Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
These Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries are absolutely perfect for a meatless side dish that you’ll make over and over! Try Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries if you’re an air fryer fan!
PIN Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries to try them later!
Baked sweet potato fries have been a favorite in my family for years, so I was happy I managed to get some new photos to update this popular recipe for Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries. The first time I made this recipe, I took one bite and knew immediately I’d be making these sweet baked potato fries over and over. Who knows, this just might become your favorite way to cook sweet potatoes, whether you eat them regularly or just make this occasionally for a splurge on the carbs.
And if you have an Air Fryer, you might want to try my Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries, which are just slightly more crisp than the baked ones! And of course there are a huge variety of things that would taste good with sweet potato fries, but I am hugely partial to Sriracha Dipping Sauce to serve with these.
What ingredients do you need?
- large sweet potatoes
- Olive Oil (affiliate link)
- sweet potato fry seasoning mix (below)
- Sriracha Dipping Sauce (optional but recommended
What do you need for the Sweet Potato Fry Seasoning Mix?
- ground coriander (affiliate link)
- ground fennel (affiliate link)
- Dried Oregano (affiliate link)
- Aleppo Pepper (affiliate link) (or use less red pepper flakes)
- kosher salt
Do I Need to Cut Up Whole Sweet Potatoes?
You can certainly make this recipe with those pre-cut sweet potato fries that show up in the stores this time of year, but I prefer to cut my own so I can make them a little thicker. Having a little more thickness lets me cook them slightly longer for maximum crispness, although sweet potatoes don’t ever get as crisp as regular fries.
These are Sweet Potatoes and not Yams!
Orange-fleshed sweet potatoes are often called “Yams” or “Sweet Yams” in the United States. but they’re really sweet potatoes. Please trust me on this. And if you’re a fan of savory recipes with sweet potatoes, you can check out Favorite Healthy Sweet Potato Recipes to see my personal faves.
How to make Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries:
(Scroll down for complete recipe including nutritional information.)
- Cut off both ends of the sweet potato and use a sharp vegetable peeler to peel off the skin.
- Then cut the sweet potato in half lengthwise and again in half crosswise, so you have four pieces.
- Slice each piece longways into 2 or 3 slices.
- Then cut each slice into 4 or possibly five fries.
- I like to make thick fries, about 1/2 to 5/8 inch thick (12-15 mm.) I don’t mind if the pieces are a little irregular, it adds to the charm!
- Put the fries into a large bowl and toss with enough olive oil so all the fries are very lightly coated with oil (1-2 tablespoons of oil for 2 sweet potatoes, depending on how big the sweet potatoes are.)
- Then sprinkle with 2-3 teaspoons of spicy sweet potato fry seasoning (see recipe for how to make that.)
- Use the largest baking sheet you have and spray with olive oil or non-stick spray. Arrange sweet potatoes so the flat side is down and they’re not touching each other. (Use 2 pans if your pan isn’t big enough.)
- I used to bake these at 425F, but I’ve come to like them better cooked at 450F/230C, and that’s the temperature I used this time.
- Cook 15 minutes, then use your fingers or a fork to turn them over and put back in the oven.
- Cook 15 minutes more and turn them again.
- Put back into the oven. Cook another 5-10 minutes, depending on how well-done you like them. (I cooked mine about 7 minutes more.)
- Sriracha Dipping Sauce is my favorite for dipping sweet potato fries!
- I promise, these Spicy Sweet Potato Fries will be a hit with anyone who likes sweet potatoes!
More Tasty Recipes for Sweet Potatoes:
- Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Sweet Potato Gratin
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Feta
- Sweet Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Sausage, and Broccoli Sheet Pan Meal
Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
These Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries are a meatless side dish that you'll make over and over!
Ingredients
- 2 orange-fleshed sweet potatoes
- 2 T olive oil (see notes)
- Sriracha Dipping Sauce (optional)
Spice Mix Ingredients:
- 2 T ground coriander
- 1 T ground fennel
- 1 T dried oregano (use any Mediterranean oregano like Greek Oregano or Turkish oregano, but not Mexican oregano for this.)
- 1 T Aleppo Pepper (or use a smaller amount of cayenne pepper)
- 2 T kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450F/230C.
- In mortar and pestle or spice grinder, grind together coriander, fennel, oregano, and Aleppo pepper. Mix in salt. (This makes enough for several batches of sweet potatoes, so you'll need a small jar to store the extra.)
- Cut off both ends of the sweet potatoes and peel with a sharp vegetable peeler. Then cut each sweet potato in half lengthwise and again crosswise so you have four pieces.
- Slice each piece into 2 or 3 thick slices, then cut each slice into fries. (I made them about 1/2 - 5/8 inches thick, or about 12-15 mm.)
- In plastic bowl, toss together cut sweet potatoes, olive oil, and spice mixture. You will need about 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2-3 teaspoons of the spice mixture for two sweet potatoes, depending on how big the sweet potatoes are and how spicy you like it.
- Spray flat roasting pan with non-stick spray. (Use the largest baking sheet you have.)
- Spread out sweet potatoes in single layer, with the flat side down and not touching each other. (Use two baking sheets if yours is too small to do this.)
- Roast sweet potatoes 15 minutes, then use your fingers or a fork to turn each sweet potato.
- Roast 15 minutes more and turn again. Roast another 5-10 minutes, depending on how done you like them.
- Serve hot, with Sriracha Dipping Sauce, if desired.
Notes
Use more or less oil to taste, but you want enough oil to make the spice mix stick to the sweet potatoes.
Recipe adapted from Epicurious.com.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 134Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 3502mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 4gSugar: 8gProtein: 2g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Sweet potatoes are probably too high in carbs for low-carb eating plans except for maybe an occasional splurge, but they’re considered a “good” carb for the original South Beach Diet (unlike potatoes, which are very high on the glycemic index.) This would be a great side dish for phase two or three of South Beach.
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Sweet Potato Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe was first posted in 2007! It was updated with better photos in 2013 and the recipe was last updated with more information in 2021.
72 Comments on “Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries”
Kalyn,
We make a lot of your recipes and love them all!
I made these Sweet Potato Fries tonight and they came out burnt. The bottoms were black on the first flip. I used 2 tablespoons of oil and wiped the pan with olive oil, not sure what went wrong. Surprisingly they still tasted good with the dipping sauce!
I am surprised and sorry to hear that, and it makes me wonder if you’ve ever had your oven calibrated? Some ovens cook much hotter than the time says. I checked my original recipe notes and that was the time I used.
Glad you are enjoying the recipes!
Just finished eating my 99th zillion batch ; Picked up beautiful sweet potatoes in today's CSA box (bittersweet last of the season). This recipe is perfection, although I stopped peeling them long ago – more nutritious, much easier/faster, and they still taste terrific!
Doren, so glad you are enjoying them, and I agree about not peeling them!
Kathleen, that is just how I felt the first time I tried them! So glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Fell in love with this as soon as I put the first sweet potato fry in my mouth. I didn't have all the spices on hand so just used what I had and they were awesome.
Thanks Dara, I agree completely!
I could happily eat these every day of the week. Adding some spice makes sweet potato fries even better, if that's possible.
Joanne, this recipe is such a winner! Hope you enjoy.
I adore sweet potato fries! I'll have to try them with this spice mix…yum!
Alyssa, this seasoning mix is the bomb, hope you it! And my pleasure!
I make sweet potato fries quite often but never tried that spice combo – that is my next batch! P.S. Thanks for including my sweet potato mash 🙂
Hi Jessica. You definitely want Mediterranean oregano for this recipe, sometimes called Greek Oregano or Turkish oregano. I'll edit the recipe to clarify that, thanks for the question. I bet this is a big hit with the office mates!
Hi! Just found this recipe and decided to put together the spice mixture for my office for Christmas. So, I was ordering spices from Penzeys and wondered whether you use Mexican oregano or Mediterranean oregano. Thanks!
Just realized as I came here remind myself of the oven temp so I can make these for what is likely literally the 50th time (I keep a baggie with the premade spice mix in my spice drawer at all times) that I've never left a comment!
So… just wanted to tell you I love this recipe so much that I've made it probably 50 times since finding it here several years ago. Whenever I make it people go wild and gobble them up. I serve them with vegan aioli and the combination is sheer indulgence!
I'm excited to try this over the weekend. My son will surely love it! He's crazy about potatoes!
Sean, sounds interesting! Haven't heard of that dish before.
This Thanksgiving, my wife made a delicious sweet potato side dish called shakkarkandi. This simple preparation can be found on the streets of Northern India when the weather gets cold. Check it out!
OOOOHHHH la la! Yes, I will be making and these look wonderful. Thanks for the recipe.
Yikes! Big oversight on my part. Thanks for pointing that out–I updated the citation 🙂
New Cook, glad you liked them, but as the recipe credit says, I found the recipe on Epicurious.com, so I can't take credit for that.
These were *fantastic.* And I've made lots of sweet potato fries! These are a definite keeper, and I even decided to make my inaugural blog post about this recipe!
Thanks for bringing these into the world, Kalyn 😀
Sushma, thanks! So glad you liked it.
Hi Kalyn,
I got the link to this recipe through Nupur's blog and I always wanted to try it out…so I did it last week and these fries tasted so amazing!!! Thanks for sharing it.
Donna, thanks for sharing your version. I think there are lots of combinations of spices that would work here. Isn’t this just delicious! Love this recipe.
This was fantastic. I made them tonight. I adjusted based on my pantry and potato volume.
(and I don’t like fennel)
I used:
1 T ground coriander
1 T dried oregano
1/2 Teasp kosher salt
1/2 Teasp Ground Pepper
1/2 T garlic powder
1/2 T garlic salt
Mom-ster, how fun hearing that the recipe is (mostly) kid-approved! Thanks for taking time to tell me!
We tried this the other night and almost everyone — especially the babies LOVED it (I didn’t have fennel so I want to get some and see how that affects the taste)…my 3 yr old wasn’t so impressed…he feels strongly that french fries should be white…but then when you exist on belly button lint and dust bunnies gourmet food doesn’t impress you ;o).
I totally agree that it is a recipe that we’ll be making again and again…
have a Merry Christmas
lovely recipe! i am looking for something similar. can’t make this cuz don’t have the necessary spices 🙁
I just had to comment on these, oh, my goodness, they are soooo good. The spice mixture is great, I have tried many different sweet potato fries recipes over the years and this is the best. Thank you for sharing it with us. I did make a garlic curry aioli to serve with the fries and it was great. If you don’t have all the spices, it is so worth you going to get them.
Vegeturtle, thanks for the feedback! I love the idea of using five spice powder in this too!
I mad ethis yesterday, and it was a fabulous recipe. Works well with white sweet potatoes. Instead of fennel, which I didn’t have, I substituted Chinese five-spice powder: cinnamon, fennel, anise, pepper, and cloves. I think it turned out great- it gave a littl extra pretend sweetness to the potatoes that is totally yummy and totally South Beach friendly. If you have never used it, it’s a great spice blend to have. A little does go a long way..
This recipe looks great! Thanks for sharing. Can’t wait for dinner now!
This recipe is quite amazing! I really love the combination of spices. I ground everything up in my blender, and it was great. I feel that if you wanted to, you could cut back on the salt.
Anonymous, your spice combination sounds like it would taste great! Unfortunately for South Beach Dieters, the brown sugar would not be an approved addition to the recipe. Just mentioning that for anyone who didn’t know.
I was just poking around the internet when i came across this post but i wanted to put my two cents in 🙂
My spice combination included:
Cayenne pepper
Black pepper
Salt
Cumin
Garlic Powder
Oregano
Brown sugar
…i think that little bit of brown sugar really helps balance the spices for a nice deep balanced flavor with just the right hint of kick.
Admittedly this combo is amalgated from a few different recipes i came across. Hope it helps!
I just wanted to let you know that we linked to your recipe on this page:
http://www.mahalo.com/How_to_Make_Sweet_Potatoes
Thanks very much! Great stuff!
Margaret, very good point. I don’t know why I peeled them, other than that’s what the recipe said to do. Definitely I think I’ll try them not peeled, and I bet the skin part will be delicious, all crispy from roasting. Let me know if you try it that way too.
Yes, these are a great frenchfry alternative. I am wondering why you peel the potatoes, especially if you use organic sweet potatoes, then you get the peel benefits too.
Thanks.
I’m so making these! As it is, I often make sweet potato “wedges” with BBQs – I don’t even peel them, just a good scrub, cut into wedges, tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with rosemary before roasting. When they come out they get a quick sprinkle of salt & that’s it. People can’t believe what they’re eating when I tell them, especially fussy kids! I’m dying to try your spice mix…
Now I’m salivating! I love sweet fries to begin with but haven’t tried them with the herbs. I just use a little salt and pepper and they wow me when cooked that way so this will probably put me in shock! Thanks for flingin’ a cravin’ on me. Off to check my spices to see what I need and don’t have!
droooool! Those look better than sex! Okay, better than bad sex. They’re on my must cook list. Thanks for the recipe.
Rob, how fun! I do hope you like them. I’ll have to remember that place if I ever get to London (hopefully someday!)
Karina, I was completely surprised at how wowed I was by the coriander/fennel flavor combo here.
Lydia, I’m also a convert now! Better for my diet too.
Mansi, thanks for the invite. Unfortunately I hardly ever have time for many events since I teach school, write for Blogher.org, and spend so much time on this blog!
Kelly, yes. Very South Beach friendly. Healthy for any diet!
Tanna, love that Aleppo pepper.
EMWK, happy to hear from another SP fries lover.
Ex-Pat Chef, your version sounds great too!
Amy, yes. When I went to the store I bought a big bag of sweet potatoes (called sweet yams in my store.)
Nupur, glad you liked the idea! Cumin sounds like it would taste great on this too. Do post your version!
Thank you for this recipe, Kalyn! I made these fries last night (with a simple salt-cayenne pepper-cumin rub) and they are *delicious*.
Wow these fries sound amazing! Another wonderful fall dish. Yum!
I will HAVE to try that spice mix! I do mine with coarse sea salt, pepper, and cumin, then dust with parmesan. We love the baked fries like this.
I made so much sweet potatoe fries in summer and I’m into baking sweet potatoe pies now. But seeing your recipe made me want those fries again. 🙂
Let’s see . . . Monday will be the first day I can get these on the table. My Aleppo pepper is in Dallas.
Delicious fries! And because it’s sweet potatoes, they’re good for you and I can eat more, right? 🙂
we have sweet potato fries when we are fasting!:) its yummy!!and fennel sure sounds interesting…
btw, I’m hosting AFAM-Peach event on my blog this October..I’d be glad if you could find some time to send in an entry!
I’m a recent convert to sweet potato fries, and I love all things spicy. Will definitely be bookmarking this recipe!
I love sweet potato fries! I’ve never tried them with ground coriander. I’ll have to pick some up.
Thanks for another fabulous recipe- as always.
There is a vegetarian restaurant in Soho, London called Mildred’s that I normally to to with my sister when visiting there.
This last weekend we went there and I tried the sweet potato fries (as they came very highly recommended) and they were divine.
I am so pleased that you have provided a recipe as this is definitely something that I want to try at home.
Nabeela, I did make it the first two times with the very same pre-cut sweet potatoes from Costco,and they were definitely good. However, I really preferred the sweet potatoes cut a bit thicker. Either way I think you’ll like it.
Wendy, chili powder sounds good too!
Mrs. W. I don’t think it’s possible to make sweet potato fries that are truly crisp (I read a bit about this online) but the higher temperature plus oil helps. They were just a tiny bit crisp on some edges, but still delicious.
I love to make sweet potato fries, but mine always turn out floppy, whether deep-frying or roasting. What’s your secret?
Adore sweet potato fries but always season them with chilli. Looking forward to trying out your version! 🙂
that sounds soooo good. Our local Costco has now started carrying sweet potato sticks (pre-cut)…I might try this recipe with that. Thanks!
How great to hear that so many people like the sound of this recipe! I just can’t say enough good things about the spice combination! Do hope you guys will like it as much as I did!
Jaden, thanks for letting me know. How exciting, and I bet I have you to thank for this, right?
These look fabulous! And just perfect for fall. I’ll be trying these soon.
Kalyn, these look fabulous. I’m a sucker for real sweet potato fries, but obviously they’re not too SBD friendly. I’ll definitely be trying these out. Oh, and I can’t wait to see what the favorite herb of the year is this year!
Those look good and the spices sounds pretty interesting for sweet potatoes.
My mouth is watering…sweet potato fries are my favorite!! Your spice combo looks great!
Yum!!! I’ve never cooked with sweet potatoes much, but I’ve been making them a lot for my daughter lately (11 months)–just roasting cubes with olive oil–and I keep sneaking bites from her. I’ll have to make this one as a treat for mommy and daddy! Thanks Kalyn!
they do sound good. When I was staying with my mum she introduced me to a tasty savoy cabbage dish with coriander and cumin. I suggested another addition (bacon). It’s very good…!
This sounds good…my mom use to make sweet potato fries for me but never used the spices…I should try that!
We often oven roast sweet potatoes to use as a garnish for rice with jerk chicken or pork. (I LOVE those sweet potatoes!)
But I never thought of adding spices other than salt and pepper!! What a very good idea.
-Elizabeth
Yum! I’ll have to try these. That’s a very interesting spice combination. It’s definitely important to cut sweet potato fries thick. I remember making my first batch a few years ago and burning them horribly. Oops!
You’re featured in the biggest newspaper in Tampa!
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/10/10/Food/Blogosphere_s_menu_fu.shtml
Sweet potato fries are awesome and true, much better than regular potatoes. I’m glad you’ve found sweet potato frites!
Kalyn – I too am head over heels for sweet potato fries…it is hard to believe they are so good for you!! Your herb mixture sounds great, I’ll have to try this next time I make some “fries”;)
Coriander & fennel – what an interesting combination of spices!
i’ll surely be trying this – just reading the seasoning is making my mouth water