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Sweet potatoes are a versatile nutrition powerhouse, adding nutrients and fiber to savory and sweet dishes. But how long do they last in the fridge or kitchen?
Many factors can impact the shelf life of sweet potatoes, including the variety and how you handle and store this root veggie. To ensure your sweet potatoes stay fresh, it’s important to know how to spot spoilage and how to store them for maximum shelf life.
This article reviews how long sweet potatoes can last, how to store them, and how to double-check for any signs they’ve started to go bad.
What Are the Health Benefits of Eating Sweet Potatoes?
Sweet potatoes have a very rich nutrition profile, with a high Vitamins A and C content and plenty of fiber and antioxidants. Adding more sweet potatoes to your diet can help support your eye health, immune system, and digestive wellness. Plus, they taste great and can add a twist to many of your favorite dishes!
Eating sweet potatoes as part of a balanced diet can contribute to all these health benefits and may even support improved heart health, better blood sugar regulation, and overall well-being. To get the most nutrition and flavor from sweet potatoes, you’ll want to make sure you store them well so they stay fresh.
What Are the Best Storage Techniques for Sweet Potatoes?
Proper storage is important to extend the life of sweet potatoes. This means finding the right temperature, humidity, and air circulation for them. Even if you’re used to storing regular potatoes, some strategies are different with sweet potatoes.
Here are a few tips for how to store your sweet potatoes so they’ll last longer. The best method might depend on how you plan to use them and how long you want to store them.
Store In A Cool, Dark, Well-Ventilated Space
Heat and humidity can cause sweet potatoes to go bad more quickly. To extend their shelf life and reduce exposure to these elements, store your sweet potatoes somewhere with a relatively consistent temperature of around 55-60°F (13-16°C). The storage area should also be well-ventilated to allow for good airflow.
Keep Unwashed And Place In Paper Bags
Since you will likely peel them before eating, you don’t need to wash your sweet potatoes. In fact, it’s better not to since washing will add moisture that can cause sweet potatoes to spoil more quickly. Store the unwashed sweet potatoes in a breathable paper bag to help keep moisture out and prevent potential mold growth.
Avoid Refrigeration For Raw Sweet Potatoes
While you want to keep the temperature consistent when storing raw sweet potatoes, do not put them in the fridge. Refrigeration can cause them to harden and give them an unpleasant taste. This is because the starches in sweet potatoes can convert to sugar at low temperatures.
Cure Before Long-Term Storage For Longevity
If you bought your sweet potatoes at the farmer’s market or fresh from your garden, they will need to be cured before you store them. For about a week, leave the raw sweet potatoes in an area with a temperature around 85°F (29°C) and 85-90% humidity. This will let the sweet potatoes heal any minor injuries to the root and will also extend their shelf life.
Separate From Onions To Prevent Premature Spoilage
Certain vegetables, like onions, emit gasses that signal to other produce that they should ripen. Storing sweet potatoes too close to onions can cause them to spoil more quickly. Be sure to separate these vegetables to extend the life of sweet potatoes.
How to Recognize That Sweet Potatoes Have Spoiled
When using sweet potatoes in your favorite dishes, it’s important to inspect them to make sure they haven’t gone bad. Many visual, tactile, and olfactory cues can help you tell when a sweet potato is past its prime and shouldn’t be eaten.
If you spot a sweet potato that has gone bad, it needs to be discarded. That way, you can ensure it won’t contaminate other foods in your kitchen. Here’s how to tell when a sweet potato has spoiled.
Soft Spots Or Mushy Texture
Raw sweet potatoes should be firm to the touch. If you notice soft or mushy spots, that’s a good sign that the sweet potato has started to spoil. Soft or mushy sweet potatoes can also be a sign of bacterial growth, so they should be discarded immediately.
Black Or Brown Skin Discoloration
Sweet potatoes can sometimes have some variation in color on the skin. However, dark spots or extensive brown discoloration can indicate internal decay. Be sure to examine sweet potatoes closely to check if discoloration on the skin is a sign that they’ve begun to decay.
Foul Odor
Raw sweet potatoes typically do not have a strong scent. If you start to notice an unpleasant or sour smell coming from sweet potatoes, it’s a strong indicator that the vegetable may be spoiled. You should dispose of any sweet potatoes with a sour or unpleasant smell, as they are likely unsafe to eat.
Mold Growth Visible On The Surface
If you see any fuzzy spots on your sweet potato, this is a sign of mold growth. Sweet potatoes with fuzzy molds of any color are definitely spoiled and should be discarded immediately.
Shriveled Or Wrinkled Skin
Sweet potatoes can sometimes have slightly wrinkly or irregular skin as root vegetables that grow underground. That said, if you notice that a sweet potato looks especially shriveled or dried-out, it may indicate that it is past its prime. It’s best to use sweet potatoes before they reach this state to ensure maximum quality.
Tips To Keep Sweet Potatoes Lasting Longer
You can use many techniques to keep your sweet potatoes fresh for longer, reducing food waste and getting the most nutrition out of your produce. These tips will help you properly store and handle your sweet potatoes to keep them from spoiling for longer.
Inspect And Remove Any Damaged Ones Regularly
Once one sweet potato goes bad, it can signal quicker spoilage to others. Inspect your stored sweet potatoes regularly and remove any signs of spoilage we noted above. That way, you can prevent the damage or decay from spreading to the healthy sweet potatoes.
Maintain Optimal Humidity Levels Around 80-85%
Humidity has a big influence on the freshness of sweet potatoes. Keeping sweet potatoes at the right humidity level can ensure they don’t dry out, preserving their quality and texture. You also don’t want it to be too humid, as this can promote mold growth. Usually, a humidity level somewhere around 80-85% is best.
Use Perforated Plastic Bags For Proper Airflow
When storing sweet potatoes, you want to protect them from the elements. However, you still want to maintain good airflow to keep them fresh and mold-free. Using perforated plastic bags can give you the best of both worlds here, keeping the sweet potatoes protected but still allowing air to circulate.
Store At a Consistent Temperature Between 55-60°F
Temperature is an important factor in how long sweet potatoes can last. You want to maintain a steady temperature of around 55-60°F for the best shelf life. Warmer temperatures can speed up physiological processes that lead to spoilage. You should also avoid colder temperatures, as these can cause cold damage that impacts the texture and flavor of sweet potatoes.
How to Store Meals Made from Sweet Potatoes?
So far, we’ve covered how to store raw sweet potatoes. However, after they are cooked, the storage methods need to change to ensure food safety. So, how long do cooked sweet potatoes last?
It is important to properly cool any dishes with sweet potatoes before storing them in the fridge. If meals are still warm, they can condense the container, leading to mold and spoilage. You also want to be sure to store dishes such as casseroles, mashed sweet potatoes, and roasted sweet potatoes in an airtight container. This prevents them from drying out.
The shelf life of cooked sweet potatoes varies depending on the specific food. Some dishes, like mashed sweet potatoes or sweet potato soups, can be frozen and reheated. Others, like casseroles or potato wedges, are best enjoyed sooner.
Many sweet potato dishes can be safely reheated in the microwave if you reach a sufficient temperature to ensure food safety. However, to maintain the crispiness of dishes like sweet potato fries or wedges, an air fryer or oven might be best.
Regardless of the delicious recipe you’ve prepared, cooked sweet potatoes should be kept in the fridge in an airtight container to maintain freshness and reheated properly to ensure food safety.
Bottom Line
Sweet potatoes are delicious and nutritious, great for athletes or anyone looking to eat healthy, well-balanced meals. Like any produce, it’s important to store it properly to maintain freshness and quality. Be sure to store your sweet potatoes at the right temperature and humidity level and use the proper techniques to maximize their shelf life so you can enjoy them when you’re ready.
Be sure to regularly inspect your stored raw or cooked sweet potatoes and discard them if you notice any signs of spoilage. That way, you can ensure food safety and great flavor when enjoying your sweet potatoes.
When properly stored and fresh, sweet potatoes are a wonderfully nutritious and delicious root vegetable with many health benefits, add them to your diet to expand your culinary horizons and get nutritious support for your overall well-being, too!
