Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

Sweet and delicious, these roasted Hasselback Sweet Potatoes make an impressive presentation yet are easy enough to add to your everyday menu. No hassle required!

I must have about 20 recipes for sweet potatoes. I make them at least once a week: steamed whole in my Instant Pot, baked in the microwave, oven roasted cubes, mashed, cut into wedges, in casseroles, even made into gluten free crackers.

My eight year old daughter, E, loves sweet potatoes! I’m so glad that she does because they are so good for you! Whenever I roast a batch for meal prep for salads, bowls, and burritos, E will eat most of those yummy sweet potato tidbits before I get them into a recipe. My mom always checks out my fridge when she visits to see if I have any roasted sweet potatoes hidden away that she can nibble on. Hey, I’m thinking we’re kind of a three generation sweet potato fan club. 

You’re going to love these Hasselback sweet potatoes. A lot of fancier sweet potato recipes include lots of brown sugar, pecans, and (gasp!) marshmallows. You’re not going to find marshmallows on these babies.

These Hasselback sweet potatoes are way more sophisticated! They are a cut above other sweet potato recipes (pun intended). And for the record, E loved these, too!

About these Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

Are you wondering what “Hasselback” is all about? Initially, I did too! I know what the Hasselback cooking method is, which we’ll get to in a minute, but I didn’t really know why it was called Hasselback. I looked on Wikipedia which told me that Hasselback is a Swedish method of making roasted potatoes, developed by a chef in Stockholm, in a restaurant called Hasselback. So there you have it, trivia you can use (not really). 

To prepare Hasselback potatoes, the potatoes are scrubbed clean and then each potato is carefully sliced into quarter inch slices but not all the way through the potato, so that the potato remains whole but with cuts in it. Melted butter and herbs are then drizzled over the cut potato and it’s roasted until golden brown. Sounds yummy, doesn’t it? The butter and herbs sink down into the sliced potatoes and the cut edges get kind of browned and crispy. 

I love this method so much, I created a recipe for Hasselback chicken, stuffed with spinach, artichoke, and three kinds of cheese. So delicious! There’s a short video to help you navigate this recipe. 

Naturally, since I love sweet potatoes so much, I wondered if this method would work with whole sweet potatoes. Perfection!

The sweet potatoes are carefully sliced, Hasselback style, and a yummy concoction of melted butter, brown sugar, and spices is poured over. Roast them in the oven, baste them a couple of times to make them really glisten, and voila, you have a classy looking, ridiculously delicious side dish to impress your guests. They will ooh and aah over this one!

To make the slicing easier, set your potato lengthwise between a couple of wooden spoon handles or chopsticks. Make the slices perpendicular to the wooden spoons/chopsticks, which will act as a guard to keep the knife from cutting all the way through. Use the sharpest knife you have! A good chef’s knife, like this one, is perfect. If it sounds difficult, don’t worry, it really isn’t that hard. My mom tried these with some trepidation, but found that it was surprisingly easy and actually kind of fun! My mom and I are kind of weird that way. 

For a helpful video about how to cut the potatoes, Hasselback style, watch this short YouTube video produced by Cooking Light. 

How to Make these Sweet Potatoes Your Own:

• I used melted butter for these because well, I love butter! You could also use ghee, or make these vegan by using olive oil. Coconut oil also tastes great with sweet potatoes. 
• Vary the spices. Instead of vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg, try making it savory with minced garlic, red pepper flakes, cayenne, or onion powder. Consider the sweet potato a blank palette ready for your artistry! 
• I garnished these Hasselback sweet potatoes with julienned apples and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Alternatives could be freshly chopped parsley, fried sage leaves, or maybe some lemon twists. 
• I used a large glass baking dish. You could also use a cast iron skillet, or any pan that will accommodate your potatoes. You don’t want to crowd them too much. They need a little space to kind of fan out and roast.  

Tips and tricks for the best Hasselback Sweet Potatoes:

• I found that cutting off the funny ends of the sweet potatoes looked a little better. That’s totally up to you. Just make sure you scrub them well. I love this vegetable brush!
• If you’re finding that your sweet potato isn’t cooperating with the slicing process, slice a thin slice off the bottom side of the potato. There! That will make your wiggly potato lie still!
• If you’re not up to making the Hasselback slices, just go ahead and slice the sweet potatoes all the way through. Layer the slices into a cooking dish to bake. I realize this isn’t quite as glamorous looking but will be just as tasty! My mom and I were thinking that layering apple slices with the sweet potatoes would be really delicious. 
• If you would like to make these potatoes ahead, reheat them at 350ºF for about 30 minutes, or until they’re heated through. Baste them a bit with the butter to make them glisten again.

Can’t get enough sweet potatoes? 

Try these recipes:

 

• Vanilla Bean Mashed Sweet Potatoes
• Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole (gluten-free, nut-free, dairy-free)
• Sweet Potato Wedges with Chinese Five Spice
• Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Maple Mustard Sauce (with a short video)
• Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
• 25 Sweet Potato Recipes (a collection of my favorites)

Verdict: These taste like dessert and are oh-so-pretty to look at! I love them!
Husband’s take: Ben isn’t a huge sweet potato fan! His loss. 
Changes I would make: None at all are necessary! 
Difficulty: I mean, they’re harder to make than baking whole sweet potatoes, but they’re still completely doable.