These sweet potato black bean buddha bowls are made with crispy roasted chipotle sweet potatoes, brown rice, black beans, avocado, and a tahini dressing. It's an easy plant-based meal that is gluten-free and delicious!
Buddha bowls and roasted veggie nourish bowls are one of my favorite easy meals to make. Not only are they filled with nutritious veggies, but they are so flexible (you can use whatever you have on hand)!
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Over the years I've made many variations of this buddha bowl recipe, but recently landed on (what I believe) is the most delicious rendition yet! These sweet potato black bean buddha bowls are delicious for either lunch or dinner, and can be made meal-prep friendly by prepping the sweet potatoes, rice and black beans ahead of time.
Loaded with smoky flavor from the chipotle roasted sweet potatoes, this is a fun twist on a classic buddha bowl recipe! And, I've got a special trick to share with you on how to prepare these sweet potatoes in order to make them extra crisp on the outside (but tender on the inside). If you've tried my very best crispy oven fries - then you might be able to guess this trick!
🥗 Ingredients
Sweet potato - I used one large sweet potato, diced into 1-inch thick cubes.
Black beans - for some plant-based protein. For this recipe, we will sauté with some spices for extra flavor.
Rice - I like to use short grain brown rice, as it has such a nice texture and also contains some protein
Avocado - creamy ripe avocado adds the most delicious texture and flavour
Leafy greens - use kale, spinach, or a mix of leafy greens (like I did for these photos). The mix I used is called "spicy mix", and it comes in my CSA box that I get from the farmers market during the summertime. When I don't have this on hand, I like to use massaged kale.
Tahini - Tahini is sesame seed paste. I have found that some brands are more bitter-tasting than others. I only buy this brand, and it's so delicious (not bitter at all).
Sesame seeds - For extra sesame flavour, you can omit if you don't like them.
Hemp seeds - contain healthy fats and plant-based protein. I like to top these buddha bowls with hemp seeds, but they are totally optional!
See the recipe card for the full ingredients list and measurements.
🔪 Step by Step Directions
Prepare the sweet potatoes:
- Using a medium-size pot, bring ~ 1.5 - 2 litres of water to a rolling boil. Add in the apple cider vinegar. Place cubed sweet potatoes in the boiling water, then boil for 8 – 10 minutes until just fork tender. Strain, then spread on a parchment-lined baking sheet and let cool slightly.
- Preheat oven to 375ºF. Drizzle the boiled sweet potatoes with avocado oil, chipotle chili powder, paprika, and sea salt. Toss, then arrange the sweet potatoes to lay flat on the pan.
- Roast at 375ºF for 30 minutes. To make sure they are crispy on all sides, pull them out half way through roasting and flip. Roast until crispy and golden.
Cook the rice - In a medium pot, melt coconut oil. Toast the brown rice in the coconut oil for 1-2 minutes on medium heat. Add water, and bring to a boil. Turn the burner down to a low simmer, and cook until rice is light and fluffy. Brown rice takes longer to cook, so it will be 30-35 minutes (refer to the package directions on your rice for specific instructions). Turn the burner off, and let sit with the lid on to rest.
Sauté black beans - Drain and rinse the black beans. Add to a saucepan, and sauté on medium heat with ~1 tablespoon of avocado oil, cumin, garlic powder, sea salt, and pepper. Cook until warmed through.
Prepare the dressing - In a jar combine the tahini, soy sauce, lemon, and water. Shake until well combined.
Assemble - To assemble the bowls, add a scoop each of the: rice, black beans, and chipotle roasted sweet potatoes. Add a handful of leafy greens, sliced avocado and optional hemp hearts, and sesame seeds. Top with tahini dressing, and enjoy!
📖 Variations
There are so many variations and swaps you could make for this recipe! Here are some swaps you could use:
- Swap the roasted sweet potato for roasted butternut squash, cauliflower, or broccoli.
- Swap the black beans for chickpeas
- Swap the short grain brown rice for wild rice, or long grain brown rice
Buddha Bowl FAQ
No, you do not. But, I find that boiling the potatoes with vinegar makes the roasting process quicker (they are already cooked when going into the oven) AND crispier. You won't taste the apple cider vinegar.
You can store the ingredients for these buddha bowls in the fridge in separate airtight containers for up to 4 days.
Buddha bowl typically refers to a vegetarian or vegan bowl that contains whole grains, beans, veggies, and a dressing.
I like to serve while the rice, beans, and sweet potato are hot! The tahini dressing mixes in especially well when the ingredients are warm. However, you can definitely serve it cold if you prefer it that way.
Storage
There are two ways that you can store these sweet potato buddha bowls! Choose what works best for you:
Store ingredients separately - store the rice, beans, sweet potatoes, dressing, and prepared veggies in separate air-tight containers in the fridge. To serve, reheat the rice, beans, and sweet potato, and assemble your buddha bowls.
Assemble meal prep bowls - assemble all the ingredients in air-tight meal prep containers. Store dressing separately. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Enjoy warm or cold, and drizzle with dressing before serving.
Please tag me @nourishmintkitchen and share on your IG stories if you make this recipe, I would love to see your creations!
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Sweet Potato Black Bean Buddha Bowl
Ingredients
Brown Rice
- 1 cup uncooked short grain brown rice
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
Chipotle Rosated Sweet Potatoes
- 1 large sweet potato, roughly 4 cups cut into 1 inch thick cubes
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2-3 tablespoons avocado oil
- 1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- sea salt
- pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
Black Beans
- 1 can black beans (15 oz)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
Tahini Dressing
- 4 tablespoons tahini
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon water
Veggies
- 1 avocado sliced
- 4 cups leafy greens kale, spinach, or a mix
Toppings
- hemp seeds
- sesame seeds
Instructions
Sweet Potatoes
- Boil sweet potatoes - Using a medium-size pot, bring ~ 1.5 - 2 litres of water to a rolling boil. Add in the apple cider vinegar. Place cubed sweet potatoes in the boiling water, then boil for 8 – 10 minutes until just fork tender. Strain, then spread on a parchment-lined baking sheet and let cool slightly.
- Roast sweet potatoes - Preheat oven to 375ºF. Drizzle the boiled sweet potatoes with avocado oil, chipotle chili powder, paprika, and sea salt. Toss, then arrange the sweet potatoes to lay flat on the pan.Roast at 375ºF for 30 minutes. To make sure they are crispy on all sides, pull them out half way through roasting and flip. Roast until crispy and golden.
Brown Rice
- While the potatoes are roasting. In a medium pot, melt coconut oil. Toast the brown rice in the coconut oil for 1-2 minutes on medium heat. Add water, and bring to a boil. Turn the burner down to a low simmer, and cook until rice is light and fluffy. Brown rice takes longer to cook, so it will be 30-35 minutes (refer to the package directions on your rice for specific instructions). Turn the burner off, and let sit with the lid on to rest.
Sauté Black Beans
- Drain and rinse the black beans. Add to a saucepan, and sauté on medium heat with ~1 tablespoon of avocado oil, cumin, garlic powder, sea salt, and pepper. Cook until warmed through.
Prepare Dressing
- In a jar combine the tahini, soy sauce, lemon, and water. Shake until well combined.
Assemble Buddha Bowls
- To assemble the bowls, add a scoop each of the: rice, black beans, and chipotle roasted sweet potatoes. Add a handful of leafy greens, sliced avocado and optional hemp hearts, and sesame seeds. Top with tahini dressing, and enjoy!
Niamh says
These bowls are so delicious! There are a lot of steps, and a lot of washing up but it's 100% worth it. I made extra washing up when I decided to make the dressing in my blender instead of just shaking it to make it smoother. I couldn't get tahini in the store so I subbed it with almond butter and that was really good too! Also did coconut aminos instead of soy sauce to make it gluten-free. Will definitely be making this again!
Jasmine Ouellette says
Hi Niamh, thank you for your kind words! I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed these buddha bowls as much as we did! You may be able to find tahini in the international aisle at your grocery store? I know it is hard to find sometimes! Thanks so much for your 5 star review. 🙂