Slow Cooker Sweet Potatoes is the easiest recipe that every busy person needs in their life. There’s essentially no prep time, and it’s completely hands-off. After the slow cooker works its magic, you’ll have the most delicious, fluffy, sweet potatoes ready to join you for dinner.
Sweet potatoes are one of my favorite healthy side dishes – I make a batch just about Sunday to eat all week alongside various dinners. I’m making these roasted sweet potatoes most of the time – I just love the sweet and spicy flavors!
However, sometimes I want a classic baked sweet potato. The problem is, sweet potatoes take at least an hour to bake in the oven. My solution is to “bake” them in the crockpot instead. I’ll throw a bunch of sweet potatoes into the crockpot and let them cook all day. By dinnertime, these potatoes are ready to eat.
Reasons you’ll love this recipe
- Cooks while you work. Sweet potatoes cook for 8 hours in the slow cooker, making it a perfect slow cooking recipe for when you’re out of the house all day.
- Super healthy. Sweet potatoes are high in fiber and protein, low in fat, and full of vitamin A, C, B6, and many other vitamins and minerals. It’s one of the first foods I suggest adding to a clean eating diet! Sweet potatoes are also gluten-free, Paleo, and Whole-30 compliant.
- Versatile. Stuff the potatoes with beans or lean meats to make a complete meal or eat as a side dish.
Ingredients
Sweet potatoes – yep, that’s it! Only one ingredient. I purchase 3lb bags of organic sweet potatoes when I’m making this slow cooker recipe.
Cooking Tips
- Put larger potatoes on the bottom. Most of the heat from the slow cooker comes from the bottom and sides. The larger potatoes will need more cooking time so put them on the bottom. The smaller potatoes can go on top of the larger ones.
- You don’t need to poke bowls In the potatoes. There’s no need to release any steam while the sweet potatoes cook in the crockpot.
- You don’t need to wrap the potatoes in foil. When I first started making these crockpot sweet potatoes, I would wrap them in foil to prevent sticking and help with cleaning. However, I learned that this isn’t necessary. So save the foil for something else.
- Cooking time can vary depending on the size. Sweet potatoes come in all different shapes and sizes; this can affect the cooking time. The best way to prevent this is to put the larger potatoes on the bottom of the slow cooker insert.
- You can stack the potatoes on top of one another. I don’t recommend filling the potatoes to the top of the slow cooker insert, but you can have two layers of potatoes.
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How to Make Slow Cooker Sweet Potatoes
- Take a wet paper towel and scrub any dirt off of the potatoes.
- Place the potatoes into the slow cooker insert. The larger potatoes should go onto the bottom, and then you stack the smaller ones on top.
- Set the slow cooker to cook on low for 8 hours or high for 5-6 hours. The potatoes are done cooking when you can pierce the flesh easily with a fork or knife.
Serving suggestions
- Add a pat of butter and a little coconut sugar for a classic sweet potato flavor.
- Stuffed it with turkey taco meat and black beans for a spicy flair
- Add spinach, feta and chicken for a Greek twist.
- Enjoy alongside this turkey zucchini meatloaf or baked ranch chicken.
- You can also scoop out the flesh to use in this healthy sweet potato casserole or whipped sweet mashed potatoes.
Storage tips
- Cooked sweet potatoes can be stored in glass containers in the fridge for up to 5 days. To reheat the potatoes, place them in a microwave-safe dish and microwave on high for 1-2 minutes or until hot. Reheat In the microwave.
- You can also scoop out the flesh and freeze it for up to 3 months. I suggest freezing into portions for quick sides or create a meal prep bowl with it. These silicone trays (Souper cubes) are great for freezing into 1-cup or more portions.
Slow Cooker Sweet Potatoes
Equipment
- 6- quart programmable slow cooker
Ingredients
- 3 lbs sweet potatoes
Instructions
- Take a wet paper towel and scrub any dirt off of the potatoes.
- Place the potatoes into the slow cooker insert. The larger potatoes should go onto the bottom, and then you stack the smaller ones on top.
- Set the slow cooker to cook on low for 8 hours or high for 5-6 hours.
Notes
Nutrition
Other Healthy Potato Side Dishes
Did you make this recipe?
Have you tried these Slow Cooker Sweet Potatoes? If so, I’d love for you to rate this recipe and leave a comment below. We all learn from each other’s experiences. Also, it would be awesome if you could share a picture on Instagram and tag it #organizeyourselfskinny. I can’t wait to see it!
JoAnn says
Love the results. I had bought a 2# bag of Trader Joe’s sweet potatoes. Here’s my notes regarding the cooking time in this case.
The Trader Joe’s sweet potatoes came in a 2# bag. There were 8 potatoes in the bag. So they were fairly small. I put them in the slow cooker along with one medium (normal) size sweet potato. The setting was Low and 8 hours. The potatoes started smelling down so I checked them. The small potatoes were done in just over 3 hours (3-1/4). The medium size potato took another 30 minutes.
So total time was under 4 hours.
So I suggest that the first time you do this recipe to be home so you can check on them.
They were done perfectly and delicious. I can now have them more often since they are so easy to make.
Tammy Overhoff says
that’s wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing your experience. I’ll add this to the notes section of the recipe.
Elina says
SO in love with this flavor combination, looks like a great weekday dinner!
Myriam says
I’m looking for recipes all over the world, cooker potatoes is a new experience in my kitchen
Julie says
Thanks so much for this post! My big questions has been whether the potatoes will cook only if they’re sitting on the bottom of the slow cooker or if they can be stacked, and I’m so happy to know they can!
Nikki says
This is my absolute favorite way to cook sweet potatoes! They turn out amazing every time! I’ve been using this method for years and never poke them – just wash, foil and bake! I think they taste way better than when I’m in a pinch and use the microwave or oven. Thanks for posting!
Rita Smithey says
Last year it was going to be just my husband and grown children so I made the whole Thanksgiving dinner. I used this crock pot recipe for the sweet potatoes,peeled them when cool enough, mashed them and made a sweet potato casserole. I then put them back in the crock pot to heat and then topped it with marshmallows. I also made my dressing and put it in another crock pot. They all turned out great. Since the Turkey takes up most of the oven all I had to do was the stove top vegetables, gravy etc.Everything was ready at the right time. Love my crock pots.
Bill S says
Why the foil?
Tammy Kresge says
So as they cook they don’t mush into each other. SOme people don’t use it but I prefer too.
Judy says
i think you mentioned on your blog that you were cooking butternut squash in the crockpot. How? Do you do the same as you do for sweet potatoes? Also have you tried other varieties of squash like acorn or buttercup? Love both sweet potatoes and squash. Love you blog, recipes and ideas. Thanks.
Cari says
Do you think this would also work for regular potatoes?
Tammy Kresge says
yes it does
Mary says
Yes cook them the same as the sweet potatoes
Lori Olsen says
I bake potatoes in the crockpot all the time. I just lightly coat them in olive oil and cook for 3 hours on high or 6 to 8 hours on low. You can also season them with salt and pepper or another spice before cooking.
Dawn says
I will have to try this. I don’t have, nor do I want, a microwave. This sounds like a nice alternative to heating up the oven, especially in the summer.
Megan says
This is a great idea! If I made a few of these for the week, how do you reheat them? In the microwave? Sorry if this is an obvious question. Just want to know how you incorporate them into your meal plan once they’ve been cooked.
Katie says
I tried this recipe today. The sweet potatoes turned out amazing in the crockpot! I put them on at 7:30 when I left the house and didn’t turn them off until 6:30. The skins pealed right off and I topped them with feta cheese, black beans, corn and a little red onion. My boyfriend (who was very skeptical) loved them too and used crumbled blue cheese instead of the feta. We’ll definitely be making these again. Thanks for the post!
ellenk says
This recipe sounds great and convenient. I also use sweet potatoes often and prepare them in the microwave–either completely or start them there and finish up in the oven with something that is baked/roasted for a short time. I’ve been eating them year round for a long long time and have always been teased about it not being Thanksgiving; however, when guests had them, no matter when, they were pleased. I’m so glad they’ve entered food mainstream.