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Quick and easy one-skillet meals are always my favorite and this Sweet Potato Black Bean skillet is no exception. It’s nutritious, veggie-packed, perfect for cleaning out the fridge or pantry, and of course it’s budget-friendly! It’s also great for meal prep. So grab some avocados, sour cream or greek yogurt, and your favorite salsa and get ready to enjoy this simple and delicious 25-minute meal!
“This was absolutely amazing! I was skeptical about adding the diced tomatoes at the end but all the flavors are great together. I even improvised with canned sweet potatoes. My daughter and I loved it. Great job.”
Cosha
Easy Sweet Potato Black Bean Skillet Recipe
This one’s a regular in my kitchen because it checks all the boxes: quick, easy on the wallet, and packed with veggies. I use sweet potatoes, canned black beans, bell pepper, kale, and a simple mix of spices to bring it all together in one skillet. It’s ready quickly, and is PERFECT for tossing into meal prep containers for the week!
Sweet Potato Black Bean Skillet
Servings 4 (1.75 cups each)Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs. sweet potatoes (about 2 medium-sized potatoes, $2.11)
- 1 red bell pepper (diced, $1.50)
- 1 small yellow onion (diced, $0.75)
- 1.5 Tbsp olive oil ($0.33)
- 1 tsp chili powder ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder ($0.05)
- 3/4 tsp salt ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper (freshly cracked, $0.02)
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1 15 oz. can black beans (drained, $0.92)
- 1 14 oz. can petite diced tomatoes ($1.06*)
- 2 cups kale (chopped, $0.56**)
- 1 Tbsp fresh cilantro (chopped, $0.10)
Instructions
- Wash, peel, and dice the sweet potatoes. Dice the red bell pepper and the onion.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the diced sweet potatoes and cook for 8 minutes. Stir occasionally but not too often so the sweet potatoes have a chance to brown and caramelize. Don’t worry if the sweet potatoes are not fork tender during this time as they will continue to cook in the next step.
- Now add the diced bell pepper, onion, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and smoked paprika to the skillet. Stir together with the sweet potatoes. Cook for an additional 3 minutes.
- Add the black beans, diced tomatoes, and chopped kale to the skillet. Gently stir together and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Feel free to add 1-2 Tbsp of water if the skillet is getting too dry.
- Now all that's left to do is top with some fresh chopped cilantro and enjoy!
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Equipment
- Large 12" skillet
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Sweet Potato Black Bean Skillet Step-by-Step Photos
Prep the veggies: Wash, peel, and dice 1.5 lb. of sweet potatoes (about 2 medium). Also dice 1 red bell pepper and 1 yellow onion.
Sauté the sweet potato: Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add 1.5 Tbsp olive oil. Add the diced sweet potatoes and cook for 8 minutes.
Stir occasionally but not too often so the sweet potatoes have a chance to brown and caramelize. Don’t worry if the sweet potatoes are not fork tender during this time as they will continue to cook in the next step.
Add the other veggies: Now add the red bell pepper and diced onion to the skillet.
Add the seasoning: Then add 1 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper, and 1/4 tsp smoked paprika to the skillet. Stir together with the sweet potatoes. Cook for an additional 3 minutes.
Add the kale: Add 1-15oz. can black beans (drained), 1-14oz. can petite diced tomatoes, and 2 cups chopped kale to the skillet. Stir together and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Feel free to add 1-2 Tbsp of water if the skillet is getting too dry.
Now all that’s left to do is top with some fresh chopped cilantro (optional) and enjoy. That’s it! A quick, simple and filling meal! ;)
Btw, this dish is absolutely perfect for meal prep! Here I decided to add the leftovers to meal prep containers with some cooked brown rice. So easy and sooo good!
Recipe Tips!
- Try to dice the sweet potatoes and vegetables in a uniform size so they cook quickly and evenly in the skillet.
- Don’t worry about the sweet potatoes cooking all the way through in the first step. They will continue to cook with the rest of the ingredients. The goal is for them to not be too mushy and still have some bite to them when they’re done.
- Feel free to mix and match the ingredients based on what you have in your pantry or fridge. Fire-roasted tomatoes would be great and I always have an extra half bag of spinach in my fridge.
Topping & Serving Suggestions
I topped this easy skillet dish with some fresh cilantro and served it with some brown rice. But there are so many other tasty options to choose from. Here are just a few suggestions:
- Fresh avocado
- Salsa or fresh diced tomatoes
- A dollop of sour cream or Lime Crema drizzled on top.
- Creamy Avocado Dressing
- And serve with white or brown rice or even some tortilla chips on the side.
Storing Leftovers
This recipe is perfect if you want to meal prep your lunch for a few days and it stores really well in the fridge. Just store the leftovers, minus any toppings, in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If you are serving it with some rice you can add the rice to the same container (see my picture below in the step-by-step photos). When you’re ready to enjoy, reheat in the microwave until warmed through. Then just top with your favorite toppings and lunch is served!
Yum! I almost forgot it was healthy.
Nice! This was still good on Day 3. I packed it with lime wedges and a side of chipotle aioli.
This was delicious. It took a couple minutes longer to cook than specified. I was able to fit about a cup more kale in, and served it with a fried egg and salsa as breakfast-ish for dinner. This will go into the dinner rotation!
highly recommend, this is delicious. i used my spinach as i had no kale, and i’ll go ahead and say be careful with the amount of kale/spinach… i used a diabolical amount and it took a long time to wilt, so the potatoes were a little mushy lol… but it really is delicious
The final instructions to simmer an additional 2-3 minutes to finish cooking the sweet potatoes is way off. Mine took an extra 16 minutes with the lid on before they were tender and ready to rest to allow the flavors to blend. But the main thing is the recipe has a balanced flavor and is filling.
With a few tweaks this recipe went from decent to fantastic. 1) I used a poblano and a jalapeño pepper instead of the bell peppers for more flavor punch, 2) a hefty squeeze of lime juice added some much needed acidity, and 3) I drizzled the final serving with lime crema (ok it was just sour cream mixed with lime juice, close enough). A crumble of feta, cojita, or queso fresco would also be an excellent add. A fried egg would turn this into a power breakfast skillet. Like some other comments, I think I cooked the potatoes longer than 8 minutes but I went off appearance, not time.
I’ve been trying to cut back on meats to a few times a week, and my husband is definitely a meat and potatoes type of man who has never been big on veggies until recently. He tore this up, but with that said, I used fresh tomatoes and I cooked the kale a little longer so he could chew it better. I also used a red onion and crushed red pepper flakes instead of a yellow onion and chili powder. I don’t care for spicy (whereas my husband seems to have an iron clad stomach) but this was pretty tasty and while spicy, wasn’t too bad.
This was absolutely amazing! I was skeptical about adding the diced tomatoes at the end but all the flavors are great together. I even improvised with canned sweet potatoes. My daughter and I loved it. Great job.
Forgot to mention, I made this in my Le Creuset – highly recommend using a Dutch oven.
Followed the recipe almost exactly as written except I sautéed sweet potatoes for about 2 minutes longer (10 mins) – this was delicious! Some much you could add to this but the recipe as is – so good and highly recommend. What a great way to get some nutrient packed foods into a meal.
Would this freeze well to meal prep? Just reheat on skillet after thawed? How is it as leftovers? I’m looking for meals for family to make mealtime easier through the week.
Yes, you can definitely freeze! If it were me and I was doing it to feed the whole family, I’d probably transfer to a gallon freezer bag once it was cool and reheat in a low pan until defrosted and hot throughout.
This recipe is my jam, my peanut butter and my bread. All my favorite things (kale, sweet potatoes, black beans) in one skillet? Sign me up!
For whatever reason – I found myself overwhelmed when meal prepping this one (maybe i miscalculated and put too many potatoes ?) so I pivoted and made it a “casserole.” Bottom layer potatoes, veggies and beans on top. Sprinkled cheese and seasoning over it. So yes, flavors went well together and a great blend of veggies – but maybe not my cup of tea to prep as is :)
This recipe is a good starting point. I agree with everyone else that 8 minutes isn’t even close to long enough to cook the sweet potatoes. I also: used two cans of beans to increase the protein (but only drained one of the cans), increased the spices, added salt and red pepper flakes, and served it with a scoop of brown rice. With those changes it’s a great meal prep lunch!
This was great. I used fresh spinach because that is what I had. I also added some frozen corn into it. I had fire roasted chiles in my freezer from the farmer’s market last summer so I diced and added one. Served over white rice. I would make this again.