Kamote Cue (Filipino Caramelized Sweet Potato Skewers)

Filipino street food merienda: thick sweet potato rounds deep fried, then caramelized in brown sugar added straight to the hot oil, drained until the shell turns glassy and served warm on bamboo skewers.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Filipino

Keyword kamote cue

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Servings skewers

Ingredients

For the Kamote Cue

2 lb sweet potatoes (kamote) peeled, cut into ½ inch rounds
1 cup brown sugar packed
1 ½ cups neutral oil for frying
¼ teaspoon fine salt
8 bamboo skewers soaked in water 20 minutes

Instructions

Fry

Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into rounds about ½ inch thick. Halve any very wide rounds so every piece fits on a skewer.
Heat the oil in a wok or deep skillet over medium heat, around 325F. Fry the slices in a single layer for 6 to 8 minutes, turning once, until a skewer slides in with slight resistance. They should still be pale.

Caramelize

Sprinkle the brown sugar and salt evenly over the slices, straight into the hot oil. Leave it 30 seconds while it clumps and melts.
Turn the slices through the melting caramel for 2 to 3 minutes, until every piece wears a dark amber shell and the caramel clings instead of running. Pull them before the color goes mahogany.

Drain and Skewer

Lift the slices onto a wire rack set over a sheet pan, spaced apart so they do not fuse. Rest 2 minutes until the caramel turns glassy.
Thread 2 to 3 slices onto each soaked bamboo skewer, pushing the stick in from one end only through the center of each round and leaving about 2 inches bare as a handle. Serve warm.

Notes

The sugar goes into the frying oil: it is not a syrup made separately and poured over. That is the technique that defines this dish.
Cut thick: ½ inch rounds. Thin slices become chips and lose the creamy center.
Watch the color: dark amber is done, mahogany going to black is burnt and bitter.
Use a rack to drain: paper towels stick to hot caramel.
Kamote fries variation: cut into ½ by 3 inch batons, fry at 350F for 4 to 5 minutes, then toss with ¼ cup brown sugar off the heat and serve in a paper cone.
Best within 30 minutes: the caramel shell softens as it sits. Reheat at 375F for 5 minutes to recover some crispness.