Sweet potatoes can take FOREVER to bake in a regular oven, but with your air fryer, you can get all the amazing flavors of a baked sweet potato in much less time! Read on and I, Chef Jenn, will show you how to bake sweet potatoes in an air fryer!

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Sweet, light, and fluffy, baked sweet potatoes are a real treat in our house. But, they take soooo long and the oven heats up the house something awful! But, if you have an air fryer, you can make these healthy and nutritious sweet potatoes in a fraction of the time and they come out so fabulously!
What You Need To Make Sweet Potatoes in the Air Fryer
- Air fryer – I use a Cuisinart multi-purpose oven-style air fryer. See my comments below.
- Sweet potatoes
- Fork
How To Bake Sweet Potatoes in an Air Fryer
Scroll down for the full recipe card with step-by-step instructions.
Preheat the air fryer to 375°F according to the manufacturer’s guidelines. While it heats, wash and dry the sweet potatoes thoroughly.
Use a fork to poke each sweet potato 6–8 times. This allows steam to escape and helps the potatoes cook evenly.
Place the sweet potatoes in the air fryer basket, leaving a little space between each one. Air fry at 375°F for about 20 minutes, then flip them over using tongs.
Continue cooking for another 15–20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are tender and easily squeezed. Cooking time may vary slightly depending on their size.
Remove the sweet potatoes from the air fryer and let them rest for about 5 minutes. Slice them open, add butter, and enjoy.
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Don’t overcrowd your air fryer. If you stuff too many sweet potatoes in there, the air can’t circulate properly and your sweet potatoes will cook unevenly.
- If you like to eat the skin, give the sweet potatoes a good scrub with running water and then rub them with a bit of olive oil before cooking to help the skins crisp up.
- If your sweet potatoes start to get too brown, cover them with foil.
- Need to bake sweet potatoes even faster? Poke them all over with a fork then pop them into the microwave for 3-4 minutes to give them a head start. This should shave 10-12 minutes off the air fry time.
- Sweet potatoes will take more or less time depending on how big they are. Always give them the squeeze test halfway through the cooking time. If they’re still rock-hard, they’ve got a ways to go. If they’re starting to get soft, check them again in 5 minutes.
serving suggestions
This is a hearty and healthy side dish to so many different main dishes. Some of my favorites include Smoked Turkey Thighs, Pork Chops with Green Onion & Tomato Relish, and Smoked Meatloaf.


How To Make Sweet Potatoes in An Air Fryer
Equipment
- Air fryer
Ingredients
- 2 sweet potatoes
Instructions
- Pierce each sweet potato with a fork in 6-8 places.
- Preheat the air fryer to 375- and bake the sweet potatoes for about 20 minutes. Give them a squeeze and if soft, take them out and let them rest for 5 minutes before cutting and serving.
- If the sweet potatoes are still hard or not very soft, cook for up to 20 more minutes, checking them after every 5 minutes.
- Cut the sweet potatoes open and fluff them with a fork, Top with butter if you like, and serve!
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.
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