Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos
These Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos are bold, nutritious, and an overall crowd-pleaser. The black beans are seasoned with lots of flavor stovetop. The sweet potatoes and red onions caramelize in the oven. When combined, you won’t be able to resist having a second and third taco!
Sweet potatoes are one of my favorite foods. I eat them year round and all sorts of ways, often time just baked, or in a soup like my Indian-Spiced Lentil Soup. The caramelized red onions really hold their weight. They become sweet and juicy and provide a really nice counterbalance of flavor and texture. And the black beans? They are seasoned and cooked to become anything but boring.
I have served this recipe at countless parties. Its easy to whip up in a large batch and flavorful enough that even meat-eaters (myself included) won’t feel like they’re missing anything!
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Ingredients
Spices are the name of the game in this dish! We get tons of flavor from the sweet potatoes, black beans, onions and cheese, but the spices are really what make this taco recipe so special!
- Sweet potatoes: They become soft and caramelized while roasting.
- Red onion: The method we roast them leaves them jammy, sweet, and savory.
- Spices: We use Cumin, Paprika, Coriander, Cinnamon, Garlic powder, Onion powder, Salt and Cayenne to add so much to these tacos. The combination provides warmth, smokiness, heat, sweetness, and overall depth to what might look like a simple dish.
- Olive oil: Provides a rich and smooth texture while enhancing the flavors during cooking.
- Black beans: Protein and fiber-packed legumes, adding a hearty and nutritious element to the dish.
- Yellow Onion & Garlic: Offers a mild and sweet flavor, complementing the black beans.
- Shredded cheese: Adds a creamy and melty texture, enhancing the overall richness.
- Tortillas: I like using corn tortillas here. We bake them so they get perfectly crispy in the oven!
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions for Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos
- Dice the sweet potatoes into bite-sized pieces, and slice the red onions into ½ inch thick pieces. Cut root to stem for better caramelization and even cooking. Coat the sweet potatoes in olive oil and spices and place on a sheet tray, alongside the onions. Roast at 400 for 30 minutes.
- While those are cooking, sautée white onion and garlic with olive oil in a pan. After a few minutes, add the drained and rinsed can of black beans. Add the spices and cook down for a few minutes.
3. When the sweet potatoes and black beans are done, we can assemble. To a sheet tray, lightly coat the bottom in oil. Brush one side of a tortilla on the sheet tray to lightly coat in oil. To the other side, add the filling. I start with a layer of cheese, then add the sweet potatoes, onions, and black beans, then sprinkle another layer of cheese.
4. Close the tortilla and bake for about 10 minutes, or until crispy
Substitutions and Variations
I think these Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos are absolutely perfect as is. However, you are the one eating them! So here are some ideas for how to make these your own:
- Spices: Feel free to add spices to your liking, including adding more heat with cayenne, or remove it all together. I can’t guarantee results if you differ too much from this recipe, so only go with flavors you’re familiar with.
- Make it vegan: Remove the cheese. Easy as that! When I don’t add cheese, I don’t roast the tacos. I just load up the tortilla and eat as is. Up to you!
- Add a protein: These tacos are vegetarian but would taste great with some chopped up roasted chicken or some soyrizo!
How to serve Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos
- DIY Taco Bar – I have served this dish at a party, by having the black bean sweet potato mixture in a big container with tortillas on the side for people to make their own tacos! It’s super fun.
- Baked – As the recipe is written, we stuff the tortillas with the black bean and sweet potato mixture and cheese then bake, for a gooey center and crispy shell. What’s not to love!
- Toppings – I find these tacos have so much flavor and texture that I don’t add any toppings. But, guacamole is always welcome!
- Taco-less tacos – I honestly love eating the filling on its own. I can top it over a salad, or add it into my omelet in the morning.
Storage
Store leftover sweet potatoes and black beans in the fridge for up to a week. I suggest storing them not as tacos, but just as filling. Warm up the sweet potatoes and black beans in the microwave for a delicious taco filling!
I also use leftovers to add to salads or even omelets!
Top tip
Julienne the onion, it will help with the jammy texture! You do this by slicing the onion in half, from root to stem. Then, continue to slice the onion in about ¾ inch pieces, slicing from root to stem and keeping the onion slices in tact while roasting.
Rating
Lastly, if you do make this Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos recipe (then first of all, thank you!!), be sure to rate this recipe and leave a comment and rating below! It would mean the world to me if you tagged me on Instagram or TikTok so I can see your creations.
Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Filling
- 2 orange sweet potatoes peeled and chopped into ½ – 1 inch pieces
- 1 red onion
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne optional
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Black Bean Filling
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ yellow onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic diced
- 2 (15 oz) cans black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the Tacos
- 1 cup shredded cheese such as cheddar, pepper jack, mozzarella, Monterey Jack
- 12 tortillas I prefer corn, but use any
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat & prep: Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the red onion in half from root to stem, then slice each half lengthwise into 1-inch wedges, keeping the layers intact (don’t separate them).
- Season and roast the veggies: Add the onion slices to the sheet pan and brush both sides lightly with olive oil. In a bowl, toss the sweet potato cubes with olive oil and all of the sweet potato spices. Spread them evenly on the prepared baking sheet alongside the onions. Roast for 30 minutes, or until the onions are nicely toasted (but not burnt) and the sweet potatoes are fork-tender. Remove from oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.2 orange sweet potatoes, 1 red onion, 2 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, ¼ teaspoon cayenne, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Make the black beans: While the vegetables roast, heat a pan over medium heat and add olive oil. Sauté the chopped white onion for about 5 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for another 2–3 minutes, until fragrant. Add the black beans and all the black bean spices, and cook together for 5–6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. For a softer texture, lightly mash some of the beans with the back of your spatula. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ yellow onion, 3 cloves garlic, 2 (15 oz) cans black beans, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon paprika, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Combine the filling: When the sweet potatoes and onions are done, remove them from the oven and gently toss them together. Add them to the bowl with the black beans and lightly mix until somewhat evenly distributed.
- Bake the tacos: Lightly oil a second sheet pan. Brush one side of each tortilla with oil and place them oil-side down on the sheet pan. Fill each tortilla with the sweet potato–black bean mixture and a sprinkle of shredded cheese. Fold the tortillas over. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the shells are crispy and the cheese is melted. Tip: If the tortillas won’t stay folded, thats fine. Just bake the tacos for 2–3 minutes, remove from the oven, gently press fold them down. They will stay once warmed. Return to the oven to finish crisping.1 cup shredded cheese, 12 tortillas, 2 tablespoon olive oil
These wer really good!! Actually not that complicated either