Oven-baked sweet potato chips are a tasty and crunchy, but above all light, version of classic potato chips. On my blog, you can find several recipes with sweet potatoes, as I’ve always liked them, and my daughters do too, so I use them often in cooking. Recently, we also enjoyed them in Portugal, where they are used in various preparations and even to make bread, which I’ll try in the coming days. Among other things, we enjoyed them precisely in chip form, as they are often served in places with aperitifs or even as a side dish. Of course, I couldn’t resist making them at home to feel a bit like I’m back in Portugal.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4-6 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs sweet potatoes
- 1 tsp salt
- to taste pepper
- 5 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
Steps
To make oven-baked sweet potato chips, preheat the oven to 356 degrees Fahrenheit (convection) and line three baking sheets with parchment paper.
Wash and dry the potatoes and slice them very thinly, without peeling. If you have a slicer, use it to achieve thin and even slices, as the more uniform the slices, the more even the cooking will be. If you don’t have a slicer, you can also use a mandoline; in that case, the slices will be slightly thicker, so the cooking time may increase slightly. If you have neither a slicer nor a mandoline, you can cut the potatoes very thinly with a sharp knife, but keep in mind that in that case, it will be nearly impossible to achieve uniform slices, so you might end up with some nice crispy chips and others still soft or crispy only halfway if the slice is thicker on one side.
Once the potatoes are sliced, place them in a large bowl, add the salt, pepper, and extra virgin olive oil, and mix gently, so as not to break individual slices, until all slices have been coated with oil.
Now distribute the slices on the three baking sheets lined with parchment paper, in a single layer, without overlapping. Bake at 356 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes.
Remove one baking sheet at a time from the oven and turn the potato slices one by one. Bake again and continue cooking for another 10 minutes, this time placing the handle of a wooden spoon in the oven door, so that a gap remains open for steam to escape.
After these additional ten minutes of cooking, turn the slices one last time, bake again, still keeping a gap open to let the steam escape, and finish cooking for about 5 minutes, until the potatoes are crispy. During this final phase of cooking, keep an eye on the potatoes, as they change color quickly. If you see that some (especially along the edges) are about to darken too much, remove them and continue cooking only the remaining potatoes.
Remove from the oven, let cool, and serve your sweet potato chips, seasoning again with salt on the surface if desired. If you like, you can also serve them with a dip.
Tips
These potato chips can also be made by adding spices or herbs to taste, such as sweet or smoked paprika, curry, turmeric, oregano, rosemary, or even chili pepper.
