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Classic Candied Yams

Classic Candied Yams

Name: Classic Candied Yams
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 3 to 4 medium red garnet sweet potatoes (2 lb); 1/3 cup packed brown sugar; 3 tablespoons butter; 3 tablespoons water; 1/2 teaspoon salt

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By Betty Crocker Kitchens

Updated Jul 26, 2024

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Candied yams (or sweet potatoes!) are a classic comfort food and a fall favorite for many families. While you’ll typically see this yummy dish served as traditional holiday fare, it also makes a great weeknight side. Sweet, buttery and deliciously caramelized, homemade candied yams are a tasty addition to any table.

This simple candied yams recipe comes together with just a few ingredients and 15 minutes of prep, making it a great option for quick family dinners and sumptuous holidays spreads alike. You’ll love how easy it is to serve up this colorful, sweet dish alongside your main course. Just don’t be surprised when people come back around for seconds!

While many use yams or sweet potatoes interchangeably, the two are not the same. Sweet potatoes are sweet and flavorful, while yams have a milder taste. They also differ in texture and color.

Ingredients for the Best Candied Yams

Here are all the ingredients you need to make your very best homemade candied yams or sweet potatoes!

Yams or Sweet Potatoes: The star of the show, these root vegetables are naturally just a touch sweet. They create a hearty, colorful base for the dish. And there is a difference in texture and color between the two! More on that below.

Brown Sugar: Brown sugar enhances the natural sweetness of the yams. When heated with other ingredients for this candied yams recipe, it melts down to create that delicious, syrupy glaze.

Butter: Melting butter along with the brown sugar also helps create the smooth, rich glaze that coats the yams.

Water: A little bit of water goes a long way, especially when it helps thin out and make the base for this candied yams glaze.

Salt: A bit of salt helps to balance out the sweetness of the dish, providing the perfect savory contrast to complete this candied yams recipe.

How to Make Candied Yams

This candied yams recipe is wonderfully simple—and the results are delicious! Let’s take a quick look at how to make candied yams. Once you’re ready to get cooking, find the full ingredients list and step-by-step instructions below.

Cook Yams

Fresh sweet potatoes and yams come with dirt on them, so you’ll want to give them a good rinse or wash with a vegetable scrubber if needed. There’s no need to peel them—since the skins will slide right off after cooking. Place your scrubbed yams in a Dutch oven with enough water to cover them. Heat to boiling, then simmer until tender. Drain, and let cool.

Prep Yams

Remove the skins by hand. After boiling, they should slip right off under the pressure of your fingers. If you ’re having trouble getting the skins off, your sweet potatoes or yams may not be fully cooked through yet. Once the skins are off, cut your yams or sweet potatoes into ½-inch slices. Feel free to vary the thickness of your yams or sweet potatoes to suit your personal preferences, but keep in mind that this may change how long you need to heat the dish.

Make Glaze

Here’s where the magic happens! We’ll make a glaze with brown sugar, butter, water and salt, stirring until the mixture is bubbly and smooth.

Combine and Enjoy

Gently stir in the pre-cooked yam slices until each is coated and heated through. And that’s it—one delightfully sweet side ready to go!

What to Serve with Candied Yams

Homemade candied yams are an easy, delicious side to serve for casual family meals, but they’re particularly popular during the holidays. Pair them with other tried-and-true holiday sides for a truly memorable meal with family and friends.

Need a few serving suggestions? The sweetness of candied yams perfectly complements a savory turkey (try this turkey recipe if you’re cooking a whole bird). Add a cream green bean casserole, and you’ve got all the fixings of a fantastic meal. If you’re serving your candied yams as festive Thanksgiving yams, be sure to check our other Thanksgiving side dish recipes for more tasty choices to add to the dinner table. Buttery mashed potatoes? Corn on the cob? Sign us up!

How to Store and Reheat Homemade Candied Yams

These stovetop candied yams are so good we’d be surprised if you end up with leftovers after feeding a crowd! But if you do happen to have some Thanksgiving yams remaining after the big meal, you can store them to reheat with other delicious leftovers. Keep in mind that the delicate texture of this dish means your candied yams are likely to fall apart when reheated and stirred. They’ll still be tasty, but not quite as pretty. If you’re hosting, we recommend making a fresh batch to really wow guests!

Refrigerating Candied Yams: Let your candied yams cool to room temperature before transferring them to an airtight container and covering them with any remaining glaze. Be sure to refrigerate within 2 hours of serving. Homemade candied yams will last for 2 days when stored properly in the refrigerator.

Freezing Candied Yams: For longer-term storage, transfer your leftover candied yams to a freezer-safe container or freezer bag, removing as much air as possible before sealing. Store your leftovers in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Reheating Candied Yams: When you’re ready to enjoy your leftover candied yams, all you have to do is heat them up! If heating from frozen, let leftovers thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then, reheat your candied yams on the stovetop, in the oven, or in the microwave, ensuring that the dish is steaming and hot all the way through. Stir very gently to help prevent yams from falling apart.

More About This Recipe

True sweet potatoes are the most flavorful and have the brightest color for this dish. You may be surprised at what you’ll find at the store for sweet potatoes. We’ll guide you to exactly the right choice! This is yummy comfort food at its best—sweet potatoes with a simple, sweet glaze. Great flavor and easy prep—don’t be surprised if your family requests them often.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are Variations to This Candied Yams Recipe?

Just can’t get enough of these subtly sweet root vegetables? You could try a new recipe every day of the week with our plethora of sweet potato recipes! Here are a few of our favorite ways to switch up this candied yam recipe.

Make a Marshmallow Topping: Gooey marshmallows add even more sweetness and fun to this dish. Once your candied yams are ready, transfer them to an oven-safe dish and top with marshmallows. Broil in the oven for 1 to 2 minutes or just until your marshmallows are golden brown and toasted. Keep a close eye on your dish to avoid burning the top.

Add Some Crunch: For a topping with some crunch, try crushed Honey Nut Cheerios™ cereal, chopped pecans, or other chopped nuts. Simply sprinkle your topping over your candied yams or sweet potatoes for extra flavor and texture.

Sweet Potato Pie for Dessert: Take your sweet potatoes from side dish to dessert with our roasted sweet potato pie recipe!

Can I Make Candied Yams Ahead of Time?

Short answer, yes. However, homemade candied yams have a soft, delicate texture—that’s what makes them so good! But that also means they can fall apart if reheated and stirred. While it’s nice to save time on some recipes, we recommend making this candied yams recipe on the day of your event and serving immediately after cooking for the best results.

Are Yams and Sweet Potatoes the Same?

Wondering if you can sub in a sweet potato for this candied yams recipe? True yams are technically different from sweet potatoes, but you can use either for this recipe. You might have more luck finding sweet potatoes in the produce section! Yams aren’t grown in the U.S., so whether or not you come across them will depend on your grocery store’s selection.

On the other hand, different varieties of sweet potatoes are plentiful. The deep orange or nearly red-fleshed varieties (known as red garnet sweet potatoes) are very moist and sweet—perfect for this recipe.

Can I Use Canned Sweet Potatoes or Yams for This Recipe?

If the produce section is fresh out of yams or sweet potatoes, you might be wondering if you can use the canned version for this recipe. We recommend against this swap, as canned yams and canned sweet potatoes are already cooked, and many are also already sweetened.

Candied yams are best made with raw yams that can be boiled and sweetened to your liking. But if you really do want to adjust the recipe, feel free to experiment on your own! You’ll likely need to rinse excess syrup or liquid from your canned sweet potatoes or yams and drain them well. You’ll then want to proceed according to step 2 of the recipe, skipping the boiling, simmering, and peeling in step one. Consider reducing the sweetness of the glaze and maybe even opting to simply drizzle the adjusted glaze over the top of your dish. Be careful not to overheat your canned yams or sweet potatoes, as they can quickly become mushy.

How Do I Peel Yams for Candied Yams?

Peeling root vegetables can seem daunting, but you’re in luck—you won’t even need your veggie peeler for this candied yams recipe. Cooking your yams or sweet potatoes in their jackets makes the skins slide right off. This boiling method also protects the soft insides and helps them better retain their shape when sliced. So put the paring knife or peeler away, and get ready to enjoy these super soft, deliciously sweet candied yams!

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