Sweet Potatoes on a Blackstone Griddle

Sweet potatoes on the Blackstone come out caramelized on the outside and soft inside — a result that takes 45 minutes in an oven but under 20 minutes on a flat top griddle. The direct steel contact creates browning that an oven can’t replicate: crispy edges, caramelized sugar, and color all the way around.

Two methods work well here: sliced sweet potatoes seared in butter and brown sugar, or diced cubes cooked crispy like hash browns. Both are excellent as sides or as a base for loaded sweet potato bowls.

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Method 1: Sliced Sweet Potatoes (Caramelized)

Ingredients

• 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced ¼-inch thick
• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp salt
• Optional: pinch of cayenne, maple syrup to finish

Instructions

Step 1: Preheat the griddle to medium-high (375°F). Add butter to the cooking surface and let it melt.

Step 2: Lay sweet potato slices in a single layer. Season with salt, cinnamon, and a sprinkle of brown sugar on top.

Step 3: Cook for 5–7 minutes without moving until the bottom develops deep caramelization. Flip.

Step 4: Sprinkle the other side with brown sugar. Cook another 4–5 minutes until both sides are caramelized and the center is tender when pierced with a fork.

Step 5: Drizzle with maple syrup to serve if desired.

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Method 2: Diced Sweet Potatoes (Crispy Cubes)

Ingredients

• 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes
• 2 tbsp avocado oil
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp cumin (optional)
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

Step 1: Preheat the griddle to medium-high (375°F). Add avocado oil.

Step 2: Spread sweet potato cubes in a single layer. Season with garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper.

Step 3: Cook without moving for 5–6 minutes until the bottom side is golden brown and slightly crispy.

Step 4: Flip and cook another 5–6 minutes, turning occasionally to brown all sides.

Step 5: Test for doneness with a fork — they should be tender all the way through. If the outside is browning too fast before the inside is done, cover with a dome or basting cover and reduce heat slightly.

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Tips

Don’t slice too thin. Less than ¼-inch slices cook through too quickly before developing caramelization. ¼ to ⅓ inch is the sweet spot.

Par-cook for very large batches. If cooking a lot of sweet potatoes, microwave them for 3–4 minutes first to partially cook the interior. This dramatically speeds up griddle time and prevents raw centers.

The dome helps. Covering the sweet potatoes with a basting dome for the first half of cooking steams the interior while the griddle sears the outside — you get crispy outside and fully soft inside without burning.

Watch the heat. Sweet potato sugar burns at high heat. If you see blackening rather than caramelization, reduce heat slightly. Medium-high (375°F) is usually right; some griddles run hot and need to be dialed back to medium.

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Variation: Loaded Sweet Potato Bowls

The diced method is the base for a full meal. Pile the crispy cubes into bowls and top with black beans, diced avocado, pickled red onion, and a drizzle of avocado crema or spicy mayo. Add fajita chicken off the same griddle and it’s dinner. The smoked paprika-cumin seasoning in Method 2 was built for exactly this.

For a sweet-heat finish on the sliced version, swap the maple syrup for hot honey — the cayenne pinch in the ingredient list is pointing you there.

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Buying Sweet Potatoes

Pick potatoes of uniform, medium size with taut skin and no soft spots — uniform matters more than big, because same-size potatoes mean same-size slices and cubes that finish together. Standard orange sweet potatoes (usually labeled “yams” in US stores — they aren’t, but that’s another story) caramelize best because of their sugar content. White and purple varieties work but are drier and starchier: treat them more like the regular potato methods with a par-cook.

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What to Serve With Them

The cinnamon-butter slices belong next to pork chops or pork tenderloin — pork and sweet potato is a permanent pairing. The savory cubes run with turkey burgers and anything from the healthy round-up, where they already feature.

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Storage and Reheating

Cubes are a legitimate meal-prep side: refrigerate up to 4 days and re-crisp on a 375°F griddle zone or in a skillet for 2–3 minutes — they come back better than almost any other prepped vegetable. The caramelized slices soften in storage; reheat them gently and accept them tender rather than crisp, or chop leftovers into a breakfast hash.

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More flat-top recipes: Blackstone Side Dishes · Blackstone Dinner Ideas · Blackstone Baked Potatoes

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Frequently Asked Questions

What temperature do you cook sweet potatoes on a Blackstone griddle?

375°F — medium-high heat. High enough to caramelize the natural sugars and develop browning on the outside, but not so high that the exterior burns before the center cooks through. If your griddle runs hot, use medium (350°F) and cover with a dome.

Do you need to par-cook sweet potatoes before the griddle?

Not required. Sliced ¼-inch thin or cubed into ¾-inch pieces, sweet potatoes cook fully on the griddle without par-cooking in 15–20 minutes. For very large diced pieces (1-inch cubes) or when cooking large quantities, a 3–4 minute microwave head-start ensures the center cooks before the outside burns.

How do you know when sweet potatoes are done on a Blackstone?

The center should pierce easily with a fork or paring knife — no resistance. The outside should be golden to deep brown with visible caramelization. For sliced potatoes: 5–7 minutes per side. For cubed: 10–12 minutes total, turning every few minutes.