Chilean candied sweet potatoes, or camote confitado, are peeled sweet potato pieces cooked slowly in a syrup of chancaca, Chilean unrefined cane sugar, with orange juice and spices until tender and glossy. They take 15 minutes of prep and 45 minutes of cooking for 6 servings. They are served warm as a dessert, on their own or with cream, and also as a sweet side for pork, turkey or chicken, for example at year-end holiday meals.
Unlike camotillos, which are made with mashed sweet potato and shaped into candies, in this recipe the sweet potato keeps its pieces and ends up coated in a thick syrup. It is a simple preparation that only needs attention at the end, when the syrup reduces and the pan has to be moved so it does not burn.
How to Make Candied Sweet Potatoes?
The sweet potato cooks directly in the syrup over low heat, so it absorbs the sweetness all the way through without falling apart. Chancaca gives a deeper flavor than white sugar, and the orange balances the sweetness with some acidity.
Nutritional Information
Each serving of Chilean camote confitado (one 150 g / 5.3 oz portion made with chancaca) contains approximately 270 kcal, 2 g of protein, 5 g of total fat (3 g of saturated fat), 12 mg of cholesterol, 52 g of carbohydrates, 28 g of sugars and 70 mg of sodium. These values are estimates and may vary depending on ingredients and portion sizes.
Homemade Candied Sweet Potatoes Recipe
Preparation: 15 minutes
Cooking: 45 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 kg (2.2 lb) sweet potatoes
- 150 g (5 oz) chancaca (unrefined cane sugar, similar to piloncillo)
- 250 ml (1 cup) water
- 1 orange (juice and zest)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 whole cloves
- 40 g (3 tablespoons) butter
- 1 pinch of salt
Instructions
- Peel the sweet potatoes, wash them and cut them into slices or pieces 2 cm (¾ inch) thick, as even as possible so they cook at the same time. Keep them in a bowl of cold water while you make the syrup, so they do not darken.
- In a wide pot or deep skillet, combine the water with the chopped chancaca, the cinnamon and the cloves. Heat over medium heat, stirring, until the sweetener dissolves completely, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add the orange juice and zest and the pinch of salt.
- Drain the sweet potatoes and arrange them in the syrup in a single layer. Cover and cook over low heat for 20 to 25 minutes, turning them carefully halfway through, until a knife slides in and they are tender but still firm.
- Uncover, add the butter and keep cooking for 10 to 15 minutes more, swirling the pan and basting the sweet potatoes with the syrup, until it reduces to a thick, glossy glaze that coats them. Remove the cinnamon and cloves and serve warm.
Additional Tips
How to Choose Sweet Potatoes
Firm sweet potatoes that feel heavy for their size, with no sprouts or soft spots, are best for candying. Orange-fleshed ones turn out sweeter and more colorful, while yellow or white-fleshed ones are a little drier and hold their shape better. Choose pieces of similar thickness so the slices come out the same size.
Chancaca or Sugar in the Syrup?
Chancaca gives a dark color and a caramel flavor with molasses notes, the same one found in picarones and sopaipillas pasadas, Chilean fritters soaked in chancaca syrup. With light brown sugar the result is lighter and milder, and with white sugar the flavor is more neutral. If you use chancaca, chop it first with a large knife so it dissolves faster.
Oven Version
You can make it in the oven by placing the raw sweet potatoes in a baking dish, pouring the already dissolved syrup over them and dotting the top with small pieces of butter. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 180°C (356°F) for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake 15 to 20 minutes more, basting with the syrup a couple of times, until glazed.
Common pairings depending on whether you serve it as a dessert or as a side dish.
| Use | Pairing | How to serve it |
|---|---|---|
| Dessert | Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream | Warm, with a little of the syrup on top |
| With meat | Roast pork loin or roast pork leg | Warm, as a sweet side next to mashed potatoes or a salad |
| Year-end holidays | Roast turkey or chicken | In the same dish as the meat or on the side |
| Once (afternoon tea) | Fresh cheese | Cold or at room temperature, in small pieces |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What Is the Difference Between Camote Confitado and Camotillos?
Camote confitado keeps the sweet potato in pieces or slices, cooked in syrup until glazed, and it is eaten with a spoon as a dessert or side dish. Camotillos are made with cooked sweet potato mashed with sugar into a paste that is molded into small candies and left to dry.
2. How Do You Keep Sweet Potatoes from Falling Apart When Candying?
Cut them into thick, even pieces of about 2 cm (¾ inch) and cook them over low heat without stirring with a spoon, only swirling the pan or turning them with a spatula. It also helps to remove the lid as soon as the sweet potato is tender, so the syrup reduces without the pieces softening further.
3. Can You Make Camote Confitado Ahead of Time?
Yes. You can make it one or two days ahead and keep it in the refrigerator in a covered container, covered with its syrup. Before serving, warm it over low heat in a skillet with a tablespoon of water, or for a few minutes in the oven, until the syrup turns liquid and glossy again.
4. What Do You Serve with Camote Confitado?
As a dessert, it goes well with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. As a side dish, it pairs with strongly flavored meats such as pork loin, roast pork leg or roast turkey, because the sweetness of the syrup contrasts with the saltiness of the meat. It can also accompany the turkey or pork at year-end holiday meals.
What Is Candied Sweet Potatoes?
Camote confitado is the Chilean name for candied sweet potatoes, thick slices of peeled sweet potato simmered in a syrup of chancaca or sugar with orange juice and zest, cinnamon and cloves. A little butter is added at the end and the syrup is reduced until it coats the pieces in a glossy glaze. It is served warm as a dessert or as a sweet side for pork, turkey or chicken.
History of Candied Sweet Potatoes in Chile
The sweet potato is a tuberous root native to tropical America that has been grown since pre-Columbian times. It is used in sweets and side dishes across much of the continent, and versions cooked in chancaca or piloncillo syrup are common in the cooking of Peru, Mexico and other countries in the region.
Did You Know?
Sweet potatoes and potatoes are not close relatives. The sweet potato belongs to the morning glory family, the Convolvulaceae, the same as the bindweed flower, while the potato is a nightshade, like the tomato and the bell pepper.
How to adapt this recipe to a vegan or vegetarian version?
How to adapt this recipe to a gluten-free version?
How to adapt this recipe to a keto (ketogenic) version?
Recommended
- Traditional Chilean camotillos, the mashed sweet potato candy
- Juicy Chilean roast pork loin to serve with candied sweet potatoes
- Homemade stuffed Christmas turkey
- Chilean leche asada, traditional baked milk custard
