Why You Might Regret Peeling Your Sweet Potato Before Microwaving It

Sweet potatoes are one of those classic foods that everyone assumes they know exactly how to cook, but some would be shocked to find out they've been doing it wrong their whole life. Turns out, one of the mistakes everyone makes when cooking sweet potatoes is taking the time to peel it before putting it in the microwave. You're probably thinking, "why's that so bad?" Sure, the skin is tough (and maybe even a little dirty), so let's remove it altogether and get to the good stuff, right? Wrong; microwaving sweet potatoes with the skin still on is actually the smarter and tastier option — not to mention it's way easier.

Here's the case for why you should keep your sweet potato's skin on before cooking: The skin acts like a little jacket for the potato, trapping the steam inside. This cooks it evenly and gets it nice and moist. If you peel it first, all you're doing is increasing the chances the sweet potato you pull out the microwave is dry and shrivelled. If you don't like to eat the skin, removing it after cooking is actually easier than trying to remove it from a raw potato. Once it's cooked, it should just slip right off — this thankfully means no more wrestling with a vegetable peeler.

So, you didn't peel your sweet potato and cooked it with it's skin on. What happens now? For starters, you could just eat the skin. Sweet potato skin is not only edible, it's packed full of fiber and other key nutrients. Having it on also gives the potato a bit of contrast between a chewy outside and a creamy inside — one of many tips for creamy sweet potatoes.

With a perfectly cooked sweet potato, you basically have a blank food canvas ready to get creative with. There are so many unique toppings you should be adding to sweet potatoes that extend far beyond just throwing some butter on it. Why not try a drizzle of tahini and some chili crisp, or crumbled feta with a squeeze of lemon? Have you ever tried sweet potato with hummus and some crispy roasted chickpeas on top? It's a winner. With the skin holding it all together, feel free to really load your sweet potato up — it can handle it.