How to Dehydrate Sweet Potatoes (4 ways)
Dehydrating sweet potatoes is an excellent way to store them – whether sliced, cubed, or mashed, you can have them ready year-round! Come find out how easy it is to do!
Have you ever found your sweet potato stash has grown long tendrils in storage because you forgot about them? Or perhaps you wanted mashed sweet potatoes for dinner and realized you didn’t have any?
I’ll show you how to make your sweet potatoes shelf-stable without having to can them. However, if you want to learn, here’s how to pressure can sweet potatoes! We also love making sweet potato chews for the pup!
How to Dehydrate Sweet Potatoes
Sweet Potato Slices
- Wash potatoes.
- Peel Potatoes.
- Use a knife or a mandoline slicer to cut slices between 3/16″ to 1/4″ for best results. I love this OXO mandoline (but please be sure to use a safety cutting glove!)
- Blanch in boiling water for 4 minutes.
- Immediately dunk in an ice bath to stop the cooking process.
- Place onto your dehydrator trays.
- Dry for 8-12 hours at 125°F/52°C. (Get your dehydrating magnet here!)
- Potatoes should break easily and have a dry, leathery texture.
Note: These will not be like the baked sweet potato chips you can purchase in the store. Those are usually fried or high-heat baked. If you want to try a version with dehydrating, slice them paper-thin with your mandoline or food processor. You’ll want 1/8″ or less – and then dehydrate.
Sweet Potato Dices
These sweet potatoes are great for tossing into soups, stews, casseroles, hash, etc.
- Wash potatoes
- Peel Potatoes
- Use a knife or a vegetable chopper into small cubes.
- Blanch for 3 minutes in boiling water.
- Immediately dunk into an ice bath to stop the cooking process.
- Spread onto dehydrator trays
- Dry at 125°F/52° for 8-15 hours (depending on the size).
- Potatoes should be small, hard, and plink when dropped on a solid surface.
Sweet Potato Bark
- Wash potatoes.
- Peel potatoes. This is your choice, of course, but I prefer peeled in this instance.
- Cut into large cubes and cook in boiling water or bake until soft.
- Mash to a smooth consistency. You can use a potato masher or a hand blender.
- Spread the puree onto silicone dehydrating sheets in a very thin layer.
- Dry at 125°F/52° until brittle – and you’ve got sweet potato bark!
- Sweet potato mash is dry when the ‘leather’ breaks easily and is brittle.
- Store as bark in an airtight container OR grind to make sweet potato flour (directions below).
Sweet Potato Shreds
Like potato shreds, or hash brown shreds, sweet potatoes can also be shredded and used much in the same fashion. The shreds can also be a faster way to create sweet potato flour!
- Wash and peel sweet potato
- Shred using a food processor or box grater.
- Blanch in hot boiling water for 2-3 minutes, then immediately place into an ice bath.
- Spread out onto dehydrator trays.
- Dry at 125°F/52°C for 6-10 hours until fully dry and brittle.
- Store in an airtight container or powder
Condition
With all varieties, it is good to condition your dried food before storing it to help prevent mold from under-dried foods you didn’t catch.
- Place dried food into a jar to allow movement. Do not add moisture absorbers or any other desiccant.
- Shake once a day for 5-7 days.
- Look for signs of sticking, clumping, or moisture buildup.
- If you have clumping or sticking to the side of a jar, if it is removed with a gentle shake, it is fine.
- If it takes significant shaking to remove it or break it up, place back into the dehydrator to dry more.
- If you see mold of any kind, throw food away and sanitize the jar.
- Look for signs of sticking, clumping, or moisture buildup.
- Once complete, store in an airtight container in a dark, cool, dry place if possible.
Storage
Storing dried sweet potatoes is as easy as placing inside an airtight container of your choice and then storing in a cool, dark, dry place for up to three years. You may get longer, but the optimal storage time is about two years. However, my experience has shown that you can get longer without a loss of taste or texture.
Rehydrating
Sweet Potato slices, shreds, and cubes
Choose one of these three ways to dehydrate your dried sweet potatoes. You’ll find the best way for you, but know that cubes work best in a slow cook method to allow them to rehydrate and cook.
- Place directly into a pot of simmering soup or stew – or –
- Place into a bowl and pour boiling water on top and allow them to rehydrate – or –
- Place a saucepan of water on the stove and simmer the cubes or slices until they are rehydrated and cooked.
Sweet potato flour
Making mashed sweet potatoes any time you’d like them is as simple as:
- Place the desired amount of sweet potato powder in a bowl (I use 1/2 cup of flour).
- Pour boiling water onto the powder. Stir.
- Allow it to sit for a few moments to rehydrate.
- Add more water until you get to the desired consistency you want.
- Add butter and any creams or seasonings that you love. I recommend cumin, ginger or rosemary instead of a traditional cinnamon and nutmeg mixture.
Tip: I’m not giving the exact amount of boiling water because it will never be the same. Your sweet potato flour will be different in every batch, and absorb differently. Just add enough to cover the powder and a little extra, stir, and add more if you need it. Then let it rest a few moments before continuing.
Yield: 2 C water to 1/2 C sweet potato powder = 2 C sweet potato puree
Uses for Sweet Potato Flour
- Mashed sweet potatoes: Mix 1/2 cup of sweet potato powder with hot water and continue adding until you get the desired consistency. Add spices as you prefer.
- Boost your pancake’s nutrition! Replace 1/4 cup flour in a pancake or waffle recipe with 1/4 cup sweet potato flour. If doing a large batch, add more.
- Throw a tablespoon or two into a smoothie.
- 5-minute sweet potato oatmeal: 2 tablespoons sweet potato flour, 1/2 cup oats, water, and any nuts or fruit you may want. Microwave for a few minutes. You can do a quick oats version with 1 tablespoon of powder with 1/2 cup of quick oats and boiling water.
- Make sweet potato tortillas – use 1/2 cup of flour for every 2 cups of fresh mashed sweet potatoes required, and rehydrate.
- Sweet potato flour can replace a cup of regular flour to make sweet potato bread or muffins!
- Try replacing up to 1/4 of the volume of flour for making pasta.
More Sweet Potato Ideas
Dehydrate Sweet Potatoes 3-ways
Equipment
- Fruit leather sheets parchment paper is fine, too.
Ingredients
Instructions
Sweet Potato Slices
- Wash potatoes.
- Peel Potatoes.
- Use a knife or a mandoline slicer to cut slices between 3/16″ to 1/4″ for best results. I love this OXO mandoline (but please be sure to use a safety cutting glove!)
- Blanch in boiling water for 4 minutes.
- Immediately dunk in an ice bath to stop the cooking process.
- Place onto your dehydrator trays.
- Dry for 8-12 hours at 125°F/52°C.
- Potatoes should break easily and have a dry, leathery texture.
Sweet Potato Dices
- Wash potatoes
- Peel Potatoes
- Use a knife or a vegetable chopper into small cubes.
- Blanch for 3 minutes in boiling water.
- Immediately dunk into an ice bath to stop the cooking process.
- Spread onto dehydrator trays
- Dry at 125°F/52° for 8-15 hours (depending on the size).
- Potatoes should be small, hard, and plink when dropped on a solid surface.
- Wash potatoes
- Peel Potatoes
- Use a knife or a vegetable chopper into small cubes.
- Blanch for 3 minutes in boiling water.
- Immediately dunk into an ice bath to stop the cooking process.
- Spread onto dehydrator trays
- Dry at 125°F/52° for 8-15 hours (depending on the size).
- Potatoes should be small, hard, and plink when dropped on a solid surface.
Sweet Potato Bark
- Wash potatoes.
- Peel potatoes.
- Cut into large cubes and cook in boiling water or bake until soft.
- Mash to a smooth consistency. You can use a potato masher or a hand blender.
- Spread the puree onto silicone dehydrating sheets in a very thin layer.
- Dry at 125°F/52° until brittle – and you’ve got sweet potato bark!
- Sweet potato mash is dry when the ‘leather’ breaks easily and is brittle.
- Store as bark in an airtight container OR grind to make sweet potato flour (directions below).
Video
Darcy’s Tips
Sweet Potato slices and cubes
Choose one of these three ways to dehydrate your dried sweet potatoes. You’ll find the way that works best for you, but know that cubes work best in a slow cook method to allow them to rehydrate and cook.- Place directly into a pot of simmering soup or stew – or –
- Place into a bowl and pour boiling water on top and allow them to rehydrate – or –
- Place a saucepan of water on the stove and simmer the cubes or slices until they are rehydrated and cooked.
Sweet potato flour
Making mashed sweet potatoes any time you’d like them is as simple as:- Place the desired amount of sweet potato powder in a bowl (I use 1/2 cup of flour).
- Pour boiling water onto the powder. Stir.
- Allow it to sit for a few moments to rehydrate.
- Add more water until you get to the desired consistency you want.
- Add butter and any creams or seasonings that you love. I recommend cumin, ginger or rosemary instead of a traditional cinnamon and nutmeg mixture.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only. Nutrient information for dehydrated foods is based on fresh. Use 1/4 of the servicing size for the same nutrient information. Thus 1 Cup of fresh fruit has the same sugars as 1/4 dried.
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