I would just avoid seasonings that tend to burn easily, like granulated garlic.
Sweet potatoes are naturally softer than the potatoes that are generally used for traditional fries. To get the best crisp, make sure they are in a single layer, with space between fries and be sure to flip them half way through baking. Convection baking can help them crisp up as well, if that’s an option for you!
Yes, just keep them in an airtight container or sip-top bag in the fridge until ready to use. You could even toss the oil and seasonings in and shake them all up, then refrigerate until ready to bake.
Baked Sweet Potato Fries with Honey-Lime Dip
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Fries
- 1 pound peeled sweet potatoes cut into ¼" match-sticks 1 pound after they are peeled, sliced, etc. If you weigh them at the store make sure you have a little more than a pound to allow for the peeling, and tossing of small pieces.
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon coriander
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
Honey-Lime Dip
- 6 ounces plain low-fat yogurt one small container
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise light mayonnaise is fine
- ½ tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ⅛ teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425℉.
- Place sweet potatoes in a pile directly on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Use hands to toss until all pieces are well coated. Sprinkle seasoning mixture on top and toss again with hands to coat.
- Arrange sweet potatoes in a single layer so that pieces are not touching each other. Place pan in oven and bake for 15 minutes. Use a metal spatula to gently flip fries and then return pan to oven. Cook for an additional 15-20 minutes or until fries are starting to lightly brown and crisp. Remove pan from oven and cool 5 minutes.
- While potatoes are cooking, mix all dip ingredients and place in fridge to chill. Serve fries immediately.
Notes
- Nutritional information reflects 1/4 of the total fries (20-30 fries per serving, depending on how they are cut) and 2 tablespoons of dip.
Air Fryer Instructions
Ideal for a single-serving batch. Use the recipe adjustment buttons above to calculate ingredient amounts for a larger or smaller batch. You will likely need to cook these in batches if you are making the full recipe.- Preheat the air fryer to 380°F and arrange the prepared fries in a single layer. Air fry for 10-15 minutes, shaking the basket or flipping the fries every 4-5 minutes until the edges are browned and the insides are tender. You may want to reduce the oil slightly for the air fryer.
Questions & Reviews
Yummm! Made these for dinner this weekend along with the french dip recipe, what a great combo! I have only had SP fries from a restaurant (The Keg) before, these were as good if not better. Will definitely add them to my list of repeats. I didn't make the dip tho, just enjoyed them on their own.
I may have cut mine a bit thinner as I didn't need to cook for the suggested time.
coriander the spice. If we ever call for the herb, we say cilantro 🙂
I think I checked all your comments to make sure no one already asked this: When you have 'coriander' in your list of ingredients, do you mean cilantro (an herb), or coriander (a spice)? (I'm thinking cilantro, but want to make sure…
Dancemom- I'd say 4-6
This recipe looks really good and I am planning on making it tonight. However, I am not sure if I am missing this information – I can't find the serving size anywhere. Could you post that or point it out? Thanks.
Elita- it might just be because they're sweet potatoes! They never get super crip. The best tips I have are cutting them really small and making sure they have space while baking, also baking long enough. Good luck!
We make sweet potato oven fries once a week because there are antioxidants that you can only get from sweet potatoes and other orange veg like pumpkins and squash. Anyway, while I LOVE these oven fries I can never really get them to crisp up properly. Is it because my fries are too close together on the cookie sheet? Otherwise I am doing it exactly as you lay out here.
I know I'm late to this party, but I wanted to let you know that I make these whenever I get sweet potatoes from our CSA, and our whole family loves them! Thanks for sharing!
I made these a few weeks ago and wanted to share this tidbit. I sliced the sweet potatoes a few days ahead of time and couldn't figure out if it would be better to bake and then freeze or freeze and then bake. So I split what I sliced in half. My tip: Slice and don't season – freeze. Pull out to defrost the morning of and then bake. They came out so YUMMY! The baked and frozen ones were just a little too over done – really crispy though – if you're into charcoal. 🙂
So do they not turn dark or anything when you put them in the freezer without being cooked at all first? Everything I’ve read about freezing sweet potato says to cook a little bit first. I’ll take your word for it though, thanks for the tip!
These were amaaazzing! 🙂 I will definitely be making these again. But I definitely need to invest in a potato peeler, because all I had was a small little steak knife (i'm a college student, what can i say?) and peeling it alone took 15 minutes, and cutting them into thin little strips was another 15, plus I was a bit scared about cutting my fingers! With the right tools, I think I could whip these up in no time, though.