The Easiest Roast Sweet Potatoes | Kenji's Cooking Show

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This recipe is a simplified version of my roast sweet potato from Serious Eats: www.seriouseats.com/the-best-...

[@AirSharkTV]

I personally prefer the headcam. The appeal is that we get to see the 'first person perspective' by someone who's very knowledgeable and experienced about that craft, and we get to see every step of the procedure from your eyes: mistakes, adaptations, substitutions, etc. Other food creators might need alternate camera angles, scripts and editing, etc to keep things interesting, but you can talk and cook at the same time and be entertaining, so I think that for your content, specifically, less is more. Just my opinion.

[@Digiur]

So much this yes! At least turn of the auto tracking? The swaying back and forth makes me dizzy.

[@peanutismint]

@@Digiur Or maybe just see if it has a less sensitive/'caffeinated' setting...

[@notnowsparky]

@@Digiur i agree a lot that the tracking makes me dizzy

[@ghostgirl6970]

I really like feeling like I am Remy to his Alfredo Linguini.

[@Phoenix-jd4yf]

I agree

[@alexandermoravcsik4134]

I like this camera angle, however I find that I learn more from your videos by watching from your perspective, it helps me to internalize you micro-movements and practices in the kitchen! Hopefully you won't be switching over entirely?

[@jakeprewitt3009]

IDK, I thought the side to side swaying (I guess from some sort of auto-tracking or framing) was pretty annoying.

[@shredmore3049]

@@jakeprewitt3009I agree. Hopefully Kenji can adjust the sensitivity of the tracker because it was pretty unnecessary for it to be moving at all most of the time.

[@jamiefiszzon9604]

Definitely agree 🙌 love the pov

[@jakelondon]

Agree that the first person nature of his previous vids is something that differentiates them from the pack. Definitely helpful to see things from the perspective of the cook, not as a third-party spectator. Prefer it to this.

[@jordanbeaman6911]

I like both! I wouldn't mind if it panned over to this wide frame on parts of the video where I don't need to see a close up of what he's doing. But I also like the pov. Either way, I'm just glad we're getting blessed with Kenji uploads again! My favorite KZbin channel!

[@JonathanKayne]

Definitely prefer your POV videos because there are things that you do that I picked up specifically because you were doing a POV video. Its the small things like chopping vegetables and stirring the pot that I learn a lot from.

[@kathryndiefenbach8545]

Me Too!

[@jordanbeaman6911]

Kenji, you look happier with each upload lately! I'm glad 2023 has been such a great year for you, and thank you as always for sharing your knowledge and a slice of your life with your fans!

[@paulamsden8420]

And more fit, too! That little pudge he had is goneeeee

[@hoorayFriedChicken]

Did he stop drinking?

[@jenniferatwell9698]

He seems to be aging in reverse, and I love it for him!

[@zachpw]

I recommend not using that ring light. Hard to tell if it’s being used as designed (around the lens), but the purpose is to minimize shadows and make texture less apparent. Great for skin and beauty, less great for food. I think a big soft box over by the window would look great, it would mimic the window light that’s already in your kitchen. The light will be bright and soft, but since it comes from the side it will make shadows on the other side to emphasize the texture of food.

[@Jonpoo1]

Man knows lighting.

[@nathant2309]

Kenji really took popping up out of the abyss to heart now ... and I love it

[@elliotwain301]

Love the set up kenji! The overhead and front cam look great, but please turn the head tracker off as I feel like I’m on a canal boat. It is cool when it whip pans over to the grill though x

[@EdwardChen0]

Agreed. It might be that I'm getting over a cold, but the head tracking is making me nauseous.

[@travisjohnson7898]

My favorite videos for cooking are the POV videos because they are unique. When I see them I think that is a specific thing only Kenji does.

[@PeaceMastah]

100% prefer the headcam! It’s part of what makes your videos unique.

[@wizpig64]

i like the new camera but i wonder if it could be tuned to dance around a little bit less.

[@zezblit]

I needed that smile today from the intro. Keep up the great work!

[@clarkgray4109]

I prefer head cam! But this is cool to have additional angles

[@cellobarney]

Am I the only one? I always find myself trying to convince Kenji through the screen, "Just let it cool down for a second. Pause the video. Save the roof of your mouth!"

[@spiritbomb12]

I love this type of easy recipe! Leaving the skin on makes it so much better imo

[@bdellovibrioo5242]

The GoPro is iconic, but this setup is great as well!

[@GrahfGames]

I like the addition of the front cam, but I don't think it needs to move as much as it does, if it actually needs to move at all really.

[@artistlovepeace]

U R a great creator. Thank you. All your recipes and demonstrations check out. Thank you for being honest, scientific and not lying to your audience.

[@kathleenpovey333]

Thanks for the great content. I appreciate you experimenting with diifferent ways to record your videos. I do prefer the go pro showing your pov, rather than this perspective. But I am all for whatever works best to keep this great content going.

[@mayonnaiseeee]

Great recipe as always, and dude you are looking thinner and fitter than ever! I'm not an avid watcher of all the content on your channel, but I check in every month or two and always learn a ton and you seem to have more energy than ever. Best wishes heading into the holidays and 2024!

[@SuttonB4646]

This is my dream cutting board. So huge. Great content as always, thanks Kenji

[@Serouzo]

I'd really love it if you could one day showcase the difference in caramelization with the 150F sweet potatoes!

[@JKenjiLopezAlt]

Check the linked article!

[@alessandroledda6480]

this man really likes his tubers

[@HelgeMdS]

Like the new camera perspective but hating this automatic (?) swinging from left to right and back. It makes me instant seasick

[@kcody5646]

Kenji my Hero! What a great teacher you are, thank you for so much, mostly for letting me believe in myself, that I actually can cook great tasting food!

[@justinb8973]

Man, I love your kitchen it’s so cool.

[@ianrickey208]

As always, Kenji cooking at home is the gift we all need - and with his new camera setup, we get to see his childish glee at his own cooking and what he's preparing for his family! Keep calm and Kenji on!

[@niklaspilot]

While I don't dislike this camera setup, I much prefer the POV GoPro

[@gus_abreu]

Kenji I love your videos, but the head cam is special, and it's one of the main reasons I got hooked to your videos. Thanks.

[@fruitfantasy1]

In New Zealand, they're called Kūmara which nicely avoids the potato comparison and confusion. They're also pretty central to a lot of traditional cuisine.

[@JH-bx8lb]

The ones he’s using here aren’t kumara - those are known as Japanese sweet potatoes in the US and you generally don’t see Americans using them, even though they’re readily available and taste 100x better. The first time I had one of those orange sweet potatoes here in the US I couldn’t believe it was even related to kumara 🤮

[@sh5810]

Just to let you know, I love both formats. You're great on camera and it's a treat to see you do your thing. A thought might be to do the headcam thing for more "technical" videos where it's really useful to see you do stuff. I particularly enjoy the wok videos with the GoPro for that reason.

[@mavkajutsu]

Kenji popping his head in the shot of videos always makes me smile! That intro caught me by suprise!😄

[@whysitthat3515]

5:08 this is why I’ve become a bigger fan of Kenji the last year or two; even being a distinguished chef who EVERYONE looks up to and respects, he still is so real in the ways he actually cooks for himself. Love hearing that we all do things the quick and easy way sometimes!

[@amanatee]

i am loving every single upload lately

[@johnhayes4454]

So glad you made a video on this… I roast sweet potatoes this exact way almost 3 times a week. Easily my favorite food. Goes great with roasted chickpeas as well!

[@AaronLaye]

Just used your pumpkkin soup video recipe today - loved the simplicity of that one as well. Will Have to give this a try once I finish the soup.

[@jamiebearden2940]

Great pointer on the 160 degree water. Thank you!

[@nachis3]

I love your channel and I love how you give us great info like the starch in the SP that caramelizes.And BTW great camera setup.

[@karenschwartz5209]

First time I have seen you. Love this. Thank you! Happy Thanksgiving 😊

[@patrick_g_]

Kenji been laying off the late night grilled cheeses!!

[@LoudCity025]

I like this angle! It reminds me of a cooking show

[@ujaku_]

Cool setup! I do hope you continue the headcam series

[@kalacaptain4818]

one of the 3 food youtubers worth listening to.

[@tommyddurand]

i love the simple recipes because i actually make them :) although to be fair most of your recipes are super easy to follow since you show everything in the video and provide very useful dialogue along the way :)

[@raymondvandorpe2768]

I don't much care for sweet potatoes, but I did like this video because it taught me a few things. That's why I love Kenji's KZbin channel so much; always educational!

[@Mycr0bi]

Looks delicious & easy.

[@zenith8294]

I absolutely love the camera setup!

[@samowings8175]

I think the old style views of static giant cameras like Julia Child style cooking shows (AWESOME LEGEND) leaves behind so much of the actual technique, especially on what is fast enough to actually use at home. POV from you is so good for visual learners. When you're doing knife skills or pan skills, the "camera-on-your-head" view along with your narration is what helps me learn cooking techniques to prepare food for my family. Even comments around how to prep mushrooms faster with wisdom from a strict chef as you cut them up quickly in your beef stew video helps do more real cooking in a reasonable time. Speed matters when your time is fixed. The faster you are the more real food you can cook and the less processed food your family eats.

[@csimeone1802]

We do this often with all kinds of veggies. Yummy! Nice shout out to Jamon.

[@anounimouse]

Kenji, your weight loss this past year (or so..) is Remarkabile!! Hopefully it's been 'on-purpose' and by design, not anything adverse...

[@MrThephonypope]

Nice this is one of those things I've never found a happy way to do, thanks

[@user-dd6xg3ox2i]

I prefer the headcam. I actually really appreciate how you run around the kitchen to find stuff while your cooking

[@jiffreypop]

I’m definitely trying these for Thanksgiving!

[@Gleem1313]

This is the only video of yours I have been able to watch! The head mount videos actually make me queasy, so I can’t watch. I’m so glad I got to watch one, if nothing else. 😊

[@cameton_youtube]

Very much enjoy the more stable top down view Also, absolutely love these quick and easy recipes. Projects are fun, but it's nice to have some good busy weeknight recipes lol

[@caseystrawn3228]

I like the fun you're having with camera. You've always been good at that, never been a fan of the stiff, couple angles that most are doing. I feel better engaged with you and how you teach. I'll probably try this around Thanksgiving!

[@jhmessner77]

Love the new camera set up 👍🏻

¡Eres el mejor, Kenji! 👏

[@bertoray5497]

Nice new camera, and Yes, I will be trying this method. Thanks.

[@queenbvalerie7858]

Thank you from Massachusetts! I just found ya on the Google love the video & the knowledge! I will be watching for more!!!! Also I love the toaster oven & use it daily more please !!!

[@MegaSascuach]

Looking good Kenji! Fun to see you cook and interact face on. Great content too 👍

[@Katarjana]

omg the intro! : ) Also love love love the science bits about enzymes and oil!

[@nilspbs]

You're looking great Kenji, very cool to see!

[@Pooburglar]

Kenji looking good lately!!

[@samplifylife]

i love the new camera setup.

[@enzoloyola3911]

We fry these with brown sugar until caramelized in the southern Philippines! Really a great afternoon snack. yumm

[@sugaruss]

The new setup is looking good.

[@Stan_sprinkle]

We were gifted an air fryer a few years - an appliance I had given the eye roll for a long time. One of the best uses we found was for a staple food at our home, roasting sweet potatoes. Just wash them, throw them in whole,and cook at 350/375 for 40 mins. Murasaki sweet potatoes specifically we’ve been loving.

[@Notturnoir]

Is it the toaster oven type?

[@RyanTenney]

Excellent timing, making sweetpotato tonight! Unsure if a human or machine controlling the wide camera, not a big fan of the really exaggerated movements of the camera, but otherwise like the new format.

[@GardeningWithDoug]

For some reason watching the removal of the sweet potatoes from the tray made me laugh. Enjoyed the video. Will try roasting some sweet potatoes this week. Keep up the good work.

[@justine1816]

Much prefer POV headcam. That’s what makes your videos so good.

[@JKenjiLopezAlt]

Glad to know that the quality of my content can be reduced to a camera angle.

[@thebigh4752]

Good angle!

[@twsx]

I'm a little torn on the new camera setup. On one hand, the head cam was really, really good to really see the prep, the food, and be immersed. I really like the head cam. I miss that a little bit. On the other hand, actually getting to see you, seeing your face, actually getting a visual of the person cooking, and the getting a sense of the emotion and enthusiasm, is also really, really nice. I can't decide. 😅

[@oranda3737]

That intro was perfect

[@justynmoore2689]

I recommend sticking with the pov perspective. It’s the thing that stuck in my mind when I started watching your videos.

[@marshall5021]

I do enjoy the camera in the back with one over the stuff your making plus the super energetic vibe is cool. Could you do a video on sweet potato fries?

[@v45ud3v4]

Life hack! If you're doing a larger batch, use wooden kebab sticks to place your potato slices vertically, without overlapping, on a much smaller surface!! Also they get crispy on BOTH SIDES!!!

[@judegoldstein64]

oh, these are so good. i am eating them right off of the cookie sheet. thanks, kenji.

[@Gigi-fv9ky]

They look delicious. I have a sweet potato on my counter that I will use to cook this way. I grew up in the Deep South and while we did grow sweet potatoes on our farm, I also remember my grandmother buying frozen sweet potato patties . They came in a box and were basically a pressed round disk of sweet potato flesh, perhaps they had been boiled. She would fry them in a cast iron skillet and I want to say she added butter and brown sugar to make a glaze, but it’s been more than 40 years since so I could be misremembering exact details. She’d often make them as a side dish for ham, along with greens like turnips or collards, and they were delicious. I have lived in the Pacific Northwest now for decades so I don’t know if they are still sold in these frozen patties or not.

[@kritibansal740]

OMG one of my favourite snacks during this time of the year is oven roasted sweet potato (Indian) wedges. I've observed that the potatoes come out sweeter and slightly more crrisp and caramelized if I steam or pressure cook them first. So i know the result but the first time I've thought of the science behind it. Thanks Kenji as always. PS. the sweet potatoes taste amazing with chat masala and lime juice. It makes the sweet creamy taste pop even more.

[@KingdomDumb]

Love those new camera angles

[@Kchristians]

I've literally survived on this for the past few weeks. I cook mine a bit longer until they crisp up a bit on the edges, nearly burnt on the bottoms but no syrup. I sprinkle them with maldon sea salt at the end. I'm on my third bag of potatoes from Costco. One of my favorite sheet pan meals, really great for busy work days

[@snailzillascreator]

POV there's a monster under your bed but he's actually a nice guy 0:01 he even brought you food, what a cool dude 7:14

[@ghostgirl6970]

Oh that opening shot had me laughing my butt off. Thanks for that.

[@Turtles504]

Kenji, you’re looking amazing. Keep up the exercise and good work

[@ryanking9217]

That approach with the enzyme is the same approach that is the basis of the mash step when brewing beer. Malted barley can convert itself to sugars when held at the right temp in water.

[@TamDNB]

Yuum, love sweet potatoes!!! Would be great to see a sweet potato fries recipe if you've got one!

[@zephyr702]

I connected with your comment of doing things easy with two kids at home. With two kids myself I have the same problem. Have you considered doing a meal prep series where there are a couple heavy cooking days to spread out over the work week. As an aging working parent I find it hard to keep things tasty and stop gaining weight so a healthy or veggie option in here would be a bonus. Thanks for all the content over the years, and wish you the best in your future projects.

[@charlier7711]

Awesome - love it I'll be trying this out tonight - and yes once you've had maple syrup how can you go back to anything else 🙂

[@Nedrafehi]

I've felt that calling them sweet potatoes was a stroke of marketing genius. Potatoes are familiar, loved and ubiquitous making sweet potatoes less intimidating and less exotic.

[@sammsibert]

Kenji I love the new camera set up! I would suggest rotating the overhead camera 180° so we get more of a POV perspective where as right now it’s like we’re standing in front of you. To me it just feels easier to follow along and you can speak in left-and-rights. Keep the videos coming!!

[@Babaganoush44]

I mean this in the most positive way possible - You have been looking great lately in your videos! Also, today’s time lapse snap may have been your best.

[@HawkeyeFan321]

Would love a video with more details and tips on the sweet potatoes in water method.

[@ableaquariums5480]

New camera is nice but don't get rid of the head cam. That is the best view ever for a cooking show. It's honestly all you need.

[@colinbracken2988]

Congrats on your exercise success, you like a whole different dude lol keep it up!!

[@MrThedennisblack]

I like this camera format because I like seeing the video host. The POV camera format is great but after a while I realize that I’ve watched a dozen videos and have forgotten what you actually look like haha

[@sagnikdas6049]

0:33 I'm glad Kenji got the excess dirt off. I love my taters with the regular amount of dirt

[@xoxoamazingful]

I like the new set up! I find it more engaging to watch long form content with someone to look at, rather than only looking at the food

[@lkatt_]

did the hour in water first, These were good!

[@WinningCustomers]

Love the overhead shot. Have you got the camera powered via a cable in the rail?

[@6minus3minus2]

I for one prefer this camera setup, since the head cam could feel a bit hectic at times. I basically do my sweet potatoes this way as well, I just flip them and do another 15 for extra color and sweetness. (Leave in the oven as it cools for even more flavor). It's really easy and super delicious. I cook a big tray and keep them in the fridge to add to all kinds of things: tacos, salads, korean noodle dishes.

[@SchwarzeDose21]

I like how he REALLY tried not to make a thyme/time-joke but just couldn’t stop himself