These sweet potato black bean quinoa bowls have been a family favorite for years. I love them, the kids love them, my husband loves them. They make a great vegetarian or meatless meal. I love them year round, but they are so fresh and delicious that they make a great light summer meal. They are jam packed with flavor and have a variety of textures. They are pretty quick to make, and if you double the recipe, it also makes an A+ salad as leftovers. Try this with some lemon crinkle cookies or s'mores cookies.
Easy Nutritious Delicious
Sweet potatoes, black beans, quinoa, greek yogurt, avocado and spices are the only ingredients, so these are nutritious through and through. They are super simple to make and you can get other things done while they are cooking. Packed full of flavor, these are delicious and have that limey cilantro creamy tang that is so awesome when paired with sweet potatoes and black beans.
Try it drizzled with our Avocado Crema. Also use Frozen Avocado to top this tasty bowl.
How to Make Sweet Potato Black Bean Quinoa Bowls
First, preheat the oven to 400* F then peel and cut your sweet potatoes into ½" cubes. Next, drizzle the olive oil over the potatoes and toss. Pour the spices on top and toss some more to evenly coat. Lightly oil a full size baking sheet and transfer the potatoes to the sheet. Bake for 20-25 minutes; you should be able to insert a fork into a potato easily.
While the sweet potatoes are baking, make the quinoa. Bring the quinoa and water to boil. Boil for 15 minutes then fluff with a fork. Put in lime juice, cilantro and spices and stir gently to combine. I like to stir with a fluffing motion to keep the quinoa light and airy.
Make the dressing by putting the greek yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, salt and garlic powder into a blender and blend on high until combined. My favorite blender is this one and I like to use the single serving attachment.
Rinse and drain a can of black beans (or make your own in an instant pot), chop some cilantro and dice the avocado. Put some quinoa in a bowl and top with the sweet potatoes, black beans, cilantro, avocado and dressing. Enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
Make sure you only fluff the quinoa! This keeps it light and prevents it from getting sticky and heavy. Use any type of quinoa you'd like! We've had it with red and it tastes great. This also tastes pretty good with regular potatoes. If you make your black beans in an instant pot, one ½ cup dry = 1 can when cooked. I usually just cover the bottom of my instant pot, then fill it up about 2 inches above the beans and cook them for 42 minutes.
For our classic Cilantro Lime Crema, check out our recipe for more information. And for more bowl ideas try our Bang Bang Shrimp Bowl or Autumn Harvest Bowl.
Storage
One of the best things about these is how well they store! I usually make tons of extra sweet potatoes and I'll usually make salads with all the leftovers and use the beans and potatoes for tacos or burritos. The options are endless really. Store in an airtight container separately for up to one week.
Recipe
Sweet Potato Black Bean Quinoa Bowl
Ingredients
Sweet Potatoes:
- 2 large sweet potatoes or 4 medium/small
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ Tablespoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
Quinoa:
- 1 cup quinoa dry
- 2 cups water
- ¼ cup lime juice
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- ¾ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic
Dressing:
- ⅓ cup yogurt
- 3 Tablespoons cilantro
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ⅙ teaspoon garlic powder
Other:
- 14 ounce black beans canned
- ¼ bunch cilantro
- 1 avocado chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400* F.
- Peel and cut your sweet potatoes into ½" cubes. Drizzle the olive oil over the potatoes and toss. Pour the spices on top and toss some more to evenly coat.
- Lightly oil a full size baking sheet and transfer the potatoes to the sheet. Bake for 20-25 minutes; you should be able to insert a fork into a potato easily.
- While the sweet potatoes are baking, make the quinoa.
- Bring the quinoa and water to boil. Boil for 15 minutes then fluff with a fork. Put in lime juice, cilantro and spices and stir gently to combine. I like to stir with a fluffing motion to keep the quinoa light and airy.
- Make the dressing by putting the greek yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, salt and garlic powder into a blender and blend on high until combined.
- Rinse and drain a can of black beans (or make your own in an instant pot), chop some cilantro and dice the avocado.
- Put some quinoa in a bowl and top with the sweet potatoes, black beans, cilantro, avocado and dressing.
- Enjoy!
Zach says
I didn't expect to like this one as much as I did because I don't like black beans, but they went really well with the sweet potato and sauce. I turned it into a taco by putting it all in a tortilla and it was great.
JC says
I'm not a huge quinoa fan, but I really really like it in this bowl. It goes so well with the sauce and sweet potatoes. Will make again