This Black Bean and Sweet Potato Stew is a total comfort food on a cold winter’s day. It is super easy to make and delicious.
We love focusing on seasonal food and find that winter is the perfect time for heartier and warming foods like beans and root vegetables. In this recipe for Black Bean and Sweet Potato Stew, we used canned beans for convenience (honestly we forgot to soak the dry beans the night before…), but you can use fresh cooked beans as well. Just remember to prepare them in advance!
Beans are an excellent source of plant based protein and are rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. They help to stabalize blood sugar, as well as lower blood pressure and cholesterol. Beans are also fibre rich and are excellent for feeding the beneficial bacteria in our gut. They have also been shown to help prevent cancers such as colon cancer, and are anti-inflammatory. To read more about this superfood, see our blog post on The Health Benefits of Beans.
This stew is so easy to throw together and uses staples that we always have on hand in our kitchen. This includes onions, garlic, sweet potatoes, beans and canned coconut milk. We’ve got to say that the coconut milk makes this dish creamy and decadent. It’s proof that plant based meals do not have to be complicated! You can enjoy this on it’s own or with some brown rice and some steamed greens for extra nourishment.
This stew has become a staple in our house and is family friendly. We always make extra to have on hand for lunch the next day or another dinner during the week. Like all soups and stews, the flavour gets even better after a day.
We add some hot sauce to the stew to enhance the flavour and to add a little zing. We prefer to use a milder hot sauce such as one made with jalapeños so that we can enjoy the flavour without any pain. But everyone’s tolerance for hot sauce is different so you can add whatever hot sauce you prefer. You can also top the dish with a squeeze of lime and some fresh cilantro for a more refreshing taste.
If you’re looking for some more delicious comfort foods, try our Hearty Vegetable Shepherd’s Pie, Moroccan Chickpea Stew, Coconut Lentil Curry, One Pot Lentil Bolognese, or this Simple Weeknight Marinara Sauce.
If you try this Black Bean and Sweet Potato Stew, please do tell us about it. Your feedback helps us the whole community. Leave a comment and a rating and don’t forget to tag us @plantedandpicked on Instagram and hashtag it #plantedandpicked. Share great food with friends!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 1 cup red onion, diced (about 1 medium onion)
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 3 cups sweet potatoes, large dice (about 2 medium sweet potatoes)
- 2 398 ml cans black beans, drained and rinsed (3 cups cooked)
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 400 ml can full fat coconut milk
- ½ cup vegetable broth (or filtered water)
- 1 tbsp hot sauce (or to taste) We used Jalapeño hot sauce
Instructions
- Start by prepping all the vegetables. Dice the onion and peel and mince the garlic. Peel and chop the sweet potatoes into medium sized chunks.
- Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add the avocado oil to warm.
- When the oil is warm, add the onion and garlic along with the sea salt. Sauté for about 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Onions should be soft and slightly brown.
- While the onions are cooking, drain and rinse the black beans in a colander. Open the can of coconut milk.
- Measure the spices into a small bowl.
- When the onions are ready, add the sweet potatoes, beans and spices and mix to combine. Cook for about a minute for the spices to start to release some of their flavour.
- Add in the coconut milk, vegetable broth and hot sauce. We used a milder jalapeño hot sauce, which added a nice flavour without being overly spicy.
- Bring the stew to a low simmer. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- This stew is nice paired with some brown rice or a piece of homemade sourdough or crusty bread. It is even more flavourful left over for lunch the next day.
Hands down one of the best stews I’ve ever had! Served it with cornbread. There were no leftovers- everyone went back for seconds.
Thank you so much!
This is a great recipe! I made it for myself and it lasted me a week, which is exactly what I wanted. It has good flavor, and a bowl fills you up without making you uncomfortable. I added chicken and corn, and just increased the amount of vegetable stock by about a 1/4 cup to ensure there was enough liquid.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it. We love to have healthy nutritious left-overs too!
Really want to try this although I’m not a fan of coconut milk….can you taste the coconut once it’s cooked ? Thanks
While I would say that the coconut milk is not a strong flavour, I am aware that others have used cashew cream, made from scratch. There are also oat cream products available, depending on where you are. I hope that one of these alternatives works for you. Regards, Scott
I will use cashew cream as I do not do coconut. Cup of no salt cashews let soat in boiling water for 20 minuets I dicard the water and add almond milk. My 40 blender make a nice smooth cream.
That’s a perfect substitute, John!
The flavor is delicious. I added corn kernels and making a pork loin and salad for dinner tonight. I also substituted the Coconut milk for almond milk we have another favorite to add to our meal times!
We’re so glad you enjoyed the stew, we’ll never argue against adding more veg!
Hi. My daughter can’t eat coconut milk. Anything else I could use? Thanks!
Hello Anna, thanks for the question. You could certainly use any plant based milk as an alternative. We would only suggest that you may find that, if the stew is not thick enough, mixing some arrowroot starch or cornstarch with the broth before adding it to the stew will thicken it up nicely.
Does this freeze well?
We have not tried freezing this stew, but would expect it to be fine. Just let it thaw completely before reheating to keep the sweet potatoes intact. Good luck!
I made this for my mother-in-law’s friend who is recovering from cancer treatment. I was looking for something high fiber, and loaded with vitamin A and anti-inflammatory rich ingredients. She’s not afraid of spice so I used a scotch bonnet pepper sauce that added a nice kick. I will be making this recipe over and over! Thank you so much for something so simple and good for the body & soul!
My only deviance from the original was I snuck in some turmeric and added carrots, green pepper and extra beans (because yum). Love how versatile this can be!
Sandra and I are so pleased that you found a recipe that’s suitable. Great additions with the turmeric and carrots. I even put turmeric in my oatmeal. It’s great to sneak it in wherever you can. Stews are super versatile as you pointed out.
I used butternut squash instead of sweet potatoes because that is what I had. This was soooo good! One of my new favorite soups!
Thank you so much Mary, squash is a great substitution with similar texture and sweetness. Recipes are always just guides for us to play with. We really appreciate your feedback!
Has anyone calculated the calories for this recipe? Thanks!
Hello Anna, thanks for getting in touch. We have added the nutrition information to this recipe. We hope this helps. Scott.
I have made this twice and passed on the recipe. Real yummy! I do not add the hot sauce I let my husband add that in his bowl!! LOL! This recipe is a keeper. Thanks!!
Thank you so much Vicki. Hot sauce is certainly an option and can be added afterwards by all interested parties!
Really good! Made this last night while the snow came down. I added diced red peppers that needed to be used, went into the onion mix. I only had one can of black beams but the stew really needed another so I stirred in some cannellini and it worked. This one is a keeper.
Thank you so much Kathy, we had about a foot of snow one day this week and should have had a pot of this on the stove too!
This looks delish and I can’t wait to try it. How long would this be good in the fridge for? I like to cook up a batch of soup or stew on Sundays and have for lunch for the entire week.
Thank you so much, we do the same. It’s great to have homemade food ready to go when you have less time to prepare. We typically like to eat soups and stews over five days. However, you can certainly freeze a portion and take it out later on through the week. We would love it if you’d leave a rating and let us know how you liked it once you try it!
I love black beens which l cook in the instant pot. I prefer black dried black beans.
I will try this recepe.
However could you suggest an alternative to full fat coconut milk resulting in the same thickness and taste.
I don’t want high cholesterol cocunet milk. I don’t drinkcows milk..
Would home made cashew milk be a good alternative!.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
[email protected].
Please advice..
Hello Irene, sorry for the delay in responding. While we haven’t tried it ourselves with this recipe, homemade cashew milk would certainly be a great alternative, as you can reduce the amount of liquid used to blend the cashews in order to have a little thicker consistency.
I cannot have paprika nor cili powder. Can you make this using just cumin?
Thank you for your question. The spices suggested in the recipe provide a specific flavour profile. However, you can always change the spices to be more in line with what you enjoy or are allowed to have. You can bump up the cumin a little and possibly add another spice such as coriander? Are there specific spices that you normally use in cooking?
We loved this simplicity of the recipe, the great flavors, and nutritional value. This one is a keeper. For hot sauce, we added PuckerButt’s Carolina Reaper-Racha.
Now that sounds like a great hot sauce. Thank you Sherry for the great review 💚
I just made this for the first time and it was really amazing! The recipe is very straightforward. I will definitely make this again!
We are so glad you liked it! Thank you for leaving a comment.
I just made this recipe tonight and it was delicious! Incredibly easy to make too. I will definitely be making this again! I used sriracha as my hot sauce to taste and it added a great warmness to the dish.
Thank you Gerica for the wonderful review! We’re so glad you enjoyed it ☺️
Fantastic! The sweetness of the sweet potatoes and the cumin are so yummy. It is on the sweet side (even with non-sweetened coconut milk). Definitely add some lime or cilantro to cut the sweet. This a going to be a repeat for me for a long time. Thank you!
Thank you Megan! We appreciate your feedback. We’ll certainly try the lime juice or cilantro as you’ve suggested, next time we make it.
I made this last night and it was fantastic. I added some chopped celery with the chopped onion at the beginning because I had some that needed to be used. I also added some chopped spinach at the end. I usually throw spinach into most everything just for some added nutrition.
I served it over a mix of brown rice and quinoa.
Thank you for this recipe. 10 out of 10, for sure.
I also just had some leftovers for lunch today. 😋😋
I will be trying your other vegan yummies!
Thanks for the glowing review Amanda. Adding the spinach is a fantastic idea. We always have a bin of it in the fridge and a good curry or stew is always a good place to put it if it’s about to expire! Leftovers are always good right?! More vegan goodness coming this weekend!
Made this for the for the time today. Thought it was excellent. Use 3/4 tsp regular paprika and added a 1/4 tsp smoked paprika which worked well. Will definitely make again.
Hi Beth, we’re so glad you liked it and thanks for the thumbs up. This recipe is definitely a comfort food for us and we’re so happy it’s made it to your make-it-again list!
I really enjoyed this recipe especially since It combines two of my favorite foods – sweet potatoes and beans. I usually make my beans with easy beansy spice mix and then put them on top of a sweet potato for breakfast. This recipe is a great alternative. One question for you. Sometimes I forget to pre soak my beans. I have an instapot and the insert said to cook on high for 6 minutes. But it seemed like the beans were over cooked afterwards. Any tips or should I stick with pre soaking or the hot water method?
Hi Pete, thank you for your comment and question. We prefer to always soak beans so that they are easier to digest and assimilate nutrients and also so that they cook faster, and in our experience, softer. Beans have naturally occurring Lectins which are proteins that are found in all plants that bind to carbohydrates. Lectins are a protective measure that helps the plant thrive and survive in nature. The same characteristics that protect them in nature can lead to digestive discomfort if consumed by humans – unless they are soaked and/or cooked properly. So to ensure that they are easy to digest and to assimilate all the beneficial nutrients from them, we recommend soaking first and then cooking.
This is delicious! I cooked my beans from dried, and used spicy harissa paste for heat. I will definitely make it again, because I usually have all of the ingredients on hand – and it’s super easy to prepare!!
We’re so happy you liked it Pixie. Great that you prepped your beens from dry!
So good!!! This recipe works perfectly in the Instant Pot as is! I did 10 minutes and a natural pressure release. So great with the brown rice as recommended. Will definitely be making this again!!
Thank you for your comment! That is good to know as we have had questions about how to do this in an Instant Pot.
We found your recipe and blog shared on FB, and I’m so happy to now be a subscriber! This turned out so well last night, when temps were hovering around -5 degrees! We had almost all ingredients besides cumin, and had a sweet onion instead of red, but the flavor was amazing and the combo of black beans and sweet potatoes was perfect on a cold night. Served it over a wild rice mixture with roasted broccoli on the side. This cooks easily and quickly on the stove. So happy we have leftovers. Highly recommend!
Thank you so much Mary, I’m Scott and while I do all of the photography and tech and dabble in the recipes, Sandra created this wonderful stew and we’re so pleased that the recipe turned out so well for you. It went viral on us that last few days, which is something we have never experienced, so there’s lots of excitement here! I love the sound of the wild rice, as it’s so wonderfully earthy and definitely would go well with the flavours in the stew. Thank you also for the subscription. We look forward to seeing you around!
These recipes look wonderful. I would like to see the nutritional facts – calories, fat, sodium carbs, protein, etc.
Thank you so much for the compliment, Judy. We’ve have had this request a few times recently and we’re working on a method to effectively include the nutritional information for each of our recipes. Have a great week!
I second the motion for nutrional info!
We’re definitely on it, we’ll just need a bit of time to get it all figured out 🙂
Do you have directions for if using a crock pot ?
Hello Meredith, we haven’t used a crock pot to prepare this stew as it cooks up quite quickly conventionally. While we aren’t able to provide you with a tested method, we should suggest that you sauté the aromatics before placing them in the crock pot to get the best flavour. We’d love to have your feedback in the comments if you use the crock pot. Thanks for your question!
What size can of coconut milk please?
Hi Brendan! Sorry about that, it’s a 400 ml or 14oz can of coconut milk. Enjoy!
Just cooking this with the recommended ingredients. I was wondering though if anyone has tried adding some veggies, ie. yellow or green peppers, etc.? Will cook basmati rice to go along this tasty smelling stew.
We’ll never say not to more veg! Let us know how you like it!
Hi Elvira! I made this the other night and added a few leaves of chopped kale in the last 10 or so minutes of cooking and it worked great!
What can I use instead of Coconut Milk?
Hi Vic, we have suggested to others to substitute additional veg broth, but not the same amount. We would say that the coconut milk is part of the flavour and makes the stew creamy. While you can substitute an alternative plant milk, the flavour may not be as good. Good luck!
Do I have to use coconut milk? A member of the family is allergic reaction to it.
While it’s part of the flavour and does provide part of the creaminess, you could substitute more veg broth, but not as much; otherwise it will be more soupy. We’d love to hear how it turned out for you so that we can let other’s know.
Can you use an instant pot to cook this?
You could certainly use an Instant Pot, but you would want to cut back on the liquid somewhat. We haven’t cooked it this way because it cooks so quickly without it. Let us know how it works out, though – we’d love your feedback so that we can let others know. Thanks!
Precooked sweet potato? Thanks.
No need to pre-cook at all, sweet potato cooks up pretty quickly. I you asking whether you could use pre-cooked sweet potato, we’d have to say no, as it would become overcooked based on the recipe! If you have some sweet potato cooked already, it would go great in a buddha bowl!
Came here because someone on my FB page linked your recipe. I must try this and yes this is just what’s needed on these cold winter days, subscribed! 💚👍
Thank you so much Colin, Welcome! Cozy all-in-one-bowl dinners are great for the cool weather, right?!
Will try soon. Happy to have most of ingredients on hand. Looks delicious and nutritious. Thank you..
Fabulous! Don’t you love it when you find a recipe and don’t have to make a trip to the grocer!
Looks yummy. Can’t wait to try. Do you know the nutrition values, especially calories and sodium count?
Thank you Linda. We hope you love it. We haven’t added the nutritional information to our site to date, but based on the comments on this post, we’re looking into how to effectively include it. Thank you for the feedback.
Sounds delicious. Going to try this. Always looking for healthy recipes.
That’s fantastic Zulma. We’re always looking to make “tastes good” also be “go for you”!
Will definitely make this again!
Thank you so much for the feedback Tamara. We appreciate the positive review, indeed!