オーブン・レンジ・エアフライヤーで比較！一番美味しい焼き芋はどれ？

Ingredients

• 2 sweet potatoes, preferably Silk Sweet; Beni Haruka is also suggested. The test potatoes weighed about 250 g each.
• For the microwave method: a damp cloth, damp paper towels, and plastic wrap.
• Optional for serving: butter and a little salt.

Equipment and Preparation

Use an oven and baking sheet, an air fryer, or a microwave and heat-safe dish, depending on the method. A toaster is optional for finishing microwave-cooked potatoes.

Wash the sweet potatoes. For the oven and air fryer methods, leave them slightly damp and wrap each one tightly in aluminum foil, with no gaps.

Cooking Methods

Oven: Sweetest Result

1. Place the foil-wrapped potatoes on a baking sheet.
2. Bake at 160°C for 80–90 minutes: about 80 minutes in a preheated oven, or 90 minutes if starting without preheating.
3. Slow cooking takes longer but gives the potatoes more time to develop sweetness.

Air Fryer: Convenient Balance of Speed and Results

1. Place the damp, foil-wrapped potatoes in the air fryer.
2. Cook at 160°C for 60 minutes.
3. Circulating hot air cooks them faster than an oven at the same temperature. Adjust the cooking time for larger or smaller potatoes.

Microwave: If You Don’t Have an Oven or Air Fryer

1. Place a thoroughly damp cloth in a heat-safe dish and set the washed potato on it. Cover the potato with a damp paper towel, then cover the dish with plastic wrap.
2. Microwave at 200 W for 20 minutes.
3. Carefully remove the hot potato and turn it over. If the plastic wrap has shrunk, replace it; add another damp paper towel if needed.
4. Microwave at 200 W for another 20 minutes.
5. Check that a toothpick slides in easily. Wrap the potato in aluminum foil and let it rest for 20 minutes.
6. Optional: Toast for 3–4 minutes to crisp the surface.

Tips and Serving

• Slow heating encourages sweetness. The video identifies 65–70°C as the temperature range most favorable for starch conversion.
• For microwave cooking, use low power and keep the potato moist. The presenter says high-power or dry microwave cooking can leave it hard, dry, or crumbly. Turning it midway helps prevent the bottom from becoming hard.
• The oven produced the sweetest, smoothest, most honey-like result. The air fryer was the most convenient and also produced a sweet, sticky texture. The microwave method worked well, though the presenter considered it less like a traditionally roasted potato.
• Serve plain, or add butter and a little salt.
• The presenter advises against cooking sweet potatoes in a rice cooker, citing manufacturers’ warnings that it may cause malfunction or damage not covered by the warranty.

Source Notes

• Presenter/channel: Sakura, 食事処さくらの料理教室.
• Referenced source: The presenter refers to rice-cooker manufacturers’ warnings but does not name a specific manufacturer or source.