Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

healthy mexican sweet potato and black bean enchiladas

Sweet potatoes and black beans are two of my favorite foods, though the thought of combining the two had me wondering.  I like my sweet potatoes plain and my black beans spicy…would they be good together?   When I came across a recipe for Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas, they looked so good, I had to to give it a try.  And I’m so glad!  Whoever decided to put these two flavors together in a tasty Mexican-inspired dish is pure genius.  The sweetness and spicy pair beautifully in this dish, and the queso fresco rounds everything out quite nicely.

I like that you can make the sauce and/or filling ahead of time, since they are the most labor intensive (by labor, I mean time to stand over the stove…they’re really quite easy).  Assembly is a cinch, and then bake until warmed throughout and the cheese is all bubbly.  This recipe makes a lot, which is a very good thing ~ leftovers heat up perfectly!

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas
 
Yields: 8 servings
Ingredients
Sauce:
  • 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
  • 1⅓ cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon chipotle chile powder
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
Filling:
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced (1 cup)
  • 1½ pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and diced (3 cups)
  • 1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
  • 16 ounces prepared medium salsa
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, drained and minced
  • ½ cup vegetable broth (or water)
  • 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 10 ounce round queso fresco, divided
  • Cooking spray
Enchiladas:
  • Cooking spray for baking dish
  • 16 16-inch corn tortillas warmed
  • 2 limes, cut into wedges
  • 1 avocado sliced (optional)
  • Sour cream (optional)
  • Cilantro (optional)
Instructions
  1. Make sauce: Whisk all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Simmer until slightly thickened (about 3 to 4 minutes) and then remove from heat.
  2. Make filling: In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute until softened (about 5 minutes).
  3. Add sweet potatoes, tomatoes, salsa, garlic, chipotle chile, and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are soft.
  4. Mash mixture with a potato masher until combined. Add black beans and cinnamon and cook for 5 minutes, or until black beans are heated throughout. Stir in 6 ounces of queso fresco and remove from heat.
  5. Assemble and bake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray. Spread ½ cup sauce in bottom of dish. Fill warmed tortillas with filling (about ⅓ cup), roll and pack close together, seam-side down in baking dish. Top with remaining sauce and queso fresco. Bake 15 minutes.
  6. Broil: Adjust oven to broil and broil enchiladas for 5 minutes, or until cheese is browned and bubbly. Let sit for 10 minutes and then serve.

Adapted from Vegetarian Times

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Comments

  1. I love the sweet potato/black bean combination – it’s great in veggie burger form as well!

  2. Yum! I’ve gotta try these!

  3. I don’t see the sweet potatoes listed in the filling ingredients, so can you post the amount and are they diced, precooked?

  4. Oh wow – these look decadent and I just love the use of sweet potatoes 🙂

  5. I love enchiladas and this sounds wonderful. Great combination of flavors and with sweet potatoes. Gotta make this one. Thanks!

  6. Oooh! What a great combination of flavors!! I’ll have to give these a try!

  7. I haven’t had enchiladas in forever! They sound so good though!

  8. What a great combination. I am always looking for recipes with sweet potatoes And putting them in enchiladas is a great idea!

  9. Such creative flavors! I definitely want to try this flavor combo!

  10. These sounds really interesting. I’m not a big sweet potato fan but my mother loves them. If I cut back on the spices I think this will be a great recipe to make when she comes to visit!

  11. These are lovely!

  12. I often make a sweet potato and black bean cold salad with corn and avocado. It’s a great summer time dish. This recipe sounds like a wonderful combination and I’m definitely going to try it.

  13. i made sweet potato and black bean tacos before that were really tasty but I never thought about making them into enchiladas! i even have all the ingredients at home right now- thanks for the dinner idea! and congrats on top 9 🙂

  14. Oooo love this recipe! I’ve never thought to combine black beans and sweet potatoes like this? Looks awesome!

  15. Congratulations on your foodbuzz top 9, today!

  16. Wow ! Looks Spicy And Tasty . Sure Gonna to try this 🙂

  17. Congratulations on Top9! Your enchiladas dish looks ah-mazing! Love the colors and I bet it is delicious!

  18. Yum! 3 of our favourite things – Enchiladas, sweet potatoes and black beans! THanks for the great recipe!

  19. I bookmarked this recipe months ago and finally got around to making them last night. They were delicious! My husband has already requested I make them again very soon.

  20. These look wonderful!!

  21. I made this on new years day (subbed 4 oz dice chiles instead of the chipotle pepper) and it was fantastic! Meat loving hubby likes it too so I am glad to add more vegetarian food to our recipe collection!

  22. Margaret Smith says: