The Best Baked Sweet Potato Recipe (Brown Butter, Bacon & Herbs) | Wicked Spatula (2024)

Easy 6-ingredient oven baked sweet potatoes with browned butter, bacon and herbs make for the best baked sweet potato recipe ever. This method for how to bake sweet potatoes will be your new favorite.

by Maya Last Updated on February 29, 2020 22 Comments

These oven baked sweet potatoes are everything you want in a healthy side dish! Learn how to bake sweet potatoes with brown butter, bacon and herbs, and I promise you’ll never go back to plain old sweet potatoes again. My recipe for easy baked sweet potatoes is not only simple, but SO full of flavor. Oh, and they are incredibly nutrient packed, too. Just another bonus that makes them the best baked sweet potato recipe around!

A luscious brown butter sauce with nutmeg and paprika coats the salty bacon and herbs to make this healthy sweet potato recipe incredibly flavorful. It’s definitely nice enough to make as a holiday side, but also easy enough to make all year long.

How To Bake Sweet Potatoes

This is one of my favorite sweet potato oven recipes because it’s not something you have to work too hard at. These easy sweet potatoes need just a few easy steps:

• Bake the sweet potatoes. Poke holes all over the sweet potatoes with a fork. Place on a baking sheet and cook until soft.
• Make brown butter sauce. While the sweet potatoes are cooking, brown the butter. Once it is foaming and a golden brown color, strain it through a mesh sieve to remove the milk solids. Stir in the nutmeg, paprika, and salt.

TIP: I know butter is sometimes a gray area for the paleo lifestyle, but I gladly consider grass-fed butter included, and we’re removing the milk solids so it’s the same as ghee essentially. You can skip straining if you don’t have a lactose issue.

• Fry the bacon. Cook and crumble the bacon into pieces.
• Assemble the sweet potatoes. Once the sweet potatoes are done, slice down the middle and fluff the inside flesh with a fork. Top with bacon, herbs, and browned butter sauce. Season with salt to taste.

How Long Does It Take To Bake Sweet Potatoes?

Baked sweet potatoes take about 45 minutes to an hour at 400 degrees, which is the temperature I use for this recipe. It can vary if you have very small or large potatoes, or a different oven temperature.

TIP: The baked sweet potatoes are done when a fork goes in without much resistance.

How Do You Store Oven Baked Sweet Potatoes?

Store oven baked sweet potatoes in the refrigerator in an airtight container, or wrapped in foil or plastic. They will last around 4 days. I would recommend leaving off the toppings until right before serving.

Reheat the healthy stuffed sweet potatoes in a hot oven at 350 degrees F, or in the microwave, until heated through. Add toppings afterward.

If you already made the browned butter in advance, you can store that in the fridge too and just melt when ready to use.

Can You Freeze Baked Sweet Potatoes?

Yes, you can freeze baked sweet potatoes. Allow them to cool, wrap them tightly with foil, then freeze in a plastic bag.

When you want to serve them, allow time to thaw in the fridge. Then, bake them in the oven for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F, until hot. Add toppings and serve.

More Paleo Sweet Potato Recipes

If you love these oven baked sweet potatoes, you should try some of my other paleo side dishes:

• Paleo Sweet Potato Casserole – This update on sweet potato casserole has bacon streusel! Serve it up with chicken or turkey for a cozy, warming side dish.
• Healthy Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potatoes – Another fave stuffed sweet potato, this one is filled with savory Mexican flavors that pair perfectly with the sweet potato.
• Fried Sweet Potato Tots – These sweet potato tots don’t need much explanation. Just know that once you start eating them, you won’t be able to stop!
• Cinnamon Mashed Sweet Potatoes – Creamy, silky sweet potatoes dusted with cinnamon. It sounds like dessert (and almost tastes like one), but it’s nutritious enough to be a dinner side.