20-Minute Caramelized Sweet Potatoes (2024)

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Super quick and easy, these delicious Caramelized Sweet Potatoes are a healthy alternative to traditional, sticky, marshmallow recipes. Besides being a fabulous side, they can also be used on salads and in soups.

If you're looking for the easiest, prep-ahead side that everyone will rave about, this Caramelized Sweet Potato recipe is IT!

The only difficult thing about these delicious sweet potatoes was deciding on a name. I oscillated between Caramelized Sweet Potatoes andCandied Sweet Potatoes, butyou can clearly see which was the winner.

Candied Sweet Potatoes seemed appropriate sincethey're like good candy - addictinglydelicious and quite irresistible! The only problem was the image that the traditional CandiedSweet Potatoes brought to mind - overlysweet, sticky, gooey, loaded with brown sugar and/or marshmallows. Just try googlingCandied Sweet Potatoes and you'll see exactly what I mean. This healthy, delicious sidewould be out of place on a page like that.

So I went with Caramelized Sweet Potatoes, andI'm quite certain you're going to love them.They can be prepped in advance, then finished in under 10 minutes, right before serving.

Short ingredient list

The ingredients list is simple: sweet potatoes, olive oil, butter, honey, ground coriander and salt. The preparation is even simpler: combine all the ingredients in a pan with a splash of water. Bring the liquid to a boil, then cover and cook for 3 minutes. The potatoes are steamed a bit at first and then the cover is removed, allowing the water to evaporate. That's when the beautiful caramelization process takes place as the sweet potatoes areglazed with the delicious honey/butter mixture.

See what I mean? Easy, super easy! At this point, you're done... except to notethe happy smiles when the family (or friends) take the first bite.

Make Plenty!

Oh yes, just a warning: be sure to make plenty, as they'll disappear before you can say, "Caramelized Sweet Potatoes"! The recipe servesfour, butyou may see sad faces whenthe bowl's empty before everyone's had their fill.

Café Tips for making these Caramelized Sweet Potatoes

• This recipe calls for ground coriander. Coriander is the seed that cilantro is grown from. If you don't care for cilantro, don't worry, coriander is a totally different flavor. It's a bit citrusy, yet warm at the same time. Don't skip it as it adds a delicious layer of flavor!
• If I have them, I really enjoy using whole coriander seeds and crushing them just before adding them to a recipe for fresh, delicious flavor. For these Caramelized Sweet Potatoes, however, I recommend ground coriander, as it disappears into the delicious glaze.
• This recipe is super easy and comes together in less than 20 minutes. The only thing that is time-consuming at all is peeling and chopping the sweet potatoes. I've got a quick and easy solution for that though - I use my Vidalia chopper and I can have all of the sweet potatoes diced into perfect size pieces in less than a minute. I also use my chopper for onions, bell peppers, potatoes, carrots, apples, squash, cucumbers... It is truly a little kitchen workhorse for me!
• Feel free to swap out the honey in this recipe for maple syrup, also delish!
• These Caramelized Sweet Potatoes can be prepped an hour or two ahead. Just combine everything in a large skillet as instructed in the recipe. Cover and set aside for an hour or two. 10 minutes before dinner, proceed with the cooking part in step 2.
• Guess what? These delicious veggies are way more than a side dish. We've got a FABULOUSsaladrecipe that uses them too and another coming up. Be sure to put sweet potatoes on your shopping list and you'll be all set to go!