Roasted Sweet Potato and Black Bean Quesadillas are the best sweet potato quesadillas you’ll ever taste. So easy to make and most importantly incredibly delicious and filling!
Sweet Potato Quesadillas
To be honest with you, it was only until I stood back (cheese all over my face) and stared at the crumbs on my plate, when I came to the realisation that there was zero meat involved in this dish. In fact, as I was developing this recipe it never even crossed my mind to add any. Traditional quesadillas call for chicken, sometimes steak. But for me, the heartiness from the sweet potato was everything these quesadillas called for.
I mean if you really think about it, this recipe is hardly a surprising appearance on my blog. Carbs between carbs wrapped in melted cheese? C’mon, we all saw this coming 🤣
Sweet Potato and Black Beans
Black beans and sweet potato are a marriage made in heaven. Not only because you’re essentially eating carbs with carbs, but the way they take on flavour and add such a gorgeous texture to these quesadillas is almost too much to bare sometimes. As a result, you get these big, bold and hearty quesadillas which in all honesty are to die for.
How to make Sweet Potato Quesadillas
The absolute key to making perfect sweet potato quesadillas is roasting the potato. You know, there are a fair few recipes out there that boil the sweet potato, or simply roast it whole and scoop out the centre. I have actually tried both of these, but both fell short. Apart from obviously cooking the potato, roasting serves two important functions:
- Flavour – You get a beautiful caramelised casing to the potato with far more developed flavours from the spices, something unfortunately boiling can’t compete with.
- Texture – Roasting the sweet potatoes offers a firmer and slightly crunchier texture, which works PERFECTLY in the centre of a quesadilla. Boiling offers a much weaker texture than roasting, for the pure reason that you’re adding water to the potatoes, causing them to fall soggy in the centre.
What spice to use?
- Smoked Paprika
- Cumin
- Ground Coriander
- Cayenne Pepper
Keep it simple! Hopefully all of the above should be knocking about in your cupboards.
Pan fried vs baked
Since the potatoes have already been baked, you’ll want to pan fry these quesadillas. Not only will this reduce time, but I find that baking them dries the quesadillas out too much.
To pan fry the quesadillas: Just lightly smash the roasted potato, spread over an oiled tortilla, top with black beans, cheese and lime juice, finish with another tortilla and fry both sides!
Tips for Sweet Potato Quesadillas
1. Cheese
I recommend a nice strong cheddar, or something with a good punch of flavour. You want something to counteract the sweetness of the potato. Monterey Jack is also a popular choice.
2. Lightly Smash
Because you’ve got that nice little crunch from roasting in the oven, it’s important to not mash the sweet potatoes to oblivion, else you’ll lose that gorgeous texture the oven worked so hard to get. My experience in life has taught me not to annoy the oven, it does good things for you.
3. Lime Juice
The lime juice is actually quite an important ingredient in this recipe. You’ve got the sweet vibes from the potato, the saltiness from the cheese and the heat from the spices. Therefore I find a gentle squeeze of lime juice not only helps balance everything out, but also compliments the flavours of the dish in general.
Ugh, just look at that centre!
*drools uncontrollably*
How to serve Quesadillas
One thing to note is these quesadillas are deceivingly filling.
Originally I had offered them as a serving between two, forgetting that not everyone has 5 stomachs like me. So feel free to split between 4, two hearty slices of these carb frenzy sweet potato quesadillas, especially with a few extra sides, will definitely get the party going. Because there’s only so much carbs with carbs squashed between carbs someone can take.
Lol just kidding there’s literally no limit.
Quesadilla Toppings
What to serve with Sweet Potato Quesadillas?
My favourite options are Crispy Baked Jalapeño Poppers and Crispy Baked Avocado Fries, but do check out my Quesadilla Sides Dish and Main Sides for more inspo!
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for these sweet potato quesadillas shall we?!
How to make Roasted Sweet Potato and Black Bean Quesadillas (Full Recipe & Video)
Roasted Sweet Potato and Black Bean Quesadillas
Equipment:
- Large Frying Pan or Griddle Pan
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Baking Dish
- Potato Masher
- Sieve/Colander (to drain beans)
- Cheese Grater
- Brush (for oil)
Ingredients (check list):
Quesadillas
- 2 Large Sweet Potatoes, peeled and sliced into chunks
- 4 White Flour Tortilla Wraps
- 1 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 1 tsp Cumin
- 1/2 tsp Ground Coriander
- 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper (or to preference)
- 1/2 can of Black Beans, drained & rinsed
- 2 large handfuls of Cheddar, grated
- 1/2 Lime, juice only
- Salt & Black Pepper, to taste
- Olive Oil, as needed
Instructions:
- Place your potatoes in a suitably sized oven dish and give them a good drizzle of Oil. Add in 1 tsp Smoked Paprika and Cumin, 1/2 tsp Ground Coriander, 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper and a hefty pinch of Salt & Pepper. Give them a mix to completely coat them. Pop in the oven at 200C/390F for a good 25-30mins or until softened with a caramelized outing (timings will depend on the size of your potatoes, so just be vigilant).
- When the dish has cooled down a little, grab a potato masher and roughly smash your sweet potatoes. Don't mash it into oblivion, you want to keep some of the crispy parts of the potato. Place to one side.
- Take a Tortilla and lightly brush one side of it with Oil. Place on a griddle or regular pan oiled side face down, making sure the gas is turned OFF. Spread on half of your Sweet Potato mash, top with half your Black Beans, 1 Handful of Cheese and finish with a squeeze of Lime Juice. Place a second Tortilla on top, press down to contain the filling and lightly brush the top with Oil.
- At this point turn the hob onto a medium heat and fry for around 6-8 mins on each side, or until nice and golden. If you tap on the Quesadillas it should sound slightly hollow and crunchy.
- Serve with any additional toppings and sides (suggestions in ingredients). Enjoy!
Quick 1 min demo!
Notes:
Your Private Notes:
Nutrition:
For more similar recipes check out these beauties:
Easy Quesadilla Recipes
- Ground Beef Quesadillas
- Chicken Quesadillas
- Refried Bean Quesadillas
- Mac n Cheese Quesadillas
- Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas
86 Comments
Mary
September 13, 2023 at 1:07 pmI have a ton of food allergies translating to no processed foods, wheat, dairy and now even eggs.
I adapted your sweet potato quesadilla recipe by roasting sweet potatoes in their jackets (I think it adds another layer of flavor with that bit of char), roughly mashing it with the spices you suggested and then stuffing that inside two almond flour tortillas. I used avocado oil in the skillet and finished off to crisp the tortillas.
It was so good and made a very nice breakfast. I love the mixture of spices in your recipe.
Thank you so much. Your flavor profiles are amazing. I can only imagine how good this would be made exactly as you wrote it.
Chris Collins
September 13, 2023 at 4:03 pmSo great to hear this went down well, Mary! Thanks so much for popping back for a review 🙂 C.
Aimee Gauvin
July 19, 2022 at 10:01 pmEasy and delicious
Chris Collins
July 20, 2022 at 5:00 pmThanks Aimee! 🙂
Ida
June 10, 2022 at 2:45 pmDelicious!
I am not so keen on smoked paprika, so I add 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika and 1 teaspoon unsmoked paprika powder to mine when I make it. It’s really, really tasty, highly recommend this recipe! I’m not a vegetarian, but this is still one of my favourite meals. So good. Beware though, it’s really filling!
Chris Collins
June 10, 2022 at 3:01 pmSo happy to hear this went down well, Ida! Thanks so much for popping back for a review 🙂 C.
Kelly
July 13, 2021 at 1:12 amMade these tonight using whole wheat tortillas and they were absolutely amazing. Two small-ish sweet potatoes was enough for two quesadillas. I roasted them in my air fryer the night before and mashed them so it was a quick dinner after work today. Topped them with a drizzle of taco sauce and they were perfect.
Chris Collins
July 13, 2021 at 10:08 amOooo the taco sauce sounds awesome on top – will have to try! Thanks so much for the review 🙂 C.x
Dallas
January 24, 2021 at 6:40 pmReally good and super filling! I could only eat half of one but damn was it good! I think something is wrong with my oven though… I cooked the sweet potatos for probably about 45 to 50 minutes and some parts were still crunchy. I wonder what went wrong? Recipe was absolutely fire though!!!
Chris Collins
January 25, 2021 at 3:50 pmAwesome to hear you loved the recipe! All ovens can be different, as can potatoes. Also the larger the chunks of potato the longer they’ll take to cook, so maybe try dicing them smaller next time if you want to speed things up. Doesn’t make a huge difference as the get mashed anyway. Anywho, thanks so much for popping back for a review 🙂 Chris.
Jessica
December 30, 2020 at 1:26 amThis was great but cooking them on medium for 6-8 minutes was far too long. I cooked them on low for 3 and they were golden brown.
Karen
November 17, 2020 at 12:08 amYou are so right these are filling!! This will be my 3rd time to make these quesadillas for meatless Mondays. We split one and then I make another with the left overs for lunch the next day. YUM! The spice ratio is perfect! Thank you for the great recipe sir! Why have I not signed up for your blog? I’m going to right now.
Chris Collins
November 17, 2020 at 10:17 amThat’s great to hear, Karen! Glad you enjoy the recipe! Thanks for following along 🙂 Chris x
Kristen
October 16, 2020 at 3:29 pmOMG… my mouth is watering looking at this recipe. I’m going to try them for dinner tonight. I needed to use up a plethora of sweet potato hanging about in my cold cellar so this is perfect. Your sides look AMAZING too and I hope I can do at least one of them. *drooling*
Chris Collins
October 17, 2020 at 9:33 amThat’s awesome to hear Kristen! Hope they go down well 🙂
Michelle
October 14, 2020 at 10:42 pmI did a variation of this recipe today and it was fantastic. I potato is plenty for 2 for sure. I used a little pork instead of black bean to keep my hubby happy, but he liked it so much that black beans will be in the next round. I added green onions and hot peppers to mine. I used fresh ground cumin and coriander and added chili powder instead of cayenne. I will never buy taco seasoning in a package again!
Chris Collins
October 15, 2020 at 10:46 amMichelle, great to hear it went down well! Thanks so much for popping back for a review 🙂
Karen McPherson
September 28, 2020 at 2:12 amAbsolutely loved it. Definitely adjust portions before cooking. I used 2 sweet potatoes for 2 of us and it was way too much. Also, I used a mat to cook on. They didn’t carmelize. Cook directly on cookie sheet. I should have added more cheese too.
Chris Collins
September 28, 2020 at 10:35 amThanks for the review, Karen! Hopefully those amendments will take them to hew heights next time 🙂
Stephanie
September 15, 2020 at 5:43 pm488 per each serving and there are 4 servings? Trying to work out why the calories are so high?
Chris Collins
September 15, 2020 at 7:19 pmI guess it’s essentially carbs topped with carbs and cheese cooked in carbs? I’m far from a nutritionist so I do recommend running the ingredients through your own calculator if you have one 🙂
Rintze
July 27, 2020 at 6:51 pmVery easy and extremely delicious with all the different flavors.
Chris Collins
July 28, 2020 at 10:44 amThat’s awesome to hear, glad they went down well 🙂
Helena
October 10, 2019 at 7:47 pmThey are really filling and absolutely delicious. Even my three year old and one year old (I reduced slightly the quantity of cheese;))loved them. Thank you
Chris Collins
October 17, 2019 at 10:37 amSo happy to hear they went down well! 🙂
Harini
May 22, 2019 at 3:55 pmThis is a wonderful with burst of flavor. Brilliant idea!
Chris
May 24, 2019 at 11:11 amThanks so much!
Megan
March 22, 2019 at 4:54 pmWow what a great recipe! I added sliced onions with the taters when I roasted them. I forgot to add the lime juice on the first night but added it the next day when I made them again for lunch. The lime didn’t really seem to change the flavor much. This recipe makes a lot! I want to make this again and maybe use a packet of taco seasoning on the taters. My 16 yr old who has autism does t eat a lot of foods and he absolutely loved this. He was grabbing more from my plate!
Chris
March 25, 2019 at 1:59 pmHi Megan! This is truly amazing to hear! So glad you and your son loved the recipe 🙂
Jacki O
March 16, 2019 at 11:22 pmExcited to try this … I also can’t help but think that this would make a delicious empanada filling … anyone try that? Thanks!!
Christina
January 21, 2019 at 11:14 pmThese are amazing, absolutely loved them! Can’t wait to check out more of your recipes if the first one I tried was this good 😀 thanks!
Chris
January 22, 2019 at 1:51 pmThat’s awesome! So great to hear you’re sticking around
Priya
October 4, 2018 at 4:49 pmINSANELY delicious, OMG!!! Even my husband who needs his meat said he could go vegetarian if all vegetarian dishes tasted like this. Thanks for the recipe!
Chris
October 4, 2018 at 9:29 pmThat’s so awesome! I love my meat too but love these so much. Thanks for coming back and sharing your kind words 🙂
Hayley
September 8, 2018 at 4:18 pmThis was a fantastic recipe Thank you for Sharing! It was super easy, quick and very very tasty. Made my own salsa and had avacado and some sour cream on the side. Went down a treat. I will be making these a lot.
Chris
September 9, 2018 at 11:56 amAh that’s so awesome, Hayley! Thanks for coming back and sharing your kind words! 🙂
Laura
September 6, 2018 at 7:55 pmThese were super easy and super tasty. The sweet potatoes went sooo sweet cooked in the oven and they are full of good stuff!!
Chris
September 6, 2018 at 8:11 pmThat’s awesome, Laura! Thanks for coming back and sharing your kind words!! 🙂
Kenzie
July 3, 2018 at 12:04 amThese were amazing and so easy to make. I can tell I am going to make these quesadillas for years to come
Chris
July 3, 2018 at 10:05 amThat’s so awesome to hear, Kenzie!! 🙂
Ellen
June 27, 2018 at 5:04 pmThis absolutely tastes wonderful. I didn’t have sour cream and added Nature & Mou’s vegan cheddar and guacamole.
Chris
June 28, 2018 at 5:39 pmThanks for the feedback, Ellen!! Awesome to hear it’s working great as a vegan dish 🙂
Sierre
June 20, 2018 at 11:08 pmWe had these for supper tonight and they were AMAZING! One of the best quesadillas I’ve ever had. The only things I did different were substituting the coriander for parsley since I didn’t have any, and diving the filling between 4 quesadillas instead of 2. They were delicious on their own, but even better dipped in guacamole! Thanks for the great recipe – this will definitely be a regular dinner around here now!!
Chris
June 21, 2018 at 10:17 amSo awesome to hear you liked them!! So good dipped in guac right?
Sari
June 14, 2018 at 2:56 amLove this recipe! I’m vegetarian and my boyfriend isn’t, I made these for us and he said they’re “freaking delicious” and better than any chicken quesadilla he’s ever had, so definitely a huge hit in my book Will definitely make again!
Chris
June 14, 2018 at 7:00 pmThanks for the awesome feedback! Glad to hear you both enjoyed 🙂
Diana
June 9, 2018 at 5:59 pmI made these for lunch and they were delicious! I added vegan mayo spread on one inside of the tortilla. My son and husband really liked them too.
Chris
June 10, 2018 at 9:58 pmThat’s so awesome to hear, Diana! Thanks so much for coming back and sharing your kind words!! 🙂
Julie
April 13, 2018 at 4:01 amthese were wonderful – l topped them with some homemade pico de gallo and avacado slices – perfect!
Chris
April 13, 2018 at 10:28 amThat’s so great to hear! Salsa and avocado slices are my fav toppings too!! 🙂
Sarah
March 12, 2018 at 2:42 amI just made this and loved it! Added some sautéed red peppers and onions. Thank you!
Chris
March 12, 2018 at 11:17 amSo glad you enjoyed, Sarah! I’ll have to try it with some sauteed red pepper and onions, sounds delish!!
Justine
May 2, 2020 at 9:59 pmDoes anyone have suggestions about having more texture to this dish? I tried adding sautéed onions and peppers and spinach (different times making it), but I was still one note texture wise.
cathyorange
March 2, 2018 at 8:42 amI made this. In Ghana, we don’t usually find the nice, sweet, orange sweet potatoes..here they are white and a bit dry and root-like. I baked them in thin slices, took about 30 minutes and made the dish. It was great. My husband like it too. One could do so many things with this recipe. I would like to add a few cooked up button mushrooms, too, or even any meat to make it more of a meal. We had a small side of salmon with this. Wonderful meal.
Chris
March 2, 2018 at 10:28 amSo great to hear you loved the recipe! I can imagine it worked perfectly with the salmon, what a great idea!!
Diane
October 29, 2017 at 5:09 pmEating these right now as I type. Thanks for sharing. I was looking for a way to incorporate more vegetables and healthy eating into my diet. The flavor of the sweet potatoes right out of the oven is great-I could (and did!) eat them straight from the baking dish.
Chris
October 29, 2017 at 7:11 pmI’m completely the same, Diane! If there’s any potato left after me eating it straight out the oven it’s a miracle!!
Debbie
October 12, 2017 at 5:03 amMade this tonight amazing !!! I didn’t put enough cheese in though. More next time … yum.
Chris
October 12, 2017 at 5:10 amSo glad you enjoyed, Debbie! Remember, there’s no such thing as too much cheese 🙂
Emily
October 8, 2017 at 12:39 amI love that the sweet potato is mashed and spread over the wraps…drooling at these, can’t wait to try them!
Chris
October 8, 2017 at 12:47 amThank you for your positive vibes! Enjoy 🙂
Julia
October 8, 2017 at 12:13 amThese quesadillas look delicious! Love everything about them and will definitely be making them soon as I’ve been obsessed with sweet potatoes recently.
Chris
October 8, 2017 at 12:35 amThanks, Julia! Enjoy 🙂
Amy | The Cook Report
October 7, 2017 at 10:57 pmSounds delicious, it’s great when you can make normally meaty recipes vegetarian
Chris
October 8, 2017 at 12:34 amCompletely agree, Amy!!
Ellen
October 7, 2017 at 10:14 pmLove that you use sweet potatoes. This will be great for my kids.
Chris
October 8, 2017 at 12:33 amSweet potatoes make the world go round! Enjoy 🙂
Vicky @ Avocado Pesto
October 7, 2017 at 8:53 pmLove that these are vegetarian and made with sweet potatoes! I’ve made vegetarian ones wth mushrooms and spinach before ! YUM!
Chris
October 8, 2017 at 12:32 amMushrooms and spinach, yum! Gotta try that combo!!
Jill
September 12, 2017 at 10:46 amThis is SO good! So quick and easy if you bake the sweet potatoes the night before. I will definitely be making these regularly! Thanks for this great recipe!
Chris
September 12, 2017 at 12:29 pmJill! So glad you enjoyed, thank you for your positive vibes! Have a great day wherever you are in the world 🙂
Liz | Perfectly Practical Prattle
August 16, 2017 at 9:51 amI recently made this and it was delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Chris
August 16, 2017 at 12:23 pmSo glad to hear, Liz! Have a great day wherever you are in the world 🙂 C x
Anonymous
August 14, 2017 at 5:00 pmWhy is this recipe coming up as vegan when it has dairy products in it?
Chris
August 14, 2017 at 5:14 pmHi there! Simple answer is I’m not sure.. In no way do I claim, describe or brand this recipe as vegan, only that it is easily adapted. I can only assume that someone has shared this recipe with the assumption it is vegan (through not reading the post/ingredients). Hope this helps 🙂
Janice
August 8, 2017 at 12:57 amLove the name of your site! Great recipe-thanks for sharing.
Chris
August 8, 2017 at 10:41 amThanks so much much, Janice! Hope you enjoy 🙂
Susan
July 25, 2017 at 10:05 pmAbsolutely fantastic recipe. Tasted great. Thank you for sharing 🙂
Chris
July 25, 2017 at 10:06 pmNo worries, Susan! Glad you enjoyed!!
Roz A
June 25, 2017 at 10:32 pmJust made these and have to say they were delish. I added a small amount of picked onion mix from Asian market and have to say overall the dish had so much flavour
Chris
June 25, 2017 at 10:52 pmHi Roz! Glad you enjoyed it, I truly love this recipe so it’s great to hear your feedback. The picked onion mix also sounds like a great addition, YUM!
Robbie Cheadle
April 22, 2017 at 4:18 pmGreat recipe, thanks for sharing.
Chris
October 7, 2017 at 2:43 pmNo problem! Enjoy 🙂
Linda
April 21, 2017 at 10:19 pmI’m crazy for quesadillas but have never thought about using sweet potatoes. I’m anxious to try your recipe and can’t imagine not liking it.
Chris
October 7, 2017 at 2:44 pm‘Crazy for quesadillas’ will be carved on my grave stone. I have a sneaky suspicion you’ll enjoy these, Linda 🙂