Easy Vegan Mexican Sweet Potato Bowl with black beans and rice! Topped with a flavorful creamy cilantro-lime cashew sauce. (Vegan, gluten-free, oil-free)

Rice bowls are amazing. So many different flavors and components you get to scoop up in one yummy spoonful. I’m such a huge fan of Mexican & southwest-style flavors. And since we just welcomed the first day of fall, I invited sweet potatoes to the party! I don’t use them enough, but roasted sweet potatoes and black beans pair so well together. Sweet potatoes are a fun addition to soup, salads, burritos, and rice bowls especially in the autumn and winter months. For some reason it just makes the dish seem a little cozier!

Play around with your favorite toppings. I love tomatoes and corn for some sweetness. Plus avocado chunks for creamy goodness in addition to the cilantro-lime cashew sauce. An awesome thing about rice bowls is they can be a great family meal. Just set everything out on the counter and let everyone assemble their own with the toppings they love. (I find kids love being able to personalize their own!)
PS – come join The Garden Grazer on Instagram and share a photo if you make this! (Also please leave a review & star rating below if you give it a try. Your feedback is greatly appreciated – thank you!)

Mexican Sweet Potato Bowl with Cashew-Lime Cream
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown rice (uncooked)
- 2 sweet potatoes
- 15 oz. can black beans
- 3-4 green onions
- 1 1/2 cups corn (I use frozen, thawed)
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1 avocado
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
- Olive oil for drizzling (optional*)
- Salt to taste
For the cilantro-lime cashew cream:
- 1 cup raw cashews (soaked if needed**)
- 1/2 cup plain almond milk (or water)
- 1/3 cup cilantro
- Juice from 2-3 limes (about 4-6 Tbsp.)
- 1/8 tsp. salt
Instructions
- Cook rice according to package instructions.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425°F (218°C).
- Peel and dice sweet potatoes into about 3/4″ cubes. Place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with a little olive oil*, salt, 1 tsp. cumin, and 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika. Toss to combine.
- Bake for about 35-40 minutes, stirring halfway through.
- While rice and potatoes are cooking, prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Make the cilantro-lime cream: place all ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth.
- Rinse and drain black beans, slice onion, and dice tomatoes and avocado.
- Assemble your bowls (or set out toppings to let others assemble theirs like a burrito bowl bar).
- Place rice on bottom, top with sweet potatoes, black beans, and desired toppings. Drizzle sauce over top.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving (estimate)

Enjoying this Mexican Sweet Potato Bowl? Keep the fiesta going with this Ultimate List of Vegan Mexican Recipes! (Or these easy Mexican Fiesta Baked Potatoes or Black Bean Tacos.)
Loved it! When I come back from work late I could eat a rhino or something…This bowl made me so full!! And it's so healthy 🙂 Will definitly make again!
Great to hear you enjoyed, thank you!
I love your idea of a "rice bowl" bar, where people can add their own ingredients.
My mom loves to cook so it can be very difficult to cook for her because she also wants to offer advice and feedback on how to tweak a recipe. By making it a "rice bowl" bar, she can taste and build her own perfect meal.
I knew I wanted to cook for my parents, but I was so stuck on how to make a main course that I wouldn't spend all night arguing over with my mom. Love this! I'll be sure to post back with how it went.
Absolutely! Hope you enjoy!
Thank you!
Made this for supper tonight and it is FANTASTIC! We set up the ingredients buffet-style to accommodate our pickier eaters, but everyone has gone back for seconds…love this! Thanks for sharing this recipe — I'll be sharing it all over 😀
That’s so great! Thanks for sharing!
Do you have then calories for this?