For a Perfectly Cooked Sweet Potato, Turn to the Microwave (2024)

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When you’re short on time and don’t want to turn on the oven, turn to the microwave. Here’s how to make a perfectly cooked, fluffy microwave sweet potato every time.

Laurel Randolph

Laurel has over 10 years of experience developing recipes and writing about food. She is the author of 4 cookbooks, including the bestselling "The Instant Pot Electric Cookbook."

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Published January 27, 2023

What Kind of Sweet Potato is Best?

You can cook any type of sweet potato using this method, but orange varieties with more moisture like Jewel or Garnet are especially good for microwaving. Most importantly, look for sweet potatoes that are smooth and plump, not shriveled, and free of bad spots. Old sweet potatoes will take longer to cook and often turn out dry with lackluster texture and flavor.

How to Cook and Store Sweet PotatoesREAD MORE:

For a Perfectly Cooked Sweet Potato, Turn to the Microwave (4)

A Note on Microwaves

Home microwaves come in a wide range of wattages, typically between 600 and 1,200 watts. As you might imagine, this has a big impact on the cook time. A weak little dorm room model is not going to cook food in the same amount of time in a big, new, shiny model.

I recommend you become acquainted with your microwave’s stats—they’re often displayed on a sticker on the door or interior. Look for the “output wattage,” which will tell you how powerful your model is. My built-in model has an output of 1,000 watts—a common wattage for relatively new, medium to large microwaves.

Tips for the Best Microwave Sweet Potato

While popping a sweet potato in the microwave couldn’t be simpler, there are a few tricks to help ensure it emerges perfectly cooked.

Adjust the cook time as needed. This recipe is for a medium potato. Smaller or larger will take less or more time, respectively. The cook time can also vary depending on the strength of your microwave.
Give it a poke. Don’t forget to pierce the sweet potato a few times with a fork before cooking. This will help prevent any blowouts.

For a Perfectly Cooked Sweet Potato, Turn to the Microwave (5)

Keep it moist. Don’t dry the sweet potato after rinsing it and either wrap it tightly in a moist paper towel or nuke it in a covered container to keep it from drying out.
Crisp the skin. If you’re planning to eat the skin, brush with oil and bake for a few minutes. It’s not quite as quick as just microwaving, but it makes the sweet potato about 5 times better. The skin becomes a little bit crisp rather than tough, leaving the interior moist and fluffy. It’s a dead ringer for a baked sweet potato in just 15 minutes.

How to Enjoy a Microwave Sweet Potato

For a super quick side or main dish, simply split open the microwaved sweet potato, top with salt and pepper and your choice of butter, sour cream, shredded cheese, chives, chopped bacon, chili, or a combo. Go sweet with a light sprinkling of brown sugar and cinnamon.

You can also turn the microwave sweet potato into something else entirely. Let the potato cool, slice into thick slices, and pan-fry for sweet potato home fries. Or dice and use in home fries or toss into a vegetarian chili or curry. To use just the flesh, discard the peel, mash, and use to make mashed sweet potatoes, sweet potato casserole, or a sweet potato soup.

For a Perfectly Cooked Sweet Potato, Turn to the Microwave (6)

More Ways to Enjoy Sweet Potatoes

Sweet Potato Latkes
Classic Sweet Potato Pie
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos
Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

Microwave Sweet Potato

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time5 mins

Total Time10 mins

Ingredients

1 medium sweet potato, about 10 ounces
1/2 teaspoon olive or canola oil, optional
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, optional

Method

Prepare the sweet potato:
If you’d like to crisp the skin on your sweet potato, preheat the oven to 425°F.
Give the sweet potato a wash, but don’t dry it off. The residual moisture will help keep the sweet potato moist.
Use a fork to prick the sweet potato 4 to 5 times all over.
Wrap the sweet potato:
Moisten a paper towel with water and wring it out. Use it to tightly wrap the sweet potato and place it on a microwave-safe plate.
Alternatively, you can add the sweet potato to a microwave-safe lidded container. Add the lid, leaving it just barely cracked.
Microwave:
Place the plate in the microwave and cook on high power for 5 minutes. When done, you’ll be able to easily pierce the sweet potato all the way to the center with a fork or all the way through with a paring knife. If your sweet potato is not quite tender enough, re-wrap it and microwave it for another minute.
Tip
To cook 2 or 3 sweet potatoes at once, you’ll need to up the cook time by about 2 minutes for 2 potatoes (7 minutes total), and 3 minutes for 3 potatoes (8 minutes total).
Once you’ve figured out what size potato and what timing works with your microwave, make a note and do it every time for the best results.
Crisp the skin (optional):
For lightly crispy skin, unwrap the sweet potato, place it on a small baking sheet, and brush all over with oil. Sprinkle with salt, if desired. Bake at 425°F for 10 minutes.
Tip
If you have an air fryer, crisp the skin in an air fryer at 425°F for about 5 minutes.
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
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Nutrition Facts (per serving)
255	Calories
0g	Fat
59g	Carbs
6g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 1
Amount per serving
Calories	255
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g	1%
Saturated Fat 0g	1%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 102mg	4%
Total Carbohydrate 59g	21%
Dietary Fiber 9g	33%
Total Sugars 18g
Protein 6g
Vitamin C 56mg	278%
Calcium 108mg	8%
Iron 2mg	11%
Potassium 1347mg	29%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.

FAQs

How long should I microwave a sweet potato? ›

Pierce the sweet potato skin with a fork 5 to 6 times. Place the sweet potatoes on a microwave-safe plate and microwave for 5-10 minutes—five minutes to cook one sweet potato in the microwave, and add two minutes for each additional potato—rotating them halfway through.

Why does my potato get hard in the microwave? ›

If your potato came out of the microwave hard it's likely over-cooked. Over-cooking a potato can cause it to lose its moisture which is what creates that light and fluffy texture. Be sure you're cooking the potato for the recommended time depending on its size!