Sweet Potato Fritter Recipe
Today we are making a Sweet Potato Fritter Recipe! Sweet potato, one of the most versatile vegetables out there. Did you know that a cup of this bright root vegetable contains 769% of our daily Vitamin A, 65% of Vitamin C, 50% of Manganese, 29% of Vitamin B, and 27% Potassium, just to name a few?
Next, they are also high in antioxidants. Which – let’s face it – almost every fruit, vegetable, and herb that I’ve heard of has some sort of antioxidant powers. I hear the phrase way more often than I feel necessary. But hey, it’s true! Nature is loaded with the best of the best for our bodies. If you don’t know, antioxidants are compounds that stop oxidation in your body. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that creates free radicals. To add more confusing terminology, free radicals are atoms with electrons that are unpaired/unstable, leading to other chemical reactions that can damage your cells.
Gut Health & Sweet Potatoes
When it comes to gut health, you already know the sweet potato is also going to top that chart. This is where it goes “woooooo!” down into your gut, and promotes healthy bacteria growth. Given that gut health is extremely important, making these tater tots should be at the TOP of your list! I wasn’t aware how important gut health was until a few years ago, that an unbalanced/inflamed gut can cause myriad issues, from acne, depression, bloating, and other things I had experienced, unsure of what was going on. It was when I started cutting out certain food groups and taking pre- and probiotics (that also foster healthy bacteria) that I noticed what a difference a balanced gut makes!
Antioxidant Power
Here’s a bonus for you: There’s a high level of one specific type of antioxidants – anthocyanins – detected in purple sweet potatoes. This antioxidant decreases the growth of specific types of cancer cells, as well as improves brain function. So on top of everything, now this nugget can do so much more than you thought possible!
Quick, how many fingers am I holding up? How do you think sweet potatoes got that orange color? It’s that beta-carotene vibin’ inside! This specific antioxidant helps to improve eye vision. It converts the beta-carotene to Vitamin A in your body, then uses that to form light-detecting receptors in your eyes! So really, if you wear glasses like myself, this gives you the perfect excuse to nugget-ize your life and get 20/20 vision. And you can say it was due to a crispy tater tot. Click here to read more on sweet potatoes!
The best part? You can gain all these benefits by using sweet potatoes the SAME WAY you use regular potatoes. SWEET POTATO FRIES. SWEET POTATO BURGERS. TATER TOTS. NUGGETS. CHIPS. ROASTED. MASHED. FRIED (okay, not as healthy). AIR FRY. PAN FRY. BAKE. SPIRALIZE. SO. MANY. OPTIONS.
If you’re a health nut who’ll go to any extent to get the veggies in your diet, then the door opens a little wider for you: Not only can sweet potato make fritters, but also HOT CHOCOLATE. SMOOTHIES. PUDDING. FUDGE. BROWNIES. COOKIES. CAKES. AND MUCH, MUCH MORE YOU GUYS. So TODAY – you probably got the hint from the photos and the title. CRISPY SWEET POTATO FRITTERS, YESSIR!
Why You’ll Love This Sweet Potato Fritter Recipe
Healthy Tater Tots: This crispy fritter reminds me of a healthy version of a tater tot! They are pan-fried until golden brown, bite-size, a great snack for picky kids and makes for the perfect side dish or finger food. Also, I skipped deep frying these due to time and to make them healthier, but you can also deep fry.
To make these even healthier, experiment by adding in a flax egg (this helps with holding the mixture together too and replaces regular eggs in a fritter). Flax seeds are amazing health-wise, and a flax egg is 2-3 tablespoons of water, mixed with a tablespoon of ground flax seeds (aka, flax meal). Mix it and let it sit for 15 minutes before using! You might need to add a little more grated sweet potato to make up for the excess liquid, but this will make it an even healthier option.
Rich in Vitamins: As mentioned in the introduction paragraphs above, sweet potatoes are full of nutrients – we should all get our fix of this earthy potato in! The best way is to use it in various recipes so you always have a new way of eating it and don’t get bored. Just like regular potatoes can make tater tots, fries, chips, mashed potatoes and can be used in multiple different ways, sweet potato is the same! You can even try using purple sweet potatoes here, which have their own unique mix of vitamins and minerals.
Freeze For Later: Just like hash browns or tater tots come frozen, you can make a large batch and freeze these for later, heating them up in the air fryer or on the skillet when you’re ready to eat them!
Substitutions
All Purpose Flour: I like to use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 All Purpose Flour mixture when a gluten free substitute is needed. Chickpea flour might be another option – my mom used it in many recipes growing up, when making Indian pakora, and the chickpea gram flour (besan) was the binding flour. You might be able to replace a spoon or two of the all-purpose flour with rice flour too.
Overall, a mixture of both gluten-free all purpose flour and chickpea gram flour could make a healthier option than regular all purpose.
Olive Oil: I used extra virgin olive oil. You can try refined coconut oil (not the one that smells like coconuts, which is actually virgin coconut oil. Refined oil has no smell). Avocado oil, peanut oil, corn oil, grapeseed oil, vegetable oil, canola oil or another neutral oil can work too.
Breadcrumbs: Find a recipe for making your own bread crumbs online if you don’t have them handy (but if you do have extra bread at home). Another option is to try a crushed cereal instead, such as cornflakes. These would be the most neutral as a coating.
Sweet Potato Fritter Recipe Notes
- Dipping sauce ideas could be hot sauce, buffalo sauce, soy sauce, vegan sour cream, ketchup or even the vegan queso recipe linked below!
- As instructed in the recipe card, or best results make sure to really squeeze all the extra moisture out of the shredded potatoes by placing it in cloth and squeezing multiple times. Change the cloth if the first one is fully wet. Otherwise it won’t be absorbing any more of the liquid.
- Boil the sweet potatoes first on the stovetop, which takes about 15 minutes. You can check out instructions for boiling here if needed. Then use a large hole box grater to shred them before draining the excess moisture and adding the other ingredients to make the sweet potato mixture.
- To serve, top with vegan sour cream, drizzle lime juice and sprinkle green onions on top. It’s a great way to elevate the dish in terms of plating if serving as an appetizer!
- If you would like to drain excess oil, then line a plate or baking tray with paper towel before frying. As the fritters are finished cooking, place them on the paper towel to drain the oil (or on a wire rack with a paper towel underneath to catch any oil dripping out).
- I do not recommend to blitz the sweet potatoes in the food processor. They may just turn into a soggy mess or become too blended into a liquid. Instead, shred them by hand.
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If you make this Sweet Potato Fritter Recipe, then leave a comment and star rating! Don’t forget to tag your photos @peanut_palate on Instagram. Enjoy!
Sweet Potato Fritter Recipe
Equipment
- Stovepan Pan or Non-Stick Skillet
- Air Fryer
- Box or Hand Grater
Ingredients
- 2 small boiled sweet potatoes peeled and shredded
- 1 tbsp all purpose flour gluten free sub: gluten-free all purpose flour
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning blend
- ¼ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup breadcrumbs
- olive oil
Instructions
- Place the raw sweet potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Bring this to a boil on the stove, then reduce the heat to medium-low for about 10 minutes. Once the potatoes are able to be pierced by a fork, move them off the heat, drain the water and rinse with cold water to cool them down. Make sure the potatoes are not *too* soft – they should be pierce-able with a fork, but not so soft that you can smush them with a touch of your finger. If too soft, they won't shred well.
- Use a large hole box or hand grater to shred the potatoes.
- Squeeze the moisture out of the shredded sweet potato by placing it in a cloth and squeezing it. Then add the shreds to a bowl and mix in the rest of the ingredients, aside from the breadcrumbs and olive oil.
- Shape the mixture into 10 balls once it is thoroughly mixed. Then roll in the breadcrumbs.
- Place the tater tots in the air fryer and drizzle olive oil over top. Turn the air fryer on at 350F for 10-15 minutes. Everyone's air fryer is different, so check on them every few minutes and shaking them around to make sure they fry properly.
- Once the outside is looking crispy, turn a pan on over medium heat on the stovetop. Add some olive oil into the pan, and take the tater tots out of the air fryer. Pan fry them for a few minutes to make sure the insides are fully cooked. You can even turn the heat to medium-low and cover the pan with a lid, making sure there's enough oil in there so the tots don't burn or stick to the pan. This way, it will slowly cook on the inside without browning the outside too much.
- Check on them in a few minutes – bite into one and make sure it is as cooked as you want it.
- Remove from the pan and place the fritters on a plate lined with paper towels to drain the excess oil. Then enjoy! Dip with your favorite sauces and see storage options below.
Notes
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Storage
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.
- For later use, freeze them in a sealed Ziploc bag and warm up in the air fryer or on a skillet when ready to eat.
