Let me show you how to make my favorite easy Thanksgiving side: candied sweet potatoes! They’re soft, buttery, extra saucy, caramelized, and sweet. I especially love this Thanksgiving side dish because you can prepare the elements of this recipe ahead of time AND purchase the ingredients in advance, too.
Forever my favorite Thanksgiving side dish, these classic candied sweet potatoes make an appearance on our holiday table every year. (I’m surprised I haven’t shared the recipe with you before—these are the best!) In fact, we love them so much that we don’t limit this recipe to only once per year. I love these for Christmas, Easter, or a random Sunday night throughout the year. They’re full of flavor and as far as Thanksgiving side dishes go, they’re REALLY easy.
These Candied Sweet Potatoes Are:
- Soft & buttery
- Caramelized on the edges
- Absolutely packed with flavor: vanilla, brown sugar, maple, cinnamon, & ginger
- Even better with orange zest, rosemary, & sea salt
- Your new favorite Thanksgiving side dish too
I also appreciate that you don’t have to pre-cook the sweet potatoes. Unlike sweet potato casserole and sweet potato dinner rolls, where you boil and mash the potatoes, this candied sweet potatoes recipe simply needs thick slices of peeled potatoes. Easy enough, right?
And the best part of all? You can purchase all of the ingredients NOW so you aren’t rushing around Thanksgiving week.
How to Make Candied Sweet Potatoes
Let me quickly break down the steps before leaving you with the recipe.
- Pick up your sweet potatoes. You need 3-4 pounds, about 5 or 6 medium sweet potatoes. Look for sweet potatoes with a reddish/copper skin that’s smooth and firm. Store in a cool, dry place until ready to use. And if you have extras, try my sweet potato turkey chili next!
- Peel & slice sweet potatoes. When you’re ready to make this dish, peel the potatoes and slice into 1/2 inch slices. The thickness of the slices is important because (1) any smaller and the slices will over-cook and (2) any larger and the slices will under-cook. Place potato slices in a large casserole dish and toss with salt.
- Make the sauce. Put all the sauce ingredients into a pot, boil 2 minutes, then stir in vanilla extract. Vanilla extract is a recent (and welcome) addition to our family recipe because it adds SO much flavor. Just wait until you smell the sauce when you stir in that vanilla—you’ll already know you’re making something delicious!
- Pour over sweet potatoes. Pour sauce over potatoes and toss everything together so the sauce evenly coats all the slices.
- Bake for 1 hour. Stop and stir the sweet potatoes every 20 minutes to ensure the sauce caramelizes on each potato.
Buttery Brown Sugar Maple Sauce
These sweet potatoes would be nothing without the magical sauce. A recipe that we’ve been tweaking and perfecting over the years, the combination of ingredients is perfection.
Here are the ingredients you need:
- Butter: Butter is the base of the sauce. (And, honestly, why it’s so good!)
- Water: 1 Tablespoon of water helps liquify the sauce—it’s too thick without it.
- Brown Sugar: Name a better ingredient suited for sweet potatoes!
- Maple Syrup: Pure maple syrup adds incomparable flavor to this Thanksgiving side dish. The recipe is good without it, but even better with its addition. Skip “breakfast syrup” and reach for pure maple.
- Cinnamon, Nutmeg, & Ginger: This dish includes the season’s favorite warming spices. The ginger adds a bright burst of flavor.
- Vanilla Extract: Again, vanilla extract is a welcome addition. Stir it into the sauce after you remove the pot from heat.
The sauce thins out as it bakes due to the water content in the potatoes, but quickly thickens as it cools. Thick or thin, you’ll want to slurp up this sauce with a straw. Plus, it tastes fantastic with those other Thanksgiving dishes on your plate too! 😉
Finishing Touches for Candied Sweet Potatoes
When I made these candied sweet potatoes earlier this month, I added orange zest to the sauce. This is totally optional, but it added an element of FRESH to the entire dish. Likewise, adding chopped fresh or dried rosemary after the dish bakes is equally refreshing. And to balance out the sweet, I love a sprinkle of flaky sea salt all over the top.
This dish has it all: sweet, salty, fresh, buttery, saucy, soft, and caramelized. It doesn’t get much better than this:
More Favorite Thanksgiving Side Dishes:
- Cornbread
- Green Bean Casserole (from scratch)
- Biscuits
- Favorite Cranberry Sauce
- Sweet Potato Casserole (crunchy pecan topping!)
- Dinner Rolls (or try these Brown Butter Sage Dinner Rolls)
- Mushroom Puff Pastry Tarts
- Cornbread Stuffing or Sausage & Herb Stuffing
- Cranberry Brie Puff Pastry Tarts
- Mac & Cheese or Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese
For even more inspiration see my complete list of 40+ Thanksgiving side dishes. And of course… dessert! Here are our favorite Thanksgiving pie recipes, including classics like pumpkin pie, apple pie, and pecan pie.
Print
Candied Sweet Potatoes
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour, 25 minutes
- Yield: serves 8-10
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These perfect candied sweet potatoes are soft, buttery, extra saucy, caramelized, and sweet. I especially love this Thanksgiving side dish because you can prepare the elements of this recipe ahead of time AND purchase the ingredients in advance, too.
Ingredients
- 5–6 medium sweet potatoes (3–4 lbs)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) water
- 1/4 cup (60ml) pure maple syrup
- 1 cup (200g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional: 2 teaspoons orange zest
- optional for garnish: chopped fresh or dried rosemary, flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Peel then slice the sweet potatoes into 1/2 inch thick slices. Place in a greased 9×13-inch or other 3 quart baking dish. Sprinkle salt on top and toss to coat. I just use nonstick spray to grease.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (191°C).
- Make the sauce: Cut stick of butter in half. (Helps it melt easier.) Combine all the butter, water, maple syrup, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger into a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir until the butter has melted. Stop stirring and bring to a gentle boil. Boil for 2 minutes without stirring. Remove sauce from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. (And orange zest, if using.)
- Pour sauce over potatoes and toss to coat.
- Bake for 1 hour, stopping and stirring the sweet potatoes every 20 minutes. After the first 20 minutes, I cover the dish with aluminum foil so the potatoes bake evenly.
- Remove from the oven, sprinkle with rosemary and sea salt (if using), then cool uncovered for 10 minutes before serving. The sauce is thin right out of the oven but thickens as it cools.
- Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Sauce will be thick after refrigeration, but thins out as you warm the leftovers up. Simply warm in the microwave.
Notes
- Make ahead tip: You can peel & slice the sweet potatoes 1 day ahead of time. Cover and store in the refrigerator overnight. You can prepare the sauce on the stove (step 3) 1-2 days ahead of time. Cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Reheat on the stove or in the microwave until thin and liquid-y, then continue with step 4. Dish can be frozen up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator, then cover with aluminum foil and warm in a 350°F (177°C) oven for 25 minutes or until warm throughout.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×13-inch Baking Dish (or any similar 3-quart baking dish) | Saucepan | Wooden Spoon or Silicone Spatula | Flaky Sea Salt
Reader Comments and Reviews
I started boiling my [seriously huge] sweet potatoes before finding this recipe. Should I just reduce the cooking time in the oven? Since my potatoes are gigantic (I boiled 5 of them), should how much do you recommend I increase the measurements for “medium” potatoes? Thank you!
I’m making a Thanksgiving meal for a small amount of people. If I halved the recipe do you think it would fit in a 9×9 baking dish?
Hi Rachael, Yes, that should work great!
Hi, I’m in a bit of a panic because I added the vanilla before bringing it to a boil. Trying to figure out if there’s a way to salvage. Should I skip the boiling, or would that keep it too thin? Will the vanilla burn?
Hi Kathy! Don’t skip the boiling, it should be ok. You can always add a little extra vanilla after.
Love this recipe. Make it every year.
Can it be made into a crockpot recipe?
Hi Taylor, I haven’t tried these in a slow cooker so I’m not sure of the result. It shouldn’t be a problem with the slow cooker set on low. You will lose that slight caramelized texture though.
I’m wondering if I ” peel & slice the sweet potatoes 1 day ahead of time. Cover and store in the refrigerator overnight.”, do I have to do anything to keep them from drying out or turning color?
Thanks for your advice.
Hi Gail! We haven’t had an issue with prepping the potatoes ahead of time. Just cover and store overnight.
If you cut and peel the potatoes any more than an hour before adding the sauce, the potatoes are guaranteed to discolor (although it doesn’t affect the taste). You have to keep them in cold salted water.
Why does some websites say to peel, cut up sweet potatoes ahead of time & store in water in air tight container? And others say put a paper towel & store them dry?? What is the BEST way to store them overnight prior to cooking them??? PLEASE Help!
I want to make this Recipe but don’t want to have Brown ugly sweet potatoes! Lol
Hi Ellie Mae! We haven’t had an issue with prepping the potatoes ahead of time. Just cover and store overnight.
How do you cover and store overnight? (What kind of container and anything in it to prevent browning?)
Hi Marie! We put the potatoes in a large air-tight container.
So put the cut sweet potatoes in an airtight container by themselves? No water? Thanks again!
That’s how we do it!
Can you prepare the potatoes, toss with sauce and refrigerate overnight. Then put in a casserole dish to bake in the oven?
Hi Lisa, we’d recommend keeping the prepared potatoes and sauce separate, then combining right before baking. Warm sauce on the stove until liquid-y again, then combine with potatoes. Hope you enjoy these!
Can I make this a day ahead of serving, refrigerate overnight and then reheat in a slow cooker before transferring to a serving dish?
Hi LAM, that should be fine, but we haven’t tested it. The potatoes may get too soft. See recipe notes for our recommended make-ahead instructions!
Hi, I’m not sure that you’ll see this but did you try reheating these in the crockpot and if so, how did they turn out? Thanks!
Hi! Can I leave the skin on? My hubs like the ‘roughage’ for his diet, LOL. Thanks
Hi Louise, certainly – feel free to keep the skin on!
I added drained pineapple tidbits (in juice) and substituted pineapple juice for the water and used 2tablespoons instead of 1. I used the orange zest and will probably sprinkle on some dried rosemary a little salt as garnish.
Has anyone had an issue with the butter separating? I’ve made this recipe for the last 3 or 4 years and never noticed it but this year it seems like there’s a lot of butter and it clumped up once the dish fully cooled.
This recipe will most definitely be used , other recipes are filled with marshmallows that is something I want to avoid, whenever I want a recipe for something I go to your website-thank you for this recipe.
Hi, Sally. If I don’t have the pure Maple syrup is there something I can use as a substitute? Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family! 🙂
Hi Michele, You can replace with light corn syrup, brown sugar (use 1 and 1/4 cups of brown sugar total), or simply leave it out. The potatoes are pretty sweet as is. You’ll just lose that maple flavor.
Can I make this in an aluminum pan (9×13) instead of a baking dish? Also, can I cut the potatoes the day before and store in a ziplock bag ? Thanks!
Hi Marie! A metal pan would be fine. You can pre-cut the potatoes, but they may discolor a bit overnight.
I peel and cut potatoes and sweet potatoes the day before. Then I put them in a ziploc and cover with water and refrigerate. It keeps them from ‘rusting’.
Our family makes a kosher Thanksgiving so wondering if I can substitute ghee or another non dairy butter substitute in this recipe?
Hi Jo, we haven’t tested this recipe with ghee, but let us know if you do!
Ghee is made from butter. Don’t use it if you’re trying to avoid dairy!
A bit delayed, but I substituted earth balance for butter bc I wanted non dairy too, and it worked perfectly.
This sounds wonderful. I will try this sauce this year. Our usual recipe also adds a handful of fresh cranberries. They add color and a welcome tartness.
Can you use frozen sweet potatoes?
Hi Christy! Fresh would be best here.
The syrup never got thick & caramelized. Followed instructions exactly
Would this work the same with carrots?
We haven’t tried it with carrots, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work… if you try it, please let us know how it turns out!
Hi can I make this the day before and reheat on thanksgiving day ?
Sure! Or see recipe Notes for our recommended make-ahead instructions.
I haven’t made this yet but want to make it this year for Thanksgiving. I like pecans with my sweet potatoes. Is there a pecan topping you can recommend for this dish?
Hi Pam, You may enjoy the topping from our Sweet Potato Casserole.
Can you put marshmallows on top? If so, would you toast in the oven?
Hi Shin, these candied sweet potatoes are very sweet as written and we think adding marshmallow on top would be a little too much. If you want to try it, slightly reduce the sugar in the sauce.
Michelle- I had the same question about the marshmallows. I just tried a test batch with Sally’s suggestion of less sugar and it came out great. I reduced the brown sugar by half.
Hello. Wondering if this can be made in a crock pot. Would be great to save oven space on
Thanksgiving. Thanks!
Hi Angie, we haven’t tried these in a slow cooker so we’re not sure of the result. It shouldn’t be a problem with the slow cooker set on low. You will lose that slight caramelized texture though. Let us know what you try!
The sauce was super thick when i was stirring. Waiting to see just how it ends up.
Easy recipe with delicious results. I removed much of the buttery sugar syrup before serving and reused it for a second batch.
This was soooo easy and soooo yummy. Great dish to open up the fall season with 🙂 THANK YOU
best sweet potatoes recipe I ever used. Thank you.
Mee too! Adding to my Thanksgiving and any holiday dish and the great thing is being able to make before hand!!
I’m not a sweet potato fan but I love this recipe! Made them for dinner tonight as a test Thanksgiving side dish and will definitely be making these for the holiday. There were no leftovers, my family loved them too.
Made it for the first time and it was delicious!! Making it again my kids loved it
What can I substitute the maple syrup with?
Hi Nancy, You can replace with light corn syrup, brown sugar (use 1 and 1/4 cups of brown sugar total), or simply leave it out. The potatoes are pretty sweet as is. You’ll just lose that maple flavor.
I just made this and it was so delicious!! Will definitely be using this recipe from now on.