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What to Make With Black Beans and Sweet Potatoes: 3 Fast Weeknight Dinners

Black beans and sweet potatoes are a bowl that is still dinner without meat, if you cut the potato small and salt both foods. A big sweet potato roasted whole will blow the half hour. Cubes in a skillet, cubes on a sheet pan, or a mash with beans on top. Cumin keeps it from tasting like dessert. Got more in the fridge? Snap a photo and we'll pick dinner for you. Free.

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Quick picks: 3 dinners with black beans and sweet potatoes in 30 minutes or less

Fastest option: a 20-minute dinner

20 min

Mashed sweet potato and beans

Total time, start to plate · One pot · serves 4 · Kid-friendly

Sweet potato boiled and mashed, with seasoned black beans spooned on top.

Ingredients

  • 1 large sweet potato
  • 1 can black beans
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 lime

Steps

  1. Dice the sweet potato and boil it in salted water until soft, about 10 minutes.
  2. Drain and mash it with a pinch more salt.
  3. In the same pot, warm the rinsed black beans with cumin.
  4. Spoon beans over the mash and add lime. It should taste savory, not like a sweet side.

Keeps: Fridge for 3 days.

One-pan or sheet-pan option

30 min

Sheet-pan sweet potatoes and black beans

Total time, start to plate · One sheet pan · serves 4 · Kid-friendly

Sweet potato cubes roast, then black beans warm on the hot pan.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb sweet potatoes
  • 1 can black beans
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp chili powder

Steps

  1. Heat the oven to 425°F. Toss sweet potato cubes with oil and salt.
  2. Roast until tender and brown at the edges, about 20 minutes.
  3. Scatter the rinsed black beans and chili powder over the pan.
  4. Return it for 5 minutes, just to heat the beans. Taste both together.

Keeps: Fridge for 3 days.

The other dinner

25 min

Sweet potato and black bean skillet

Total time, start to plate · One skillet · serves 4 · Kid-friendly

Small sweet potato cubes cook covered, then black beans and cumin warm through.

Ingredients

  • 1 large sweet potato
  • 1 can black beans
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp oil

Steps

  1. Dice the sweet potato small. Fry it in oil with salt, covered, until a cube is tender.
  2. Uncover and let the edges brown.
  3. Add the rinsed black beans and cumin. Warm them.
  4. Taste. The sweet potato will taste like candy until the salt and cumin catch up.

Keeps: Fridge for 3 days.

Make it with leftovers

Roasted sweet potato cubes warm with the beans in the skillet. Canned beans are already cooked. The sheet pan wants raw cubes. Mashed leftover sweet potato is the top card's head start. Don't recrisp mash. Warm it.

More dinners from leftovers

Pantry staples you'll need

  • Oil
  • Salt
  • Cumin
  • Chili powder
  • Lime

No sweet potatoes: white potatoes in the same cubes, less sweet. No beans: the sweet potato still needs a protein. Eggs on top work. See eggs and potatoes for the method, not the flavor.

When there is nothing in the fridge

Picky-eater and healthy tweaks

Sweet potato cubes with salt, beans on the side, chili powder nowhere. The sweetness helps. Cheese on the mash is a fair bridge.

Leave the skin on if it is thin. You don't need a brown-sugar glaze. Lime and salt make it dinner. A spoon of oil is enough to brown the cubes.

More dinners in under 30 minutes

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Related dinners

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Questions

What can I make with black beans and sweet potato in 20 minutes?

Mashed sweet potato and beans takes 20 minutes, start to plate. Sweet potato boiled and mashed, with seasoned black beans spooned on top.

What's the easiest dinner with black beans and sweet potato?

Sweet potato and black bean skillet is the low-fuss one: one skillet, 25 minutes. Small sweet potato cubes cook covered, then black beans and cumin warm through.

Can I make this with leftover or cooked black beans?

Roasted sweet potato cubes warm with the beans in the skillet. Canned beans are already cooked. The sheet pan wants raw cubes. Mashed leftover sweet potato is the top card's head start. Don't recrisp mash. Warm it.

What else can I add to black beans and sweet potato for a full meal?

The cards already use sweet potato, black beans, cumin. A piece of fruit or a handful of frozen vegetables is enough if you want more on the plate. Don't make a second shopping trip.

Is black beans and sweet potato a healthy dinner?

Leave the skin on if it is thin. You don't need a brown-sugar glaze. Lime and salt make it dinner. A spoon of oil is enough to brown the cubes.

How do I make black beans and sweet potato kid-friendly?

Sweet potato cubes with salt, beans on the side, chili powder nowhere. The sweetness helps. Cheese on the mash is a fair bridge.

Can I make black beans and sweet potato in one pan or a sheet pan?

Sheet-pan sweet potatoes and black beans uses one sheet pan and takes 30 minutes. Sweet potato cubes roast, then black beans warm on the hot pan.

What if I don't have sweet potato?

No sweet potatoes: white potatoes in the same cubes, less sweet. No beans: the sweet potato still needs a protein. Eggs on top work. See eggs and potatoes for the method, not the flavor.