These crispy roasted sweet potato slices seasoned with garlic and thyme are the perfect side dish for any protein.
The recipe is simple, requiring just a few ingredients and yielding crispy and buttery goodness your whole family will love!

Sweet potatoes were on my ‘food-I-hate’ list for a long time. Then at some party, trying not to insult the host who baked them to their crispiness, I took a few bites, and I was hooked.
Usually, I roast them spread on a cookie sheet, drizzled with olive oil and seasoned with salt, pepper, and cumin.
Then I roast them crispy, but sometimes they stick to the bottom of the sheet. This method of roasting gets them crispy without all the sticky mess.
Sweet potato fries with sour cream or caramel sauce are also often on our menu rotation, as are stuffed. We also love them for brunch, pan-fried with eggs.
📃 Why it Works
- Baked sweet potato slices are crispy, almost caramelized, on the outside and wonderfully soft on the inside.
- They are paleo and Whole30 friendly.
- They’re easy to throw together with just a few ingredients.
- They’re great for meal prepping.
- They're simple comfort food.
- They are an excellent source of beta-carotene, vitamins A and C, and potassium.
- They go with everything and are the perfect side for your holiday meal! Who doesn’t love yams with Thanksgiving turkey? This recipe is much healthier than the usual candied yams our grandmas used to serve.
🛒 Ingredients and Notes
- Sweet potatoes: There are many varieties. Red and orange-skinned are "moist," sweeter, and creamier, but if your grocery store only carries one type, make sure they’re firm, without growth sprouts, soft spots, patchy colors, or bruises on their skin. In short, look for the perfect sweet potato! 😄
- Butter: The butter adds an incredible flavor to roasted sweet potatoes; however, if you’re vegan or on a low-fat diet, you can use vegan butter or oil instead. Olive oil, avocado, grapeseed, and coconut oil work well.
- Spices: We only use salt and pepper and get the most flavors from garlic and thyme. You can add your favorite spice blend or try these: paprika, cumin, onion powder, and chili powder. If you’re not sure what spices and herbs complement each other, download this helpful spice guide.
🔪 Instructions
- Wash potatoes. Using a sharp knife, slice them into thin rounds, no thicker than ¼-inch (microwaving potatoes for 2-3 minutes makes them more pliable).
- Carefully arrange the slices upright in a greased pan; tuck in garlic and thyme among slices.
- Brush sweet potato slices with the remaining two tablespoons melted butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Bake until potatoes are tender and crisp. Garnish with fresh thyme.
- Make sure to get potatoes uniformed in size.
- Different types cook differently, so it is imperative to check them during cooking than relying solely on time. Not to mention that oven temperatures vary too!
- Sweet potatoes are tough to cut, so I like to microwave them for a few minutes to soften them up a bit. If you want to omit this step, make sure to sharpen your knife! You can also use a mandoline slicer, but I find these slices are too thin. It is excellent for making sweet potato chips, though.
- If your sweet potatoes are small, you can make them Hasselback-style: cut them almost all the way through (left joined at the bottom) into thin, fan-like slices. Just make sure to serve one potato per person.
- You can use a 9-inch square or round metal or ceramic baking pan. I wouldn't suggest using a glass pan. I find they don't get as crispy in it.
🍽 How To Serve It
They are excellent with chicken, pork roast, and Thanksgiving turkey. You can use leftovers to toss them with your salads or vegetable/grain and burrito bowls.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
It is a matter of personal preference. For this recipe, I scrubbed them and kept the skin on.
This depends on the recipe and the size of the potato slices. At 400 degrees F, they should take about 45-60 minutes. Bake until potatoes are completely cooked through, and the edges turn crispy.
Store them in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days. Reheat them in a microwave (they won’t be crispy, but still delicious) or your oven.
More delicious and healthy sides to try:
- Butternut Squash Barley Risotto
- Belarusian Potatoes and Kidney Beans
- Bosnian Djuvec Rice with Vegetables
- Low-Carb Mock Potato Cauliflower Salad
Liked this recipe? Leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and/or a review in the comments section. Your feedback is always appreciated! Stay in touch through Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook! Don't forget to sign up for my email list below too!
Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes
EQUIPMENT
- Kitchen knife or a mandoline slicer
- 9-inch baking pan
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter, divided
- 3 large sweet potatoes
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- Fresh thyme
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Coat a baking pan with two tablespoons melted butter.
- Wash potatoes. Using a sharp knife, cut off and discard the ends. Slice them into thin rounds, no thicker than ¼-inch. (read the recipe notes for tips).
- Carefully arrange the slices upright in a greased pan - tuck in garlic and thyme among slices.
- Brush slices with the remaining two tablespoons melted butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- Make sure to get potatoes uniformed in size.
- Sweet potatoes are tough to cut, so I like to microwave them for a few minutes to soften them up a bit. If you want to omit this step, make sure to sharpen your knife! You can also use a mandoline slicer, but I find these slices are too thin. It is excellent for making sweet potato chips, though.
- If your sweet potatoes are small, you can make them Hasselback-style: cut them almost all the way through (left joined at the bottom) into thin, fan-like slices. Just make sure to serve one potato per person.
- You can use a 9-inch square or round metal or ceramic baking pan. I wouldn't suggest using a glass pan. I find that potatoes don't get as crispy in it.
- Different types cook differently, so it is imperative to check them during cooking than relying solely on time. Not to mention that oven temperatures vary too!
Amber Harrop says
These look delicious Jas I am going to try these as sweet potatoes are being harvested in the garden
Jas says
Oh wow, you grow your own? How cool! Hope you'll like this method of preparing them.
Leanna says
Yum, these look delicious. What a gorgeous side dish. Pinning.
Jas says
Thank you much, Lanna!
Miz Helen says
We love Sweet Potatoes and this will be a great side dish for any occasion. Thanks so much for sharing your post with us at Full Plate Thursday! Have a great week and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
Jas says
Happy you like it! Thanks for visiting!
Menaka Bharathi says
Im a great seat potato lover. i have tried many recipes of it. your looks delicious, ill definitely try it.
Jas says
Thank you, Menaka! I hope you'll love these 🙂
Itzybellababy says
oooh I love this- I have some sweet taters in the fridge right now. Feels like dinner!
Jas says
Great! Hope you liked them 😀
Teresa - Aging Like a Fine Wine says
I never thought I like sweet potatoes either, never liked them at Thanksgiving, etc. Now I realize I love sweet potato fries! So I'm dying to try this recipe! Thanks so much for sharing it on Party in Your PJ's. I've pinned and shared!
Jas says
Sweet potato fries are the best! Thanks for stopping in, Teresa!
Claire says
Sweet potatoes are my husbands favourite, I'm going to have to try these. They look so delicious
Jas says
Thank you, Claire! They are so simple to make and tasty!
Cathy Lawdanski says
Sweet potatoes are my favorite and these look so good. Can't wait to try them!
Jas says
Thanks, I know you'll like these, Cathy!
Barrie says
I love this recipe- so pretty and simplified!
Jas says
Thanks, Barrie! I think so too 🙂
Jann Olson says
I've got some sweet potatoes in the pantry. I'm going to try this tomorrow night. Thanks for sharing the recipe with SYC.
hugs,
Jann
Jas says
Hope you like this dish as much as we do!
Leslie says
We made a recipe very similar to this last Thanksgiving, and it was incredible...so pretty and so tasty at the same time! Thanks so much for sharing at the #happynowlinkup!
Jas says
And so simple! Can't beat that 😀
Sheri says
These look so good! Thanks so much for joining us at the To Grandma's House We Go link party. Your link has been pinned! Please join us again next Wednesday! Cheers!
Jas says
Thank you much!
Sandra L Garth says
I'll take a sweet potato over a russet any day! These are going to be so good.
Jas says
They are good and good for you. 🙂
Snap says
I love sweet potatoes and this sounds delicious and different from my "usual". Thanks! I've printed out your recipe.
Jas says
Thanks so much for stopping by and pinning! 😀
Chas says
Great share, thanks!
Jas says
You're welcome!
Mother of 3 says
This sounds so good and so easy too! Pinned.
Jas says
It can't get any easier than this 🙂 Thanks for pinning!
Randi Tisdall says
Those photos are excellent, and I love sweet potatoes!!
Jas says
Aw, thank you, Randi! Means a lot 😀
Rheagan says
With all the sweet potato we eat, I'll definitely be giving these a try!
Jas says
Yes! Come back and let me know how you like these, please!
Ashley Tukiainen says
These looks so simple and delicious! Sweet potatoes are a favorite in our house!
Jas says
They really are simple and delicious. Hope you'll give them a try!!!
Gillian Kent says
Thes look delicious. I love sweet potatoes any way I can get them.
Jas says
Thanks, Gillian! Hope you'll add this recipe to your rotation 🙂