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Prep time
5 minutes
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Cook time
1 hour 15 minutes
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makes
4-6 potatoes
Author Notes
This recipe is as simple as an ice cream or popsicle recipe can be. Here’s the ingredient list: sweet potato. That’s it. There’s no oil, no sugar, not even salt is used in cooking the tubers. All you have to do is give the sweet potatoes a good scrubbing and a few pricks with a fork — this helps them release steam as they cook — before roasting them whole in the oven until their sugars start to caramelize, then stashing them in the freezer to freeze completely. Then, whenever you’re hankering for a cold snack, just take one out, leave it on the countertop to defrost for 5-10 minutes, peel off the skin, and snack away!
Okay, I admit it’s not technically a true ice cream or popsicle, but the flavor and texture that the sweet potato takes on after the roasting-then-freezing process is one very much akin to ice cream — soft, creamy, deeply honeyed, with a consistency like extra-thick gelato. And the best part about it is that the flavor is 100% natural!
The inherent creaminess and sweetness of the sweet potato really does all the work here, so it’s imperative that you use actually-sweet sweet potatoes. Purple-skinned, yellow-flesh Japanese or Taiwanese sweet potatoes work best in my experience, so stay away from those cardboard-dry, starchy Hannah or Jewel sweet potatoes. (Nothing against them; their strength lies in savory casseroles and mash.)
This ingenious recipe is a homey snack popular in parts of Asia. I’ve heard from Taiwanese and Korean friends about how this was the staple ‘popsicle’ of their childhood, and in adulthood, whether driven by pure nostalgia or otherwise, it’s become their favorite way of eating sweet potato. Though these sweet potato ‘popsicles’ weren’t a part of my Malaysian upbringing, after trying this, I don’t think I can ever eat sweet potato ice cream made any other way, not when I know how naturally sweet, creamy, and easy this can be! —Jun
Ingredients
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4-6 pieces
Japanese sweet potato (10-15 oz. each)
Directions
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Heat an oven to 400°F (200°C).
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Wash the sweet potatoes well. With a fork, stab holes all over the sweet potato, about 10-15 times. (This is to ensure that they don’t burst open in the oven.) Then, place the sweet potatoes on a baking tray, and put it in the oven to roast for 60-75 minutes. To check if the sweet potatoes are done, poke a small knife or cake tester into the sweet potato; it should come out clean.
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When the sweet potatoes are done, take them out of the oven and let them cool completely on the tray.
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Transfer the sweet potatoes into a container, cover with a lid, and put it in the freezer to freeze for at least 5 hours. They can keep for up to 3 months in the fridge.
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When you’re ready to eat them, take the sweet potato out of the freezer, let it defrost for 10 minutes at room temperature, then peel the skin off and eat!
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