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 beforeโthese 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 vanillaโyou’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 sauceโit’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! ๐
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 375ยฐF (191ยฐC).
- 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 350ยฐF (177ยฐC) 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
This recipe is a major throwback! I grew up loving these potatoes, but they were replaced by the mashed variety over the years (my 30-year-old son has never even had them!). I decided to bring back all my old favorites this Thanksgiving, and these were perfect. Sliced, not cubed like my grandma made them, is my new favorite way. Thank you!
I made your recipe for 2023’s Thanksgiving and I’m making it again right now . The maple syrup is such a perfect addition to this recipe. Last Christmas I made these as a side to Apricot Glazed Cornish Hens—-perfect with this as well! Today I’m traveling with them so hopefully the cousin crew will enjoy them, I think they will!
This is the 2nd year making your dish. Family loves it!
I made these for a lunch potluck a couple of weeks ago. Rave reviews.
I am making them for 12 people tomorrow for Thanksgiving. The only difference will be vegan/plant based butter and double check all else is vegan for our vegan guests.
I never change any of your recipes! Otherwise, I donโt know how to cookโโ๏ธ.
Best recipe for this dish. Guests loved it. Is simple to make. Making it again for Thanksgiving again tomorrow.
I want to make it ahead but leaving potatoes in the fridge wonโt they oxidize some say they need to be in submerged in water
We’ve never had that issue here!
I have a Food Saver. It comes in handy when making certain dishes ( such as this ) ahead of time. You can vacuum & seal potatoes. No need to worry about such issues. I do my stuffing this way. Make it a day ahead, seal it up and then cook next day. Might be worth the investment.
This looks lovely. What stage do you freeze it at, if making ahead?
Hi Elizabeth, see recipe Notes for make ahead and freezing instructions.
THE BEST recipe. I make it for every holiday and itโs everyoneโs favorite.
Sally can I put it together a day ahead
See Notes after the recipe, Jo Marie!
I don’t like to leave comments. But I thought I would since most of the comments here or about how to change the recipe that is printed instead of how the recipe itself turns out.
I was nervous to make this recipe, my daughter called it swimming potatoes because there’s so much liquid. I did a dry run before Thanksgiving, just in case we need to find a new recipe, but it was really really good. If you can try to make it as written.
I know a lot of people need special accommodations when it comes to food, sometimes I am that person, but if the recipe developer thought that was the best route they would have included those directions in the recipe, and it kind of bogs down the comment section with a bunch of questions instead of letting people know what the recipe taste like which, I think is a little bit unfair. I hope this wasn’t rude. I’m not trying to be a flame thrower. It’s just that if you change basic fundamentals (remove all dairy and go vegan, cook on the stove for half an hour instead of in the oven for one hour) than you’ve made a whole new recipe. It may be good, but it’s not what was intended.
Bravo!
100%!
Hi Sally, can I do this recipe in a big pot if I don’t have an Oven available to make them in time for dinner?
Hi Les, weโve only ever baked them before. Iโm not sure if you can achieve the same texture on the stove, but let us know if you test it.
Great flavor! Added some pecans. Question: they were a bit more than done after 40 minutes. Got a little mushy. Think I pretty consistently sliced at 1/2 inch. Any idea why?
Hi Kathy, could your oven run a little hot? Definitely keep an eye on them as they bake!
Hi Sally, Could I substitute coconut oil for butter to make them dairy free? Thanks so much!
Hi Jenny, we havenโt tested that substitution but it should work just fine. You may lose a bit of flavor. Let us know if you give it a try!
I will be trying your Carmelized Sweet Potatoes this year. The vanilla sounds like a wonderful addition!
Can you add chopped pecans to this dish? Have you tried that?
Yes, you could top this dish with pecans if you wish. You may also enjoy this Sweet Potato Casserole with Crunchy Pecan Crumble!
Are you able to leave out the maple syrup?
Hi Carol, 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. Youโll just lose that maple flavor.
Can I use a dutch oven
Definitely!
Do these reheat well to bring to a Thanksgiving? Any tips for reheating? Par bake the first time?
Hi Lauren, you can reheat it the next day โ see recipe notes for make ahead instructions.
Can you bake in a larger pan, so potatoes are in single-ish layer for more caramelized potatoes? Suspect this may affect cooking time. Doesn’t covering the in foil at the end vs beginning of cooking make them less crisp?
Thanks
Hi Teresa, these aren’t a crisp potato – more soft and smooth. You can try baking in a thinner layer if you prefer.
Could this sauce be made without the maple syrup? Like would it still have a similar consistency?
Hi Jessica! You could leave it out if needed, it will be pretty similar.
My ultimate favorite sweet potato recipe! Our Thanksgiving dinner is not complete without this dish.
Can I make this candid sweet potatoes recipe with carrots instead of the potatoes?
We havenโt tried it with carrots, but I donโt see why it wouldnโt workโฆ if you try it, please let us know how it turns out!
Hi Sally! Can this recipe be adapted for a slow cooker?
Hi Courtney, We havenโt tried these in a crock pot so we are unsure of the result. It shouldnโt be a problem with the crock pot set on low. You will lose that slight caramelized texture though.
Having trouble finding fresh sweet potatoes that aren’t starting to turn and get moldy. Can I use the sweet potatoes from a can?
Hi Mary, fresh sweet potatoes are best here.
I’m roasting sprouts and carrots at 400f ….can I cook this at 400f for less time, or do I need to cook before the other veg at 375f and then heat through for 10mins at the bottom of the 400f oven just before the other veg are done?
Hi Ali, we would bake this at the written 375ยฐF (191ยฐC) and roast your vegetables at the same temperature, knowing the vegetables may take longer to bake.