The poor sweet potato. It’s not pretty so it’s often overlooked as the nutritional powerhouse that it is. Sweet potatoes are not only one of our favorite foods, dogs love them, kids love them, and they are the secret weapon of those in pursuit of weight loss without deprivation.
Sure they’re strangely misshapen, but are packed full of vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, copper, pantothenic acid and vitamin B6. They are a good source of potassium (which can be hard to get), dietary fiber, niacin, vitamin B1, vitamin B2 and phosphorus.
Convinced? Freeze drying sweet potatoes is so easy. Just slice them about 1″ thick and place them in a single layer on the freeze drying trays. Store them in airtight containers until you’re ready for them.
One of the best ways to use freeze dried sweet potatoes is to make them into mashed sweet potatoes with butter and cinnamon. If that’s your plan, you can grind freeze dried slices into a powder then just add hot water. While you have a stash of sweet potato powder, sneak a couple of tablespoons into your smoothies for a nutritional boost.
Keep a stash of freeze dried sweet potatoes around for a low calorie, high fiber snack when the 3 o’clock munchies hit. Trust us, it works.
Freeze dried sweet potatoes, whether sliced, small diced or powdered, can be used in casseroles and stews. One of our favorite simple sweet potato dishes is just a combination of lentils, curry powder, sea salt, and diced sweet potatoes over rice. Sliced very thinly, they make delicious vegetable chips when sprinkled with savory seasoning, or a sweet treat tossed with cinnamon and sugar.
Enjoy the beautiful fall weather, and enjoy stashing some seasonal treats for the winter days ahead.
Does it matter if you blanch them first?
Yes. If you don’t the texture is a little wonky after freeze drying
Are they freeze dried cooked or raw?
Same question do you just slice them raw?
With fresh sweet potatoes we like to do a quick blanch before freeze drying. This helps retain color and flavor. Frozen vegetables have already been blanched and so we put them strait into the freeze freeze dryer.
I’m sure you meant to say 1/4″ sliced not the 1″ you have in your article.
1″ thick would be problematic for sure.
Do you slice them first then blanch them
My dad has been complaining about how hard it is to cook for one, so being able to make a batch and then split after cooking has been helpful.
I cooked and mashed sweet potatoes, butternut squash, and pumpkin and then put on trays. To speed drying, I put spoonfuls with space between them. I was amazed at how sweet the powder tasted when dried.
I gave him bags of powder with some small cans of coconut milk to make soup.
Hey excellent idea with the coconut milk !
What a wonderful idea thank you for sharing
She question. Do I cook sweet potatoes before slicing them to freeze dry?
I peeled them, cut them raw then blanch them.
Do you cook them first??
I did not blanch my sweet potatoes before freeze drying. I ground them into a powder and want to use as a puree. Can I do this even though I did not blanch them?
I’ve been making sweet potato powder for a long time . It’s a dense powder that makes a perfect bag to store. I steam my taters first, then put on trays to cool. My wife wants them straight, without any extras, which can be added later. But we have SO MANY fresh sweet taters that we never look for the FD ones. Oh well, someone in the future will be well fed!!
There are hundreds of sweet potato stews you can make, all yummy, esp. with lots of garlic and onions.
How soon after slicing & blanching would they need to go in?
Put them in the freezer first, on the FD trays. Then when they are frozen solid, turn on your FD for the 15 minute required start-up, then add your frozen trays. This will save LOTS of time by not having our FD freeze the product – whatever product you plan to FD, ALWAYS freeze in your regular freezer first.
Can you leave the skins on or does that negatively affect the freeze drying?
I just sliced a sweet potato. I hope it’s ok not to Blanche. I’m using the slices for dog treats.
i cook them in a roaster with skins on. Once they’ve cooked the peel comes off super easy. I put the right onto the FD tray and mash with a fork. Takes about 34-37 hours to FD (I prefreeze mine). i have been breaking them into small 1” squares and pkg them in mylar bags or mason jars. I’ve rehydrated them and they taste fresh from the garden! I wondered how they would rehydrate if I powdered them… that would take way less space to store!
When I gather the sweet potatoes from the garden some of them can have bad spots or icky skin. I peel, cut them up, blanche them, then freeze dry. I don’t throw the skins away, I freeze dry those too for dog treats for my mom’s dog. He absolutely loves them.
Has anyone tried FDing sweet potato fries already cooked? I know they would do well raw/blanched, but curious if rehydration and reheating in the oven allows them to maintain a good finished product.