Michigan Fresh: Using, Storing, and Preserving Sweet Potatoes (HNI26) (2024)

FAQs

Michigan Fresh: Using, Storing, and Preserving Sweet Potatoes (HNI26)? ›

Food Safety and Storage

Like other root vegetables and tubers, sweet potatoes are best stored in a cool, dry, dark place.

Store sweet potatoes in a warm building where the air is dry and the temperature uniform. The curing room may also be the storage room if conditions are right. Temperature during storage should be kept as close to 55 degrees F.

In clamp storage, another simple and low-cost method, sweet potato tubers are stored in covered piles. The tubers in the best condition are selected, stacked in a heap on a layer of grass, and covered in layers of grass and soil. As with pit storage, ash, lime, and sawdust can be used for added effect.

Sweet potatoes can maintain excellent quality for up to a year in proper storage conditions. The ideal storage conditions for sweet potato are the same as for winter squash; moderately warm (55-60F) at 60-75% relative humidity. - excerpted from the New England Vegetable Management Guide, nevegetable.org.

If you are storing raw sweet potatoes, make sure you do not rinse them first. Rinsing could lead to rotting due to the extra moisture that is being introduced. Use a dry cloth to remove any dirt before you begin to store sweet potatoes. Another way to store raw sweet potatoes is to cure them for 1 to 2 weeks.

Can You Freeze Sweet Potatoes? The simple answer is yes! Sweet potatoes can be frozen raw, baked, boiled, or even mashed. However, keep in mind that raw frozen sweet potatoes are likely to get freezer burn, so try to cook them in some way first.

If you have a basem*nt furnace, that is the ideal place to cure your garden sweet potatoes. After the 30 day curing process, store your sweet potatoes in a dry area that will remain below 60 (15 Celsius) degrees but above freezing. Check your sweet potatoes weekly and remove any that begin to rot.

An ideal temperature range for curing sweet potatoes is between 80 to 85˚F with a relative humidity of 90 to 95%. Consider curing in a shed, garage, or a shady screened-in porch. In addition to shade, temperature, and humidity, airflow is another key factor in a successful curing process.

Raw sweet potatoes should not be refrigerated. Store in a cool, dry, dark place, unwrapped, for up to two months or at room temperature for up to a week. Cooked sweet potatoes can be stored in the refrigerator, frozen, dried or canned.

How to store sweet potatoes without root cellar? ›

These Veggies Like It Cool and Dry

They will last longest at 50 to 60°F and 60 to 70 percent humidity. (Again, storage times are for ideal conditions.) A vinyl-coated wire laundry cart tucked into a dark basem*nt room provides perfect storage for sweet potatoes.

How to tell if sweet potatoes have gone bad. If your sweet potato is soft in spots, smells rotten, or oozes a mysterious liquid, that potato should be discarded. Another sign that sweet potatoes have taken a turn for the worse is if they start growing stalky purplish sprouts.

It's best to keep sweet potatoes in a cool, dry area that gets good ventilation, according to the U.S. Sweet Potato Council. You really shouldn't store sweet potatoes in the fridge if you plan to eat them within a month or so, as refrigeration can bring on an unpleasant taste and a hard center.

To cure roots, hold them at 85 degrees F with 90 to 95 percent relative humidity (RH) for 4 to 7 days. After curing, reduce the storage temperature to 55 to 60 degrees F at 80 to 85 percent RH. Most properly cured sweet potato cultivars will keep for 4 to 7 months.

Stored on the counter, raw sweet potatoes generally last up to two weeks. When stored in a cool, dark, dry area (similar to a root cellar), sweet potatoes can last about a month. Maximize their shelf life by storing them at a cool temperature.

Should I Refrigerate Raw Sweet Potatoes? Whole, raw sweet potatoes should not be refrigerated, as it can affect their taste and make them hard in the center. Do refrigerate after they've been cut, though. Covered in cold water, they last about a day.

Store your potatoes in a cool, dark place (45 to 50 F is the ideal temperature range), such as your pantry or unheated basem*nt. 2 Do not store them on top of your refrigerator or next to your stove, as both spots emit heat.

Yes, you can cut that sweet potato in half and save the rest for later! You can absolutely cut a large sweet potato in half–the unused half will heal itself right before your eyes. Sweet potatoes, a member of the morning glory family of vines, are a warm-weather root crop that grow underground like white potatoes.

You can peel and cut sweet potatoes and store them in the fridge for up to 24 hours in advance for easier meal prep, according to the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State University. To do this, place the raw, cut sweet potatoes in a bowl of water — covered — in the fridge to keep them fresh.