This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
If you recently got an air fryer and excited to try some recipes, these Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries are a great starting point! You can also consider making regular Air Fryer Potatoes or Air Fryer Chicken – all great starter recipes. These potatoes are so versatile, tasty and pair well with main dishes for breakfast, lunch or dinner. I know you will love these crispy chips!
Making sweet potato fries (or chips for my non-American friends!) in the air fryer compared to deep frying and even compared to baking uses less oil. So you’ll end up consuming less fat and less calories. And they still have a slight crisp on the outside with a tender bite on the inside.
RECIPE VIDEO TUTORIAL
How to cut sweet potato fries
Start with two medium size sweet potatoes and try to look for ones that are not too long. This way you can use the full length of the sweet potatoes as the length of the fry. Remember that these air fryer sweet potato fries will shrink after cooking, so look for a shape slightly longer than the ideal fry length.
Next, peel the sweet potatoes, and cut off the skinny ends. You can save those for a different recipe. Then cut the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise. This will make it easier to lay them flat on the a cutting board and start cutting into long slices.
The thinner you cut them, the more crispy they will be. I recommend that you cut them 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch thickness. Learn other ways to cut sweet potatoes here.
How to cook air fryer sweet potato fries
Now that you have the sweet potatoes sliced, you’re ready to cook them in the air fryer. Most air fryers require preheating for best results. While the air fryer is preheating, you can select the seasoning for the air fryer sweet potato fries.
I like to keep it simple. I toss it with just a teaspoon of olive oil, along with garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Use your hands to make sure each fry is coated well with the seasoning.
Then place the sweet potatoes into the air fryer basket, making sure not to overcrowd them. At the halfway cooking point, shake the basket to make sure they are cooking evenly, and then continue cooking. Each air fryer is different, so you may want to watch the first batch to make sure that the cooking temperature and time yield the results you’re looking for.
Tips for making air fryer potatoes
- Cut the potatoes evenly. To ensure even cooking time for all the potatoes, try using sweet potatoes that are similar in size. It helps to use a very sharp knife and lay the potato halves flat on a cutting surface to cut them evenly. This way nothing over-cooks or under-cooks.
- Don’t forget to preheat. While it’s actually not necessary to preheat all air fryers, most do recommend it. Even if your air fryer doesn’t recommend preheating, I think it’s a crucial step to ensure accurate cooking at the temperature you select.
- Don’t overcrowd the basket. It’s tempting to throw all the potatoes in there at once. But if you overcrowd the basket and these air fryer sweet potato fries overlap, you may end up creating a steaming effect instead of crisping effect.
- Turn the sweet potatoes half way through cooking. You can shake the basket or use tongs to turn the sweet potatoes. While the air does circulate all around the potatoes, the heat on the bottom is stronger than the top, which is why this tip is important.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use any oil you’d like. Many would recommend using a high smoke point oil like avocado oil or canola oil. But I love the flavor of olive oil and found great results with it. You can also use cooking spray.
This will depend on the temperature and the specific air fryer you have. I like using the Instant Pot Vortex 4-in-1 Air Fryer, and I would recommend starting with 10 minutes at 380°F and adding 1-minute incremental cooking time as necessary.
If you prefer to start with frozen sweet potatoes, you can still use this recipe and cook at the same temperature. But keep in mind that the frozen sweet potatoes will need about 5 additional minutes in the air fryer.
For more air fryer recipes:
- Air Fryer Potatoes
- Air Fryer Chicken
- Air Fryer Hard Boiled Eggs
- Air Fryer Wings
- Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders
- Avocado Fries Recipe
- Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp
- Air Fryer Salmon
For more potato recipes:
- Garlic Parmesan Roasted Potatoes
- Rosemary Garlic Smashed Potatoes
- Crispy Oven-Baked French Fries
- Oven-Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- Smashed Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Making sweet potato fries in the air fryer is much healthier than deep frying. You’ll still get a nice crisp and great flavor while saving on calories and fat. These make a perfect side dish for many recipes and also make a great snack to dip with ketchup or your favorite sauce!
If you’ve tried this healthy Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
Video
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes peeled
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 380°F. Peel the sweet potatoes, then slice each potato into even ¼ inch thick sticks.
- Place the sweet potatoes in a large mixing bowl, and toss with olive oil, salt, garlic powder, paprika and black pepper.
- Cook in 2 or 3 batches, depending on the size of your basket without overcrowding the pan until they’re crispy. I recommend 12 minutes, turning half way. This may vary based on your air fryer.
- Serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauce.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
If you are cooking in batches it’s not possible to serve immediately! So is it best to cook each batch for the required time, then reheat at the end or partly cook earlier batches, then reheat a little longer?
Great question! I recommend keeping the cooked batches in an oven at a low temp to keep everything warm as you keep air frying and adding to the rack. If they do get cold, you can reheat them in the air fryer at a lower-than-usual temperature so they heat without over-cooking.
Is everything the same if I use my oven air fryer? Recipe, time, and temp? Thank you
I don’t have an air fryer oven so I haven’t tested the cook time and temperature that way, so sorry! You can keep the recipe the same but may need to experiment with temp and how long to cook. Good luck!
Did I miss something? There are no temperature or cooking time mentioned in this VERY long article of instructions
Hi Graham! Yes, you did—the full instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post (right above the comments). You can also click ‘jump to recipe’ at the top of the post to bring you directly there. Hope that helps!
Looks yummy
Hope you enjoy it!
Turned out perfectly last night, not soggy like my previous attempts before finding your recipe. Next, I want to try Japanese sweet potatoes and murasaki imo. Thank you, Yumna! My dream is to have a food blog as beautiful as yours!!
Aww thank you, Matt! That is so sweet. So glad you liked the recipe and your fries turned out crispy!! Enjoy experimenting with different sweet potatoes, I would love to hear which one ends up being your favorite!
The purple sweet potato fries were the prettiest! I chopped up my Japanese sweet fries and used them as a taco filling with refried beans and the leftovers for fried rice. Now I’m back home in Japan and feeling air-fryerless. Nooo! haha
Yum, those tacos sound amazing and I bet the purple sweet potato fries were beautiful!
Oh my goodness!!!! Delicious!!!!!
Thank you, Gina!! Happy you liked it!