 Easy southwestern sweet potato and black bean rice bowl! 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/southwestern 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 months. For some reason it just makes the dish seem a little cozier. Play around with your favorite toppings here – I love tomatoes and corn for some sweetness, and avocado for creamy goodness in addition to the cilantro-lime cashew cream. An awesome thing about rice bowls is they’re a great family meal – just set everything out on the counter and let everyone assemble their own to cater to their taste!
Mexican Sweet Potato Bowl with Cashew-Lime Cream
Easy southwestern sweet potato and black bean rice bowl! Topped with a flavorful creamy cilantro-lime cashew sauce. (Vegan, gluten-free, oil-free)
Prep Time:10 minutes
Cook Time:40 minutes
Total Time:50 minutes
Servings:4
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. 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 3 limes
- 1/8 tsp. salt
Instructions
- Cook rice according to package instructions.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425.
- Peel and dice sweet potatoes into about 3/4″ cubes. Place on a lightly sprayed 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
I’ve transitioned to oil-free baking, so I simply place the cubed sweet potatoes on a pan with parchment paper now. Works beautifully!
Nutrition Per Serving (estimate)
Calories: 659kcal | Carbohydrates: 96g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Potassium: 1398mg | Fiber: 17g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 10130IU | Vitamin C: 23.2mg | Calcium: 150mg | Iron: 7.3mg
Did you make this recipe?Tag @thegardengrazer on Instagram and hashtag it #thegardengrazer. I love seeing your recreations!
Keep the fiesta going!
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!
Hi Caroline! Haha, yay! I totally agree, this one always fills me up and satisfies for a while. So glad you enjoyed it too, thanks for the sweet message 🙂
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.
Yay! "Assemble your own" rice bowls are so perfect for family dinners since everyone has their own preferences!! Glad you're going to give it a go! I hope you all love it 🙂
T5hank 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 😀
Hey Annie! YAY so awesome to hear you all enjoyed – I love buffet-style where everyone can build their own! (Makes it seem kinda fun and festive too) 😉 Great idea!! Hope you guys have a lovely weekend! <3
Do you have then calories for this?
Thx <3