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Follow this step-by-step tutorial to learn how simple Canning Sweet Potatoes can be. Having canned sweet potatoes on hand means your favorite soups, stews, side dishes, and roasts can be ready in a flash.
Imagine a life where you can crack open a jar of home-canned sweet potatoes and suddenly, 50% of your dinner is prepped and ready to go.
Thanks to this tutorial on how to can sweet potatoes, you can have that life. It’s yours.
While this post is specific to sweet potatoes, if you’re looking for a tutorial on canning white or baby potatoes, check out our post on how to can potatoes.
SUPPLIES FOR Canning Sweet Potatoes
Check out this in-depth post for a complete list of canning supplies.
You’ll need:
- Sweet potatoes – choose small or medium sweet potatoes, ideally harvested in the last 1-2 months.
- Pressure Canner
- Large saucepan (I use my enameled dutch oven)
- Canning funnel
- Pint or quart canning jars (thrift stores are my favorite sources for these!)
- New canning lids
- Clean rings
- Jar lifter
- Ball Blue Book of Home Preserving
- Cutting board
- Sharp knife
- Vegetable peeler (this one is my favorite – I actually have two!)
- Comfy shoes (your back will thank you!)
- Clean kitchen towels
- At least 1-2 thick clean bath towels
Liquids for Canning Sweet Potatoes
You are able to safely can sweet potatoes with either water or a sweetened syrup added to the jars. Using water allows you to use sweet potatoes for savory dishes, but syrup can increase the shelf-life and quality of the canned product.
The photos shown in this post demonstrate using water to hot pack the jars, but you’ll find guidelines for using syrups below.
Syrups for Canning
| Syrups for Canning | ||||
| Type of Syrup | Sweetener | Amount of Sweetener | Water | Yield |
| Very light | Sugar | 1 cup | 6 cups | 5 3/4 cups |
| Light | Sugar | 2 1/4 cups | 5 1/4 cups | 6 1/2 cups |
| Medium | Sugar | 3 1/4 cups | 5 cups | 7 cups |
| Heavy | Sugar | 4 cups | 5 cups | 7 cups |
| Honey | Honey | 1 cup | 4 cups | 4 1/4 cups |
| Juice | Apple or white juice concentrate | 1 1/2 cups | 4 1/2 cups | 6 cups |
| *Source: National Center For Home Food Preservation | ||||
How to Can Sweet Potatoes
*I’ll walk you through it here with some photos and tips, and you’ll also find a printable recipe card at the bottom of the post with exact measurements, etc. You can also click “jump to recipe” to skip down.
Canning Prep
Wash and clean your jars. It is no longer necessary to sterilize jars before canning (hurray!) but you should make sure they are preheated enough to not crack when placed in hot water.
You can put them in a clean dishwasher and run them through a quick wash cycle, or place them in a large pan with some water in a low-heat oven (my lowest temp is 170˚F degrees) until you need them. I’ve even just put hot tap water in them before and left them on the counter.
Wash your lids with hot soapy water. Rinse and place them in a clean bowl for now.
Preparing Sweet Potatoes for Canning
You will need to cook the sweet potatoes prior to canning them, and there are two main ways to prep them.
You can peel them before cooking them, or peel them after cooking them. I find it easier to prep them once they have been peeled, but before they’re cooked, and that’s what you’ll see in the photos in this post.
Choose small to medium sweet potatoes that aren’t sprouting. Ideally, you’ll want to can them within 1-2 months of harvesting.
Wash the potatoes and then steam or boil them until soft. Personally, I find it easier to peel them, cut them into cubes, and then steam them in a large saucepan with a steamer insert. But, you can also boil them if that works better for you.
Filling the Jars
Add 3 quarts of water to your pressure canner and put it on a burner set to high. Make sure there is a canning rack in the bottom of the canner.
Fill a separate medium to large saucepan with clean water and bring to a boil. This will be used to fill the jars prior to canning.
Add the hot sweet potato cubes to the jars. Pro tip: wiggle the jar often as you add them to allow them to settle and make room for more. You can also gently tap the jar on the counter as you fill them.
Using a canning funnel, carefully and slowly add the clean boiling water (do not use the same water you used to cook the sweet potatoes) OR syrup, leaving 1 inch of headspace. Headspace is the distance between the top of the food and the top of the jar.
Using a long utensil (I prefer a plastic chopstick), remove all the air bubbles from the jar.
Clean the rim of the jar very well with a hot damp rag. Any food debris left on the rim may impact the seal of the lid in the canner.
Place a clean lid on the jar. Add a ring, and tighten them to fingertip tight.
Canning Sweet Potatoes
Using canning tongs, gently place the jars in the canner. Lock the lid. Soon, steam will start coming through the vent pipe (I call it the steam chimney). Allow the steam to pass through for about 10 minutes. Then put the pressure regulator (I call it the chimney cap) on top.
Pretty soon, the air vent will pop up. That is a sign that you’re starting to build pressure inside the canner (get excited. This is happening!).
Processing times will vary based on altitude. See the chart below.
Pressure Canning Sweet Potatoes in a Dial Gauge Canner
| Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of | ||||||
| Style of Pack | Jar Size | Processing Time | 0-2,000 ft | 2,001-4,000 ft | 4,001-6,000 ft | 6,001-8,000 ft |
| Hot | Pints | 65 min | 11 lbs | 12 lbs | 13 lbs | 14 lbs |
| Quarts | 90 min | 11 lbs | 12 lbs | 13 lbs | 14 lbs | |
| *Source: National Center For Home Food Preservation | ||||||
Processing Time for Sweet Potatoes in a Weighted Gauge Canner
| Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of: | ||||
| Style of Pack | Jar Size | Processing Time | 0-1,000 ft | Above 1,001 ft |
| Hot | Pints | 65 min | 10 lb | 15 lb |
| Quarts | 90 min | 10 lb | 15 lb | |
| *Source: National Center For Home Food Preservation | ||||
When the dial gauge reaches the appropriate PSI, reduce the burner temp to medium, and start your timer. The pressure must stay at the PSI or (a little bit) above for the duration of the cooking time. You’ll likely need to adjust the temp on the burner a few times depending on your stove.
When the time is up, remove the canner from the burner and allow it to sit until you hear a distinctive “click” of the air vent dropping. Remove the pressure regulator and carefully remove the lid of the canner. (Pro tip: I always use oven mitts when I take the lid off because the steam is super hot).
Let the jars sit for 5 minutes in the canner and then carefully lift them out with canning tongs. Pro tip: allowing the jars to sit in the canner with the lid off can help reduce the siphoning of liquid in your jars. Siphoning is when liquid seeps out from under the lids and reduces the overall amount of liquid in the jar.
Place hot jars on a towel where they can sit undisturbed for 12 hours.
After a few hours, to check for sealing, gently press down in the middle of the lid. If the lid has no give, it’s sealed. If you can press the lid in and it pops a bit, your jars are not sealed.
WHAT IF MY JARS DON’T SEAL?
If you’ve correctly processed the sweet potatoes, and the lids still didn’t seal, you can reprocess them.
Double-check to make sure there are no:
- Chips in the rim of the jar
- Dried bits of sweet potato on the rim (anything between the rim and the lid may prevent a seal.
Best practices would involve using brand-new lids for reprocessing. Set aside the old lids to use for dry storage (related: Pantry Essentials for the Home Cook).
If the jars don’t seal on the second attempt, you likely have a bad batch of lids, or your canning process has a step missing. Email me and we’ll try to troubleshoot what is going on.
HELP! WHY ARE MY JARS LEAKING Water or Syrup?
If you find that liquid has leaked out after the jars have sealed, you have experienced a common canning issue called siphoning. It happens to the best of us!
Siphoning is typically caused by not allowing the jars to rest in the canner after they have finished processing. In the directions, you’ll see that I recommend you remove the canner from the burner, remove the lid, and let it sit for 5 minutes.
This is important as it allows the jars time to rest before being allowed to cool on the counter. Doing this process will significantly cut down on siphoning.
IF YOU HAVE SIPHONING IN YOUR JARS, FOLLOW THESE STEPS:
- Check – are the lids still sealed?
- Look – have you lost less than half of the amount of liquid in the jar?
- Examine – do the sweet potatoes look fresh with bright colors?
If the answer to the above three steps is “yes!”, then they are safe to eat. If you lost quite a bit of liquid, the uncovered sweet potatoes will turn color more quickly. Plan to eat those jars first.
STORAGE FOR HOME CANNED Sweet Potatoes
Once the jars have sealed, remove the rings. Label and store sealed jars in a cool (best results are 50-70˚F) dark place for up to 12-18 months.
If you have the space available, do not stack the jars on top of each other more than two jars high.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Sweet potatoes are a wonderful food to can, and it extends their shelf-life exponentially.
No. Sweet potatoes must be pre-cooked before they’re placed into jars and canned. Unlike when canning peaches or canning pears, you can’t raw pack sweet potatoes.
Unfortunately, no. Sweet potatoes, like all low-acid foods, must be preserved using a pressure canner.
Once you master your pressure canner, use it for things like Canning Chicken Broth, Canning Beets, Canning Peas, Canning Green Beans, Canning Corn, Canning Pumpkin, Canning Potatoes, and Canning Carrots.
This is the pressure canner I have had for a decade and I love it.
To fill 7 quarts, you’ll need ~17.5 pounds of sweet potatoes. To fill 9 pints, you’ll need ~11 pounds.
A bushel of sweet potatoes weighs 50 pounds, and you’ll get an average of 17-25 quarts per bushel. That works out to approximately 2.5 pounds of sweet potatoes per quart. (source: National Center for Home Food Preservation)
Yes. I know, bummer because it is extra work.
But the canning Jedis over at the National Center for Home Food Preservation stress that the potatoes must be peeled. And so, I peel!
Root crops can harbor soil-borne microbes and peeling is an extra insurance policy to keep your food safe.
How to Use Canned Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes are amazing in any recipe where you’d use white potatoes.
Quickly cook some organic grass-fed beef and stock in the Instant Pot (ala Whole30 Beef Stew) and add in a jar of canned sweet potatoes and a jar of canned carrots when it is done cooking.
You can also use them in Instant Pot Lentil Soup, Cream Cheese Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Potato Casserole With Pecans, or Wasabi Mashed Potatoes.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- You can add salt to each jar prior to canning it. Use pickling salt and add 1/2 tsp per pint or 1 tsp per quart. Personally, I find the unsalted version easier to use in recipes because it allows me to control the overall sodium.
- Pressure canners can often leave white lines on lids and rings. It’s totally normal and safe. To prevent this, add 1/3 cup of white vinegar to the canner with the 3 quarts of water before processing.
- If you don’t have enough jars to fill the canner, consider Canning Water in a few jars to stock your emergency drinking water supplies.
More Canning Recipes to Try
Canning Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
- 18 lbs sweet potatoes
- 7 tsp canning salt {optional}
- 12 cups water + more for the canner
Instructions
Canning Prep
- Wash and clean your jars. Fill with hot water or keep them warm in a clean dishwasher or oven.
- Wash your lids with hot soapy water. Rinse and place them in a clean bowl.
Sweet Potato Prep
- Wash/scrub the sweet potatoes.
- You can peel the sweet potatoes before cooking them, or peel them after cooking them. I find it easier to prep them once they have been peeled and before they have been cooked.18 lbs sweet potatoes
- I find it easier to peel them, cut them into cubes, and then steam them in a large saucepan with a steamer insert (~10-15 minutes). But, you can also boil them if that works better for you.
- Add 3 quarts of water to your pressure canner and put it on a burner set to high. Make sure there is a canning rack in the bottom of the canner.
- Fill a medium to large saucepan with clean water and bring to a boil.
- Add the sweet potatoes to the jars. (optional) Add 1/2 tsp canning salt to each pint or 1 tsp to each quart.7 tsp canning salt
- Using a canning funnel, carefully and slowly add clean boiling water (do not use the same water you used to cook the sweet potatoes), leaving 1-inch of headspace.12 cups water
- Using a long utensil (I prefer a plastic chopstick), remove all the air bubbles from the jar.
- Clean the rim of the jar very well with a hot damp rag.
- Place a clean lid on the jar. Add a ring, and tighten to fingertip tight.
Pressure Canning Sweet Potatoes
- Using canning tongs, gently place the jars in the canner.
- Lock the lid. Soon, steam will start coming through the vent pipe.
- Allow the steam to pass through for about 10 minutes. Then put the pressure regulator on top.
- Pretty soon, the air vent will pop up.
- In a dial-gauge pressure canner, process pints and quarts based on the elevation guide below (see processing chart in post for additional altitude adjustments):*0-2,000f ft {PSI: 11 lbs of pressure} = Pints 65 min, Quarts 90 min*2,001-4,000k ft {PSI: 12 lbs of pressure} = Pints 65 min, Quarts 90 min*4,001-6,000k ft {PSI 13 lbs of pressure} = Pints 65 min, Quarts 90 min*6,001-8,000k {PSI 14 lbs of pressure} = Pints 65 min, Quarts 90 min
- When the dial gauge reaches the appropriate PSI, reduce the burner temp to medium, and start your timer. The pressure must stay at the PSI or (a little bit) above for the duration of the cooking time.
- When the time is up, remove the canner from the burner and allow it to sit until you hear a distinctive “click” of the air vent dropping. Remove the pressure regulator and carefully remove the lid of the canner (Pro tip: use oven mitts to take the lid off because the steam is super hot).
- Let the jars sit for 5 minutes in the canner and then lift them out with canning tongs.
- Place on a thick clean towel undisturbed for 12 hours.
- After a few hours, to check for sealing, gently press down in the middle of the lid. If the lid has no give, it’s sealed. If you can press the lid in and it pops a bit, your jars are not sealed.
Notes
- Store in a cool dark place for 12-18 months.
- To fill 7 quarts, you’ll need ~17.5 pounds of sweet potatoes. To fill 9 pints, you’ll need ~11 pounds. A US bushel is 50 pounds and will net you 17-25 quarts.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
