Sinfully delicious, Smoked Sweet Potatoes topped with Maple Bourbon Butter will rock your world with their sweet and savory smoked potato goodness. The light smoky flavor goes beautifully with the delicate sweetness of the potato, and this incredible side dish is super easy to make.
For a Big Green Egg or Kamado type grill, soak one cup of wood chips in water for one hour. Light the charcoal and when it comes up to 250 degrees F., scatter the drained wood chips over the fire. Add the grill grate. You do not need to use the plate setter for this recipe.
For any other type of grill or smoker, follow the manufacturer’s directions to prepare it for smoking and preheat it to 250 degrees F.
Scrub your potatoes and dry them. Then, using a knife or fork, pierce the top a few times.
Use a pastry brush or your hands and coat them lightly on all sides with olive oil. Top each with a generous amount of kosher salt.
Place the potatoes in the smoker and close the lid—smoke for approximately two hours.
While the potatoes are smoking, make the maple bourbon butter by combining the butter, maple syrup, bourbon, pecans, and chives in a small bowl.
Place the butter mixture on a piece of wax paper or parchment paper and roll up tightly in a cylinder. Twist the ends and store the package in the refrigerator to firm up.
Test the potatoes for doneness by gently squeezing them with a potholder or barbecue mitt. They should give easily and feel soft, somewhat like an overripe avocado or tomato. You can also pierce them with a fork; the fork should glide in easily with no resistance.
When the potatoes are done, remove them from the grill, split them open with a sharp knife, and gently push the ends toward the center to open them up.
Top with a generous amount of maple bourbon butter and serve immediately.
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Notes
The Maple Bourbon Butter makes a unique hostess or holiday gift when packed in a cute jar.If you really want to live on the wild side, use bacon grease instead of olive oil to coat your potatoes. It adds another flavor element.If you don't have maple syrup, you can substitute honey.Remember, the size of your potatoes and the grill temperature will affect your cooking time. Try and use potatoes that are all about the same size to cook in the same amount of time. In general, you can plan on the following times for medium size potatoes: 250 degrees F. = 2 to 2.5 hours, 300 degrees F. = 1.5 to 2 hours, 350 degrees F. = 1 to 1.5 hours, and 400 degrees F. = 45 minutes to 1 hour.You can make the butter several days ahead and store it in the refrigerator until it's time to use it.I only pierce my potatoes on the top to let out steam before I put them on the grill. If you pierce them on the bottom, they will leak all over your fire as they are cooking and could cause a flare-up.You can use salted or unsalted butter in this recipe. If you use unsalted, add a pinch of salt to the mixture.