Amazing sweet potato jerky trips: 6-hour chew

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I just need a snack that tastes amazing but won’t leave me feeling weighed down. Forget the chips and the crackers! I first whipped up these vegan jerky strips because I was trying to use up some gorgeous sweet potatoes lying on the counter, and honestly, I never looked back. These **sweet potato jerky strips** are chewy, they’ve got that perfect savory-sweet thing going on, and they are ridiculously simple to make. You only need about 15 minutes of actual work, and then you just let the oven or dehydrator handle the magic. They make the perfect healthy snack for hiking or just fighting that 3 PM slump!

Why You Will Love These Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

Why am I obsessed with this recipe? Honestly, it’s the low effort required for such a satisfying result. You’ll see in the instructions it’s mostly waiting around—my favorite kind of cooking!

• They are unbelievably easy—seriously, mostly hands off!
• The texture is wonderfully chewy, just like real jerky.
• Totally vegan and made from simple grocery staples.
• That savory-sweet flavor combo hits the spot perfectly.

Essential Ingredients for Perfect Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

Okay, so the beauty of these **sweet potato jerky strips** is that they rely on staple pantry items, but the quality of the main star—the potato—really matters here. We need a good base so that our marinade can really shine through the drying process. I also promise that once you look at these components, you’ll see why they result in that perfect chewy texture folks love so much. If you want something truly wonderful that’s safe for the whole family, you might want to check out my recipe for sweet potato dog biscuits too, but these jerky strips are purely for us!

For the Sweet Potato Jerky Strips Base

You need three large sweet potatoes. Make sure you scrub them really well! I never bother peeling them; the skin helps hold everything together during the drying process. You need them nicely uniform so they all dry at the same rate—that’s the secret to no burnt edges and no soggy centers!

The Savory Marinade for Your Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

This is where the jerky flavor comes from. We’re balancing saltiness and sweetness, which locks in flavor. You need 1/4 cup of soy sauce or tamari (if you’re keeping it gluten-free). Then grab 2 tablespoons of maple syrup—that’s our binder and sweetener. For the spice, a teaspoon of smoked paprika is non-negotiable for that authentic, smoky jerky taste, plus garlic powder and a little black pepper to round it out.

Expert Tips for Making Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

Listen, if you just hack at these potatoes with a regular knife, your results are going to be all over the map. Some pieces will be dry dust, and others will be floppy mush. That’s why the slicing step is crucial for getting genuinely good **sweet potato jerky strips**. If you’ve ever wanted to start a blog, you can see my thoughts on general cooking tips over at my general recipe blog, but for jerky, precision matters huge.

I spent my first few attempts trying to be all fancy with my knife work, and it was a disaster. Trust me on this one: haul out the mandoline slicer. It’s your best friend here!

Achieving the Ideal Thickness for Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

You absolutely, positively want those slices to be about 1/8 of an inch thick. If they are much thicker than that, they won’t dry out properly in the low oven heat, and you’ll end up with soft, undercooked jerky. Been there, smelled that!

If you slice them too thin, though, they curl up, snap into tiny pieces, and frankly, just look sad. You want them sturdy enough to hold onto that marinade but thin enough to dry thoroughly. That 1/8 inch sweet spot ensures we get the best final texture for our **sweet potato jerky strips**—chewy, not hard.

Step-by-Step Instructions for Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

This is where the kitchen adventure really begins! Don’t let the long drying time scare you; the actual hands-on time here is maybe 20 minutes total, tops. We are going to set up our trays so everything dries evenly. If you’re looking for other great ways to use up sweet potatoes, check out my recipe for sweet potato chews for dogs—it’s a different process but equally tasty for them!

Preparation and Marinating the Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

First things first: get your drying station ready! Whether you are using a standard oven or a dehydrator, you need a lining. I use parchment paper on my baking sheets every single time. If you’re using the oven, you want to set that temperature low, like 200°F (95°C). If you have a dehydrator, just set it to about 135°F (57°C).

Next, make that marinade in a shallow dish—the one where you can lay the potato slices flat. Whisk up your soy sauce, maple syrup, paprika, garlic, and pepper until it’s all mixed together. Now, working methodically, dip each thin sweet potato slice into the marinade. Be gentle! You only need a light coating on both sides. Lay them out on the parchment-lined sheets in a single layer. Seriously, do not let them overlap or they will steam instead of dry!

The Dehydration Process for Chewy Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

Time to bake these treasures! If you’re using the oven, plan on about 6 hours total. You absolutely must flip the **sweet potato jerky strips** every single hour. This is critical for even drying. If you skip the flipping, you’ll get moist spots guaranteed.

If you are lucky enough to have a dehydrator, the time is similar, around 6 hours, but the heat is more gentle. However, don’t just set a timer and walk away! After hour five, start testing one. You are looking for that wonderful, slightly resistant chewiness. When they feel done, turn the heat off and leave them right on the sheets to cool down completely. They firm up quite a bit as they reach room temperature, giving you the perfect finished **sweet potato jerky strips**!

Variations on Savory Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

The recipe I gave you is classic for a reason—it’s totally addictive. But hey, you know me, I love messing around with flavors! Once you nail the base technique for those gorgeous, chewy **sweet potato jerky strips**, you should totally start experimenting with the marinade. It’s like a whole new snack comes out with just one small swap.

My favorite little twist for something that tastes almost barbecued is adding just half a teaspoon of liquid smoke to the marinade. It really amps up that smoky paprika note you already have going on. Wow, it makes them taste so much heartier!

Another easy thing to try is kicking up the heat. Instead of just black pepper, try a pinch of cayenne pepper or a little dash of hot sauce mixed right in with your soy sauce. For a brighter sweetness, try swapping out the maple syrup for agave nectar. It works just as well as a binder and keeps your **sweet potato jerky strips** tasting vibrant!

Storage and Shelf Life for Your Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

Patience, my friend! You absolutely must let the **sweet potato jerky strips** cool down completely on the baking sheets before you even think about putting them away. If you seal them up hot, all that lingering steam turns into condensation, and guess what? Soggy jerky!

Once they are totally cool and feel nicely firm, just slide them into an airtight container. I use a large glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Because we dried them thoroughly, they keep perfectly well right on the counter at room temperature for up to a week. Don’t worry about refrigeration unless your kitchen is super humid, but honestly, my batches of **sweet potato jerky strips** never last that long anyway!

Troubleshooting Common Issues with Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

Don’t panic if your first batch of **sweet potato jerky strips** doesn’t come out exactly right! Drying is a tricky game, whether you’re using a dehydrator or the oven. It’s all about those subtle adjustments to time and temperature. It took me literally three tries before I felt like I nailed the perfect chewiness, so don’t give up!

If your strips are coming out too soft after the full drying time, I always tell people the same thing: they just need more time in the heat. Turn your oven temperature down a touch—maybe 10 degrees lower—and let them go for another hour or two while flipping regularly. Moisture is the enemy of good jerky!

On the flip side, if you bit into a strip and it snapped, feeling more like a chip than chewy jerky, you’ve gone too far. For next time, just pull them out about an hour sooner than you think they are ready, or stick to the shorter drying time mentioned in the notes. Brittle **sweet potato jerky strips** are usually the result of overheating or over-drying!

Serving Suggestions for Homemade Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

These savory-sweet snacks are great straight from the jar, of course! But honestly, I like to mix things up, which is what makes cooking so much fun. The chewiness works so well in different places. You can chop these up small and toss them into a hearty salad instead of croutons.

They are wonderful crumbled over roasted vegetables for extra texture, too. If you are looking for more snack inspiration that involves minimal fuss, you should definitely check out my list of easy appetizers and snack ideas. They are fantastic broken up inside homemade granola for a touch of smoky sweetness!

Frequently Asked Questions About Sweet Potato Jerky Strips

I know when you try a new recipe, especially something like dehydrated vegetables, you end up with a million little questions bouncing around! I tried to cover most of the big ones in the actual steps, but here are a few things folks ask me all the time about making the best **sweet potato jerky strips**.

Do I really have to use a dehydrator, or can I just use my oven?

Oh, absolutely you can use your oven! That’s what I do most of the time because my dehydrator is currently holding flour and sugar hostage. You just need to keep the oven temperature really low—200°F (95°C)—and be patient. The key is keeping that heat source gentle so the potatoes dry out slowly rather than baking into chips. It takes longer in the oven, so plan for that extra hour or two.

Which kind of sweet potato works best for this vegan jerky?

Honestly, standard ones—the ones you find in every single grocery store! I use the firm, orange-fleshed ones, usually labeled just as sweet potatoes. Avoid the Japanese or Japanese-style ones if you can; those tend to be starchier and don’t dry into that perfect chewy texture we want for these **sweet potato jerky strips**. You need those nice, big, uniform ones for easy slicing!

I noticed you didn’t mention refrigeration. Do the sweet potato jerky strips need to be kept cold?

This is a great question, and it comes down to how dry you get them! Because we dry these out so thoroughly—to the point where they are tough and tacky—they are generally safe stored at room temperature in an airtight container for about a week. However, if your kitchen is humid, or if you notice any stickiness returning, pop them into the fridge just to be safe. If you want ideas for baking with sweet potatoes that *do* require refrigeration, check out my sweet potato oatmeal cake recipe!

What if I want a really smoky flavor in my sweet potato jerky strips, not just smoky paprika?

That’s easy! When you’re mixing your marinade, just add a tiny bit of liquid smoke. I mean, *tiny*—start with just 1/4 teaspoon. Liquid smoke is potent, and you don’t want to overpower that natural sweetness we’re aiming for. Too much liquid smoke, and your amazing **sweet potato jerky strips** end up tasting like an ash tray, so test it lightly!