Sweet potatoes are a popular first food to introduce to babies, likely because they have a soft, creamy texture whether they’re served as a purée, or as a finger food. They’re also a great food for those who want to ease their baby into solids by starting with easier textures.
Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of starchy carbohydrates and also provide important nutrients like beta-carotene, vitamin C, and fiber – just to name a few (1)!
Table of Contents
When can babies eat sweet potatoes?
Sweet potatoes are safe to serve beginning around 6 months when babies are showing all of the developmental signs of readiness. They even make a great first food for babies with many parents choosing to make sweet potato baby food at home for their baby’s first meal.
Watch baby Alanna eat
sweet potato fingers!
Watch baby Alanna eat sweet potato fingers!
Alanna is 8 months old and self-feeding using her palmar grasp.
Are sweet potatoes a choking hazard for babies?
Sweet potatoes are not a common choking hazard for babies. They can be cooked down to a soft, creamy texture, making them generally easy for babies to eat and swallow.
Always make sure that you’re offering baby appropriate foods based on their skill level and ability to chew their food thoroughly.
Sweet potatoes & arsenic concerns
You may have heard about concerns over rice and arsenic, but heavy metals are not limited to rice and rice products. Sweet potatoes can also be affected – but we don’t want you to worry. Let’s review the facts!
Sweet potatoes absorb trace amounts of arsenic and heavy metals from the soil in which they’re grown. This is a result of pollution and contaminants that have accumulated within the soil over hundreds of years. Arsenic contamination is not limited to heavily processed foods, even whole foods like fresh sweet potatoes can contain trace levels.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t offer sweet potatoes to your little one! As long as you’re offering variety and not serving foods containing heavy metals too frequently, they’re fine to include in your baby’s diet.
Learn more about arsenic research in our blog on rice and rice products.
Best sweet potatoes for babies
There are many varieties of sweet potatoes, not just the classic red skin with orange flesh (2). Sweet potatoes can also have white, yellow, purple, or brown skin, with white, yellow, purple, or orange-red flesh (2).
Sweet potatoes with red skin and orange flesh are the ones most often seen in recipes and store-bought sweet potato puree for babies. They tend to have a creamier and slightly sweeter flavor as compared to other varieties (2). It’s their creamy texture once cooked that makes them perfect for babies from day one of eating solid foods.
Golden sweet potatoes with paler flesh tend to be more firm and a bit waxy after cooking (2). While they can still be cooked soft enough to serve to babies, we do recommend being more cautious and using the squish test to ensure that they are soft enough before serving them to your baby.
The squish test is when you put a piece of food between your thumb and forefinger and then squish down to mimic the pressure of your baby’s gums. If the food squishes easily, with minimal pressure, it’s definitely safe enough for your baby to chew with their gums.
Fun fact
Fun fact
Most people think that sweet potatoes and yams are the same thing, but they’re actually very different! Yams have dark, rough, bark-like skin, and the interior tends to be starchy and dry (3).
Sweet potato, on the other hand, has a thin, smooth skin and a moist, creamy flesh when cooked (3). Sweet potatoes also have a much sweeter flavor compared to yams (3).
Choosing & storing sweet potatoes
When choosing sweet potatoes at the store, you want to look for ones without a lot of wrinkles and avoid any with blemishes (2). They also get more starchy as they get bigger, so it’s best to choose some that are small to medium in size (2).
Once you bring the sweet potatoes home, do not refrigerate them (2). Doing so will stop the sugar conversion process, affecting the flavor (2).
Sweet potatoes bought in a grocery store (as opposed to at a farmer’s market or local farm stand) have often been prewashed which causes the outer skin to begin to break down (2). This means that at room temperature they will only last for about one week, but if you store them in a cool, dark place with ventilation, they can last up to 4 weeks (2).
Once you notice a sweet potato is bruised, there is no saving it and you can’t just cut away the bruised section (2). Bruised sweet potatoes begin to decay rapidly, affecting the entire potato’s flavor – so it’s best to just toss it (2).
Finally, sweet potatoes are not great for freezing (2). If you want to give it a try, you’ll have to blanch them first, remove the skin and slice them before you do, then place them in a freezer bag to store (2).
Alternatively, you can bake sliced sweet potato (with the skin on), and then freeze those wrapped in aluminum foil and placed in a freezer bag with all of the extra air removed (2).
How to prepare sweet potatoes for cooking
The very first step is always to thoroughly wash your vegetables before cutting them. You can clean sweet potato by rinsing it under running water and gently rubbing the skin with your hands or a produce brush to remove any residue.
To cook sweet potatoes, you can either boil, steam, or bake them in the oven. Whichever method you choose, just be sure to cook them until they’re soft and fork-tender.
How to serve sweet potato according to the Texture Timeline™
These are the safest, suggested ways to serve food to your baby based on the scientific, developmental, and clinical research and expertise available to date and are vetted by pediatric doctors, speech-language pathologists, and dietitians. However, please note that babies can technically choke on anything, including purees. Always take into account your child’s individual abilities and needs and check with your doctor or feeding therapist on the safety of offering these foods to your baby. Be mindful of how to set up a safe eating environment and please know that all material, opinions, advice, and information found on mylittleeater.com is for informational and educational purposes only. See our disclaimer for more information.
What is the Texture Timeline™?
A tool exclusive to My Little Eater that allows you to start solids with your baby using purées, finger foods, or a mixture of both. We sort all foods into different phases of the timeline based on texture difficulty, presenting multiple ways to serve each food depending on what you and your baby are ready for.
You can start with any phase of the Texture Timeline™. The goal is to always be moving forward on the timeline so that you can advance your baby to more challenging textures in a timely manner. This will allow your baby to develop and practice new eating skills and ensure that they don’t stay stuck on one texture for too long.
Using the Texture Timeline™ can help to prevent picky eating, all while keeping the feeding process enjoyable and less stressful for you because you can ease into the difficult textures that often cause more anxiety and worry.
Texture Timeline Phase 0
Thin purée (Utensil)
Blend cooked sweet potato (boiled, steamed, or baked) with a bit of water, breast milk, or formula until a thin, smooth purée forms. Serve to your baby on a preloaded spoon.
Texture Timeline Phase 1
Option 1: Cooked, mashed (Utensil)
Mash cooked sweet potato (boiled, steamed, or baked) using a potato masher or the back of a fork until a lumpy purée forms. Don’t aim for perfectly smooth textures in phase 1 – lumps and bumps are ok here!
Serve to your baby on a preloaded spoon. You can also give your baby a small bowl of mashed sweet potato and let them get messy by self-feeding with their hands.
Texture Timeline Phase 1
Option 2: Baked, wedges (Palmar Grasp)
Step 1: Place a washed sweet potato on a cutting board, then remove the outer skin using a vegetable peeler.
Step 2: Slice the sweet potato in half lengthwise. Place each half flat-side down on the cutting board, then slice lengthwise multiple times to create potato wedges. Aim for wedges about 1-2 inches wide and 2-3 inches long.
Step 3: Place the sweet potato wedges into a large bowl and season with spices or herbs like paprika, garlic, onion powder, or curry powder! Just remember to avoid added salt and sugar.
Step 4: Drizzle the sweet potatoes liberally with a healthy fat like olive oil or avocado oil and toss them together so the oil and spices are evenly distributed.
Step 5: Evenly spread the sweet potatoes on a lined sheet pan. Don’t overcrowd the pan and keep the potatoes in one layer so they cook evenly. Roast for 25-30 minutes at 375°F or until soft and easy to mash between your thumb and forefinger.
Note: Steaming sweet potatoes until they’re soft is another method of preparation. In this case, you would add any spices or oil for healthy fat after they’re steamed and cooled.
Step 6: Allow the wedges to cool, then serve them to your baby to pick up and hold using their palmar grasp.
Texture Timeline Phase 1
Option 3: Baked, bite-sized pieces (Pincer Grasp)
Step 1: Place the sweet potato on a cutting board after washing it, then remove the outer skin using a vegetable peeler.
Step 2: Slice the sweet potato in half lengthwise. Place each half flat-side down on the cutting board, then dice into bite-sized pieces about ½-1 inch in size.
Step 3: Place the diced sweet potato into a large bowl and season with spices or herbs like paprika, garlic, onion powder, or curry powder! Just remember to avoid added salt and sugar.
Step 4: Drizzle the sweet potato pieces liberally with a healthy fat like olive oil or avocado oil and toss them together so the oil and spices are evenly distributed.
Step 5: Evenly spread the sweet potato pieces on a lined sheet pan. Don’t overcrowd the pan and keep the potatoes in one layer so they cook evenly. Roast for 20-25 minutes at 375°F or until soft and easy to mash between your thumb and forefinger.
Note: Steaming sweet potatoes until they’re soft is another method of preparation. In this case, you would add any spices or oil for healthy fat after they’re steamed and cooled.
Step 6: Allow the pieces to cool, then serve to your baby for them to pick up and hold using their pincer grasp.
Recommended next...
Learn about how to serve other popular fall fruits and vegetables that are perfect for babies.
Shopping in-season is not only cost effective but the produce is likely to be fresher with more flavor!
Nutritional information
Sweet potatoes are packed full of nutrients, making them a healthy addition to your baby’s diet! While many of us are most familiar with orange sweet potato, the color of sweet potato can range from white to yellow, orange, red, and even purple, as mentioned above (4).
Orange-fleshed sweet potatoes in particular are rich in an antioxidant called beta-carotene (5). Beta-carotene converts to vitamin A in the body, which is great for the immune system and can help support eye health (6,7).
Vitamin C, another antioxidant, is also found in sweet potato, making it a good food to pair with plant-based sources of iron (like beans, lentils, and tofu) to help boost iron absorption (1,8).
Sweet potatoes are also considered to be a good source of other vitamins including B6 and vitamin E and minerals including magnesium, manganese, calcium, and potassium (1).
Lastly, sweet potatoes provide your baby with plenty of carbohydrates along with some fiber which can help to support healthy digestion (1, 9).
Can babies be allergic to sweet potatoes?
Sweet potato is not one of the top 10 highly allergenic foods and can be introduced alongside other foods without having to wait (the 2-day wait rule is for top allergens only).
While allergy to sweet potato is uncommon, it’s not impossible. Oral allergy syndrome (OAS), commonly called Pollen Food Allergy Syndrome (PFAS), has been known to occur with the consumption of sweet potato (10). This type of allergy is most likely to occur in those who are allergic to birch pollen, as the proteins in sweet potato are similar to proteins in this type of pollen (10).
With OAS, the body’s immune system confuses the similar proteins in food for the ones found in pollen and therefore reacts to the proteins as an allergen. OAS is considered to be a mild food allergy with common symptoms being itchiness or swelling of the mouth, face, lips, tongue, or throat (11).
Symptoms usually occur within a few minutes but can appear up to an hour after eating (11). Properly cooking sweet potato will reduce the risk of the reaction, as OAS typically occurs from raw or undercooked fruits and vegetables (12).
Sweet potato can also be a trigger for food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES) (13). This is a type of gastrointestinal food allergy that affects mostly babies and young children.
It causes symptoms of severe vomiting, diarrhea, and dehydration (14). The primary treatment of FPIES is to strictly avoid the trigger food. The good news is that most children tend to outgrow FPIES by around age 5 (13).
If you suspect that your baby or toddler has an allergy, it’s best to consult with your doctor for appropriate treatment, diagnosis, and medical advice.
To get full access to our Texture Timeline™ Food Video Library so you can search any food and find out important nutrition and allergy info, plus how to safely serve it, check out our Baby Led Feeding Program.
In addition to getting lifetime access to all of our video teachings and printable resources for starting solids so you can feed your baby with confidence, you’ll also get lifetime access to the video library and ongoing support from the My Little Eater team!
Sweet Potato Fritters
Equipment
- cheese grater
- Vegetable peeler
- large bowl
- medium skillet
Ingredients
- 1 small-medium sweet potato (about 1 cup, grated)
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp avocado or olive oil (for pan frying)
Instructions
- Place a washed sweet potato onto a cutting board, then use a vegetable peeler or a sharp knife to remove the outer skin.
- Grate the sweet potato using a cheese grater, then transfer it into a large bowl.
- Feel free to add spices of your choice to the grated sweet potato (garlic, powder, onion powder, cumin, paprika, dill, pepper, etc.). Just be sure not to add salt for babies under 1 year of age. Toss the mixture so that the spices are evenly distributed.
- Crack an egg into a bowl and whisk it. Then, add the whisked egg to the grated sweet potato mixture. Stir the mixture until it is well combined.
- Add 2 tbsp of oil to a skillet over medium-low heat, then drop ¼ cup dollops of the sweet potato mixture onto the skillet. Cook until soft and lightly browned on the outside (this will take about 5 minutes on each side).
- Allow the sweet potato fritters to cool, then serve them to your baby whole or cut into strips (about 1-2 inches wide and 3 inches long) for your baby to pick up and hold using their palmar grasp. Alternatively, if your baby has their pincer grasp, you can cut the fritters into bite-sized pieces about ½-1 inch in size.
Helpful? Pin it to save for later!
References
- U.S. Department of Agriculture. (2019). Sweet potato, cooked, boiled, without skin. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/168484/nutrients
- https://canadianfoodfocus.org/in-season/vegetable/whats-in-season-sweet-potatoes/
- Petruzzello, M. (2023, November 20). What’s the Difference Between Sweet Potatoes and Yams?. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/story/whats-the-difference-between-sweet-potatoes-and-yams
- Qin, Y., Naumovski, N., Ranadheera, C.S., & D’Cunha, N.M. (2022). Nutrition-related health outcomes of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) consumption: A systematic review. Food Bioscience, 50, 2212-4292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fbio.2022.102208.
- Alam, M. K., Rana, Z. H., & Islam, S. N. (2016). Comparison of the Proximate Composition, Total Carotenoids and Total Polyphenol Content of Nine Orange-Fleshed Sweet Potato Varieties Grown in Bangladesh. Foods (Basel, Switzerland), 5(3), 64. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods5030064
- Noh, M. F. M., & Mustar, R. D. N. G. (2019). Vitamin A in health and disease. Vitamin A.
- Ross, A. C., Caballero, B. H., Cousins, R. J., Tucker, K. L., & Ziegler, T. R. (2012). Modern nutrition in health and disease: Eleventh edition. Wolters Kluwer Health Adis (ESP).
- Cook, J., & Reddy, M. (2001). Effect of ascorbic acid intake on nonheme-iron absorption from a complete diet. The American journal of clinical nutrition. 73. 93-8. DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/73.1.93.
- Brownawell, A.M., Caers, W., Gibson, G.R., Kendall, C.W.C., Lewis, K.D., Ringel, Y., & Slavin, J.L. (2012). Prebiotics and the Health Benefits of Fiber: Current Regulatory Status, Future Research, and Goals. The Journal of Nutrition, 142(5), 962-974. https://doi.org/10.3945/jn.112.158147
- Kim, J. H., Kim, S. H., Park, H. W., Cho, S. H., & Chang, Y. S. (2018). Oral Allergy Syndrome in Birch Pollen-Sensitized Patients from a Korean University Hospital. Journal of Korean medical science, 33(33), e218. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2018.33.e218
- Kelava, N., Lugović-Mihić, L., Duvancić, T., Romić, R., & Situm, M. (2014). Oral allergy syndrome–the need of a multidisciplinary approach. Acta clinica Croatica, 53(2), 210–219.
- American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology. (2024, January 10). Oral Allergy Syndrome (OAS). https://www.aaaai.org/tools-for-the-public/conditions-library/allergies/oral-allergy-syndrome-(oas)
- Caubet, J. C., Ford, L. S., Sickles, L., Järvinen, K. M., Sicherer, S. H., Sampson, H. A., & Nowak-Węgrzyn, A. (2014). Clinical features and resolution of food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome: 10-year experience. The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology, 134(2), 382–389. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaci.2014.04.008
- Feuille, E., & Nowak-Węgrzyn, A. (2015). Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome, Allergic Proctocolitis, and Enteropathy. Current allergy and asthma reports, 15(8), 50. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11882-015-0546-9
Bianca Gruenewald, RD
Bianca is a Registered Dietitian and works in a client support role at My Little Eater Inc. She's a proud auntie to her three year old niece and four year old nephew!
Bianca Gruenewald, RD
Bianca is a Registered Dietitian and works in a client support role at My Little Eater Inc. She's a proud auntie to her three year old niece and four year old nephew!
Mallory Roberts, SLP
Mallory is a Speech-Language Pathologist, Infant Feeding Specialist, and Craniosacral Therapist. She's also a busy mom of four little ones!
Mallory Roberts, SLP
Mallory is a Speech-Language Pathologist, Infant Feeding Specialist, and Craniosacral Therapist. She's also a busy mom of four little ones!
