This simple, savory, one-pot mashed sweet potato makes a lovely, vibrant side dish.
I show you how to make it from scratch with or without a blender.
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TL;DR
Sweet potatoes can be turned into a mash that is equally as delicious as classic mashed potatoes.
This particular mashed sweet potato is a lazy one-pot version. That means the potatoes are boiled, instead of roasted, and mashed in the same pot.
I find this more convenient than having to roast the potatoes in the oven separately.
That said, roasting the potatoes in the oven helps bring out the natural sweetness of your potatoes. You can always roast them first, if you prefer, and take them to the stovetop to finish your mashed sweet potatoes.
Process Overview
Here is how to prepare mashed sweet potato in one pot.
Step 1
Wash and scrub potatoes to get rid of mud.
Peel sweet potatoes and cut into chunks.
Step 2
Boil potatoes with salt water until soft and cooked through. Strain when done.
Step 3
Place potatoes back into pot with milk, butter, and seasoning.
Mash them to the desired consistency. Serve up.
Tip: Roast the sweet potatoes in the oven instead of boiling them to bring out the sweetness.
📖 Recipe
Mashed Sweet Potato Recipe
Ingredients
To cook sweet potatoes
- 2.2 pounds Sweet Potatoes
- Water to cover
- Salt
To mash
- 2-3 Tablespoon Butter
- 1 cup Milk
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Black Pepper Ground
Instructions
- Wash and scrub sweet potatoes from mud if there is any. Peel potatoes and cut off the ends if necessary.2.2 pounds Sweet Potatoes
- Cut sweet potatoes into quarters and cut into smaller chunks. The smaller you cut them, the faster they will cook through.
- Keep a pot on the fire with the sweet potato chunks, cover with water, and add some salt.Water, Salt
- Boil potatoes until cooked through and soft.
- Strain the potatoes and keep the potatoes back in the pot from earlier. Place it over the stove on a low-heat setting so that nothing sticks in the pot.
- Add butter, milk, salt, and black pepper to the potatoes.1 cup Milk, 2-3 Tablespoon Butter, ½ Teaspoon Salt, ½ Teaspoon Black Pepper Ground
- Mash the sweet potatoes over the loved heat setting to the desired texture.
- Take it from the heat and serve it up hot with some extra tbs of butter if you like.
Equipment
- 8" Chef Knife
- Potato Masher (stainless steel) or fork or hand blender
Nutrition
Tools to Mash
You can mash your sweet potatoes with various kitchen tools.
- potato masher - the best and most straightforward way to do that. I use this tool most of the time.
- fork - if you don't have a masher, use a fork. More tedious, but it can be done.
- blender/hand blender - faster and most effortless solution, but the potatoes turn to a puree and it will get gooey. Don't overblend if that's your choice of tool!
Flavor Variations
You can add and switch up some ingredients to make the mashed sweet potato to your liking.
You can make your sweet potato mash...
- Vegan - use coconut milk instead of cow milk and vegetable oil instead of butter
- Sweet - add honey, maple syrup, brown sugar, and some cinnamon
- Baby-friendly puree - prepare it the same way but skip the black pepper. Reduce the salt.
- Creamy - add more butter and switch the milk with table cream
- Spicy - sprinkle some seasoning in, such as chili pepper, oregano, Italian seasoning, or garlic powder.
Serving
Normally savory mashed sweet potato makes a great holiday side dish. Serve it up for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or even Easter.
It goes well with a roasted bird, lamb chops, and baked salmon.
I love a mashed sweet potato with a fried egg. This is my lazy nighttime TV meal. My husband, Paul, likes to add some bacon too.
Storing & Leftover Uses
Store leftovers in airtight containers in your fridge. They keep well for at least 5 days.
You can freeze your potato mash in batches. That way you can take them out and thaw in the fridge overnight before you heat them up again to eat.
That's also useful because you can use sweet potato mash leftovers the same way you would use classic mashed potatoes.
I have used it in shepherd's pie, regular pies, lasagna, to make latkes, hash and in enchiladas.
FAQs
Whole unpeeled raw sweet potatoes don't have a uniform size, so they can take somewhere from 20 to 40 minutes to boil through. I recommend you peel and cut your sweet potatoes into chunks. The smaller you cut them, the faster they will cook through. On average, sweet potatoes take 20 minutes to cook through if peeled and cut small.
Some sweet potato varieties can be stringy. This can also occur when potatoes had a tough season to grow smooth and nice. If you are having stringy boiled sweet potatoes, cook them further down and blend them smooth with a food processor or hand blender.
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