Sweet Potato

Also called sweet potatoes, shakarkand, shakarkandi, sakkarai valli kizhangu

Safe from6 months

Choking riskLowCook soft, mash or small pieces

AllergenNot common

Iron-richNo

How to serve, by her age

Smooth mash

We can start her on plain mashed sweet potato, boiled or steamed until it is very soft, then mashed smooth so it stays on the spoon without running off. If it feels thick or dry, you can loosen it with a little of your breastmilk, formula, or water to a soft, scoopable mash.

You can also stir a little of it through a food she already takes. Keep it plain: no added salt until she turns one, no added sugar before she is two, and no honey before her first birthday, since it can cause botulism, a serious illness in babies. Just a spoonful or two to start, then let her appetite lead.

Soft pieces or wedges

Now she can pick up soft-cooked sweet potato herself, as bite-size pieces or soft wedges about half an inch wide. Cook them soft enough to squash easily between your fingers, so they stay gentle on her gums.

Picking the pieces up is good practice for her pincer grasp, where her thumb and finger learn to meet. A firm or undercooked piece is what makes her gag, so keep them soft and give just a few at a time. She can still have her smooth mash alongside, whichever she takes to that day.

Spoon, fingers, or both? ›

Bite-size family pieces

By a year, sweet potato is just part of what the whole family eats. Serve it as soft wedges or bite-size pieces from the same pot, mashed only if she needs it. This is also a good age to let her practise with a fork.

Keep the pieces soft enough to squash, since bigger firm pieces are harder for her to manage. She decides how much now, alongside everything else on her plate.

Spoon, fingers, or both? ›

About sweet potato

Sweet potato suits a baby from six months, cooked soft and mashed smooth for her first spoons. The ICMR-NIN counts it among the starchy roots and tubers that give good energy from a small tummy. If you find the orange-fleshed kind, ICMR-NIN and WHO count it among the vitamin-A-rich vegetables. Its colour is beta-carotene, which her body turns into vitamin A.

The doubts we clear

CHOKINGWill she choke on sweet potato?

Well cooked and soft, sweet potato carries a low choking risk. A firmer or undercooked piece is harder for her to manage and more likely to make her gag, so cook it until it is fork-soft, then take off the skin, which stays tough and chewy, and mash it smooth for her first spoons. From nine months offer only soft pieces she can squash, never big firm chunks.Choking vs gagging ›

MYTHA plain, well-cooked sweet potato is an ordinary first food for most babies. You don't need to add jeera, ajwain, or any special spice to make it sit well on her tummy.

You will hear at home that sweet potato brings on gas or colic unless you settle it with a pinch of cumin or ajwain. It is a caring thought, but a plain, soft mash does not need anything added to agree with her. Offer a small spoon at first and give her tummy a few days to adjust. A little gas now and then tends to ease once she is used to the food.

Questions moms ask

My shakarkandi mash for my 6-month-old came out really thick and dry. Can I loosen it with breastmilk?

Yes, breastmilk is perfect for this. A first mash often comes out stiff and dry, and loosening it is exactly the right move. Begin with a small spoon and build up as she takes to it.

Someone suggested sweet potato for my little one who isn't gaining much weight. Is it a weight-gain food?

It is a fair hope, and sweet potato does give good energy from a small amount, so it sits nicely in the meals of a baby who needs more. Steady weight, though, comes from a varied plate and her own appetite over time, so keep it as one food among several.Her weight and growth ›

I keep hearing sweet potato is 'heaty' or 'cooling' and should not be given in the evening or in winter. Is that right?

You will hear this in a lot of homes, so it is a fair thing to wonder about. Sweet potato is really an everyday, year-round food, evening or morning. What makes it gentle for her is cooking it soft and plain, not the time of day or the season. If everyone at home worries, start with a small amount and build up slowly.

Should I try baby-led weaning with sweet potato?

With sweet potato you have two easy ways in. You can start her with a smooth mash from a spoon at six months, then from around nine months offer soft pieces or wedges she can pick up herself. Letting her hold and gum the pieces helps her pincer grasp come along.Spoon, fingers, or both? ›

How much sweet potato, and how often?

At her first taste a spoonful or two is plenty, building up to a few tablespoons over the next couple of months. After that, let her appetite decide how much. Daily is fine as long as you keep other vegetables and foods in the rotation too, so her plate stays varied.How much she should eat ›

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Every page is checked against ICMR-NIN, IAP and WHO guidance.

Sources: IAP, ICMR-NIN and 2 more sources ›

Educational only, and never a replacement for your paediatrician. Read the full note ›