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Pan-Fried Sweet Potatoes are a quick and easy side dish for any savory meal. A drizzle of honey, warm spices, and fresh thyme perfectly round out this sweet potato skillet. In just 15 minutes you’ll have a side dish the whole family will love.

The fastest way to cook sweet potatoes

If you’re in a hurry to get dinner on the table and just realized sweet potatoes are the only vegetable in your pantry, you’re not going to want to bake them in the oven. Instead, you’ll want these pan-fried sweet potatoes on the stovetop. While baking a sweet potato whole in the oven takes close to an hour, these cubed sweet potatoes are done in just 10-15 minutes. Perfect for pairing with pork chops.

How to cook sweet potatoes fast

The secret here is the size. Peeling and cubing the sweet potato, then frying in oil will cut down on the prep time when compared to boiling water or cooking time when baking in the oven. As mentioned, peel the sweet potato and cut into 1/2-inch to 1-inch cubes. Each will be slightly different in size, but do your best.

What skillet to use when frying sweet potatoes?

Grab a skillet that is large enough to fry all of your cubes at once. A 10-inch skillet is likely big enough for one large sweet potato, but a 12-inch will be needed for two. Need to fry even more sweet potatoes? Consider a deep 12-inch skillet and work in batches, or allot 5-10 more minutes of cooking for up to two more sweet potatoes. Even when working with large quantities of sweet potatoes like this, it is still the quickest way to cook sweet potatoes.

To the skillet of your choice, add a few Tablespoons of oil. Add the sweet potato cubes and sautee for a few minutes. Get the sweet potato coated with oil and starting to char. Then add your choice of seasonings. Finish sauteeing when the cubes are fork-tender, but not falling apart to mush. Remove from your stovetop and serve.

Pan-Fried Sweet Potatoes Video

Best flavor pairings for sweet potato

The ingredients for this sweet potato recipe are salt, pepper, cinnamon, and nutmeg, ending with a drizzle of honey. Other flavor profiles that work well with sweet potatoes are onion, garlic, paprika, chili, coconut, ginger, brown sugar, rosemary, allspice, clove, apple pie spice, pumpkin spice, herbs de province, brown sugar, and more!

Take it one step further and use additional fruits and vegetables to create a sweet potato hash or bacon and eggs for a sweet potato breakfast hash.

How to store leftovers

Store the same way you would any other leftovers, in an air-tight Tupperware. These will last about 3 days in the refrigerator.

How to reheat sweet potato cubes

You can easily reheat these in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute. Or you can add the leftovers to a hot skillet with about a tablespoon of oil and give a quick sear. Reheating in a skillet helps to keep them from getting soggy like a microwave will do.

What to serve with sweet potatoes