Say hello to your new favourite dinner—Black Bean Stuffed Sweet Potatoes! Baked Sweet Potatoes are loaded with saucy, spicy black beans and topped with diced avocado, crumbled cheese, tangy sour cream, cilantro, and juicy tomatoes. It's a perfect vegetarian and vegan-friendly meal for the whole family.
How sweet is this stuffed sweet potato?
There is nothing that the tired working mom in me loves more than a meal prep meal. Ok, I also love sleeping alone, steamy romantasy novels, and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. But a meal that basically just needs heating and assembling when I get home tired and hungry? Come. To. Momma.
So let's talk about these Black Bean Stuffed Sweet Potatoes. There are three basic components: the baked sweet potatoes, the saucy, spicy black beans (our community fave Instant Pot Black Beans would work great here), and the toppings, all of which can be prepared in advance.
Black beans and sweet potatoes are a match made in heaven. That sweet, caramelized, luscious sweet potato topped with smoky, saucy black beans is just *chef's kiss* so good. As a nutritionist, I love that we're piling so many healthy things together.
I like to serve these bad boys DIY so everyone can add their own toppings to their heart's content. So, fire on your oven, friend! All you need to do is toss in your taters, then simmer those beans. It's a choose-your-own-adventure dinner, stuffed sweet potato style.
Let's do this!
Let's make Stuffed Sweet Potatoes Together!
Step 1: bake your sweet potatoes
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and toss your sweet potatoes into a pre-heated oven to bake.
I like to pierce 'em with a fork in a few places. You'll bake them until the skin is starting to puff up and blister blister and the sweet potato flesh inside is tender.
Step 2: make the saucy beans
You know the drill here. We're going to start by sweating our diced onions out in a heavy-bottomed skillet.
Now you're going to add some chili powder, ground cumin, minced chipotle pepper, and salt. Ohhhh yeah. Sauté for 1-2 minutes to combine the flavors.
And now the beans are going in, along with a tablespoon or two of their liquid. We'll also add a squeeze of lemon juice, and adjust the seasonings as needed.
Step 3: stuff those sweet potatoes!
Alrighty, let's get down to business. Split your baked sweet potatoes down the middle, and open 'em up to create a vessel for beans and toppings.
Spoon some of those saucy beans into the middle...
And then pile on your favorite toppings!
Topping suggestions
Let's talk about toppings, shall we? I've gone fairly classic (in my opinion) and gone for a Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potatoes kinda vibe with avocado, tomatoes, crumbled Cotija cheese, and sour cream on top. Other ideas? Well...
- Your favorite salsa (I love this peach salsa always and forever)
- Spicy coleslaw would be a treat on top (or on the side!)
- Can we stuff buffalo butter beans into our baked sweet potatoes? I think yes.
- Corn and black bean salsa? Don't mind if I do.
Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Saucy Black Beans
Ingredients
- 4 medium sweet potatoes scrubbed and pierced with a fork
Saucy black beans
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup white onion finely diced
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce finely minced - use less if you are sensitive to heat
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 15-ounce can black beans reserve some of the liquid!
- 2 Tablespoons black bean liquid
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice from half a lemon
Toppings
- 1 large avocado diced
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes sliced in half
- 6 ounces Cotija or cheddar cheese crumbled
- chopped cilantro to taste
- sour cream
Instructions
Bake the sweet potatoes
- Preheat the oven to 215°C/425°F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
- Use a fork to poke holes into the sweet potatoes, and set them on the baking sheet.4 medium sweet potatoes
- Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the skin has puffed up and you can easily pierce them with a fork.
Make the saucy beans
- Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottomed skillet (I use cast iron) over medium heat. Add the diced onion, and sauté, stirring frequently, until the onion has softened and is starting to brown.1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, ¼ cup white onion
- Add the chili powder, ground cumin, minced chipotle pepper, and salt. Sauté for 1-2 minutes to combine the flavors.½ teaspoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, 1 teaspoon salt
- Add the beans, along with a tablespoon or two of their liquid. Simmer, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes.1 15-ounce can black beans, 2 Tablespoons black bean liquid
- Add lemon juice, stir, and taste the beans. At this point, adjust the seasonings as needed. Remove the beans from the heat to cool slightly.2 Tablespoons lemon juice
Loaded Sweet Potatoes
- Split the potatoes down the middle and place on a plate.
- Add a big scoop of black beans, then top with sour cream, tomatoes, avocado, cheese, and cilantro. Add a squeeze of lime juice over the top if you like.1 large avocado, 1 pint cherry tomatoes, 6 ounces Cotija or cheddar cheese, chopped cilantro to taste, sour cream
- Serve!
Notes
- Nutrition values are an estimate only and will vary depending on toppings you choose
- The sweet potatoes and beans can both be prepared in advance and re-heated at the time of serving
Nutrition
Frances says
Great recipe, like the seasonings on the beans --and use that recipe when I want beans as a side or to put into a burrito etc etc. Thank you!
Katie Trant says
Those beans are great, aren't they?! Glad you enjoyed this one!
Jess says
I made this last night and it was delicious! I didn't have any lemon juice for the beans but I did have lime juice and it turned out great. I assembled the sweet potato according to what I had on hand which was only sour cream, cilantro and some medium green salsa (I omitted the chipotle chili from the beans). But it was yummy anyway! Will definitely be making this again. Thank you!
Katie Trant says
Hey Jess! Good to know lime juice works as well! And so glad you enjoyed these as much as we do 🙂
Emily says
Fabulous. So easy to throw together while getting the kids ready for bed.
Katie Trant says
Yay! So glad you enjoyed these 🙂
Cammy says
The making time for you gets easier as they get older. But I'm such a strong believe in it. And it's gooooood for your kid(s) to look at their Mom and go 'dang, that lady sure knows how to make herself happy'.
Anne Titcomb says
I LOVE sweet potatoes!!! What a great way to add all the things you love (well balanced, of course) to make a great meal.