Baked Sweet Potatoes

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Source: NYT Cooking

Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 4 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Scrub sweet potatoes and pierce in several places with a sharp knife. Line a baking sheet with foil and place the potatoes on top. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the potatoes, until thoroughly soft and beginning to ooze. Remove from the heat.

  2. If not eating right away, place on a plate or in a dish and allow to cool. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate (they will continue to ooze and sweeten). Serve cold (cut in thick slices and remove the skin) or room temperature, or reheat for 20 to 30 minutes in a 350-degree oven.

Tips

Make the recipe through Step 1. Transfer to a baking dish that will hold the potatoes snugly. Allow to cool completely (they will continue to ooze and sweeten). Slit the potatoes lengthwise and douse with the juice of 1 to 2 limes, to taste. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve at room temperature or reheat for 20 to 30 minutes in a 350°F oven.

Don't try to save time and use a microwave for this. Your sweet potatoes won't be nearly as sweet if you cook them this way; they need the time in the hot oven for their enzymes to convert starch into maltose, the sugar (about one third as sweet as table sugar) that makes sweet potatoes sweet.