For those busy days when time seems to fly, I rely heavily on salads. Especially a salad like sweet potato and black bean salad. Filling, nutritious salads that look lively and feel like a smile on a plate are the ones I feel pulled towards. I love eating root vegetables and while I do make simple, everyday Indian curries out of those, I also love to use the root veggies in Salads. They are quick to cook , can be cooked ahead of time and the salads can be made ahead of time.
In addition to the root vegetables being really flavorful they are chock full of nutrition. The sweet potato and black bean salad with avocado lemon cilantro dressing is a quick grab and go meal that is also nutrient dense. I usually keep a few sweet potatoes baked or boiled in the fridge and put together a dish using them, especially on busy days. For this salad I add in some creamy deliciousness of an avocado and earthy beans, some smoky cumin and let them have some fun together. Then bring in some lime, cilantro, salt and chillies and you have a lip smacking dish that you would be proud to present to company. Only that you may not always want to share.
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Salad
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes peeled and diced
- 1/4 C red onions diced
- 1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Thai green chilli
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 c cooked black beans
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 Avocado diced
- 1/2 tsp coconut oil
- 1/2 tsp roasted ground cumin
Instructions
- 1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Put sweet potatoes and onions on a large baking sheet, drizzle with 1/2 tsp coconut oil (warmed) , toss to coat and spread out in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Roast until potatoes begin to brown and are tender inside, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven; keep on pan until ready to mix with dressing.
- 2. Put the cilantro, chili and the olive oil in a blender add in lemon juice,some salt and pepper and the cumin. Process until blended.
- 3. Put warm vegetables in a large bowl with beans; toss in the dressing . Add in the avocado just before serving and toss once more.
Comments 11
I have been living off this for lunch lately. It is amazing. Thank you for sharing this with the internet. Lately I have been adding quinoa to it as well, which is a nice little addition.
Author
Oh how wonderful. Quinoa adds so much nutrition and makes things more filling. I will try it soon. Thanks so much for taking time to leave a comment.
I like your idea of keeping cooked sweet potatoes in the fridge for quick meals. The lime dressing sound perfect for lightening up the flavored, too.
Author
It helps to keep some food cooked in the fridge so when things go out of hands, there is always some healthy stuff waiting.
I love salads like this! The avocado is the perfect complement to the sweet potatoes!
This is inspired! I love sweet potatoes, and they combine so well with black beans. I actually make a sweet potato & black bean chili (both a vegetarian style, and one with pork). I never thought to use these ingredients together in a salad, though. But I will, I will. 😉 Thanks so much.
I have all these ingredients! Looks like I’ll be making this soon. Today is curry day as you know 🙂 I too love root vegetables in salads, I like then bulk they add and fill you up nicely. One of our fave go to salads is one with sweet potatoes and pomegranates when they’re around. I can sub an avocado methinks :)\
Gorgeous colours. I hope you in laws are well.
This is what I SHOULD have had for lunch today instead of the not-so-healthy option I grabbed instead. I am going to have to plan ahead and have dishes like your salad around the house so I make better choices. This looks great!
Author
We recently started to make weekly menus and that helps a lot in getting things organized. My fitness trainer had challenged us to eat all meals “in” and making a menu and planning ahead was the only way I could achieve it.
Wishing I had some avocado but thinking I might have to make this without it and punt with the dressing. I have the potatoes and beans and am craving a salad. Unless you’re bringing me some I will have to just make it myself. 🙂
Author
Oh I would love to bring you some, Barb. Let me know when? 😀