Smoked Sweet Potatoes

If you love sweet potatoes, you’re going to love this smoked sweet potato recipe. Smoked sweet potatoes are tender, flavorful, and the perfect side dish for just about anything.

We are a potato-loving house. My family loves them all: mashed potatoes, scalloped potatoes, french fries, potato soup, baked potatoes, home fries, twice-baked potatoes, hashbrowns, and every other potato you can think of. After cooking a vast variety of spuds on the Traeger over the last year we knew we just had to make some smoked sweet potatoes.

These may be the best of the bunch. They are so easy and have the best balance of sweet, salty, and smoky!

Ingredients

Sweet Potatoes - Choose potatoes that are all about the same size so they cook evenly. I normally shoot for medium-sized potatoes.

Olive Oil - Any oil will work but I normally reach for extra virgin olive oil. You just want to oil the skin of the potatoes so it doesn't dry out.

Kosher Salt - Sprinkling the sweet potatoes with salt enhances the natural sweetness by providing a contrast.

Black Pepper - Pepper will also bring out the natural flavor of the potatoes.

How to Make Smoked Sweet Potatoes

Cooking potatoes on the smoker isn't any harder than baking them in the oven! Just oil, season, and cook.

Step One: Rub the skin of the sweet potatoes with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Step Two: Smoke the sweet potatoes for 2-2.5 hours or until they are 205 degrees F when checked with a thermometer. If they aren't done after 2.5 hours you can cook them longer. The correct internal temp is more important.

Optional Step Three: If desired, halve the smoked sweet potatoes, return to the tray, add your favorite toppings and return to the smoker for 10 minutes to let the flavors meld or let the marshmallows melt.

Variations

Spices - You can totally change up the flavor of the potatoes by using sweet or savory spices. Pumpkin pie spices such as cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and allspice can be sprinkled on the potatoes during the last 15 minutes of smoke time. Rosemary, thyme, sage, or a bbq rub can be rubbed on the potatoes in the very beginning.

Toppings - Mini marshmallows, brown sugar, butter, maple syrup, chives, and sour cream are all common toppings for sweet potatoes. For most of those, I recommend halving the potatoes, adding the toppings, and then returning to the smoker for an additional 10 minutes. If you want to top with sour cream and chives you can add those when you are serving the smoked sweet potatoes.

Mashed - Take the smoked potatoes and then use them in this Mashed Sweet Potatoes recipe!

Common Questions

What should the internal temperature of a sweet potato be?

We cook sweet potatoes to 205 degrees F when checked with an internal thermometer.

How long does it take to smoke a sweet potato at 225 degrees?

It takes about 2-3 hours to smoke a sweet potato depending on the size. Since they can vary make sure to check them with an internal temperature probe.

What are the health benefits of eating sweet potatoes?

Sweet potato is a type of vegetable that is healthy to eat. It is low in calories and high in fiber, which means it can help you feel full after eating it. Sweet potatoes are also a good source of vitamins and minerals, including vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium, and magnesium.

How many calories are in a sweet potato?

A standard 5-inch sweet potato has 112 calories. The sweet potatoes in our photos are closer to 8-inches.

What is the difference between a sweet potato and a yam?

Sweet potatoes and yams are both vegetables that grow in the ground. They are both long and tubular, but they taste different. Sweet potatoes are sweeter than yams. Yams are more starchy than sweet potatoes. The typical orange sweet potatoes in grocery stores are actually yams.

What do I serve with smoked sweet potatoes?

Smoked potatoes go well with Smoked Brisket, Smoked Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin, Traeger Steak, Smoked Pulled Chicken, or the Traeger Ribs in our photos.

For an amazing Thanksgiving serve these with Smoked Turkey, stuffing, and some veggies, and finish with Apple and Cherry Crumble.

And, after any delicious meal, don't forget dessert. Finish off your night with Smoked Cheesecake.

For another great sweet potato recipe try these sweet potato patties.