Sweet Potato Tacos

Fall has officially arrived and with the fall season, the supermarket shelves are filled with pumpkins, squashes and sweet potatoes. But honestly you don’t have to wait for fall to make these Sweet Potato Tacos. Sweet potatoes have become very popular and are readily available year round.

To be honest I was a bit leery about making these for my meat loving guys.  Sometimes when I prepare a vegetarian meal I get asked, “Where’s the rest of dinner?  Is this it?”  So after a few sniffs, some questioning unsure looks and timid first bites these tacos received a positive review from my son, but hubs was looking for the beef.  My favorite carnivore just won’t change his spots 🙂 

I on the other hand, LOVED them!  I can’t believe how delicious these were.  I confess, I wolfed down 2 big fat ones!  But hey, I am a veggie lover and these really hit the spot for me.

To start you will want to peel and dice the sweet potato into about 1/2 inch cubes, try to get them all about the same size so they will cook evenly.

Something you should be aware of is what everyone refers to as a sweet potato is actually a yam. The vegetable with the orange flesh is not a sweet potato even though that’s what everyone calls them. You can use either sweet potatoes or yams for this recipe but there is a difference in the flavor. Sweet potatoes are sweeter tasting and their flesh is off white. They look more like a regular potato instead of bright orange like yams.

For this recipe I used sweet potatoes but you can use whichever you prefer, both taste delicious.

Once you have diced the sweet potatoes place them in a large bowl and drizzle with about a tablespoon of olive oil. Add salt pepper and Italian seasoning and toss to coat the sweet potatoes.

Spread sweet potatoes out onto a foil lined baking sheet in a single layer and bake in a 400 degree oven for 30-35 minutes until soft and starting to lightly brown

While the sweet potatoes are in the oven, heat a couple of tablespoons oil in a large skillet.  When the oil is hot sauté diced onion until softened and translucent.  Add minced garlic and cook for an additional minute, until fragrant.

Add drained corn and black beans and cook until bubbling hot. You could easily substitute frozen corn for the canned if that is what you have on hand, either works just fine in this recipe. Set aside and keep warm while you prepare taco shells.

You can prepare the corn tortillas by using a pair of tongs and holding them over the flame of your gas stove to heat and char them or you can go the extra step and prepare them my favorite way! 

Just be warned, once you make them this way, there’s no going back!  Your family will always want them prepared this way.

Prepare tortillas by heating up about 1/4 inch of vegetable oil in a skillet. Once the oil is hot, gently lay a corn tortilla into the hot oil and fry on one side for about 30-45 seconds. You want it to just start to crisp up, but not brown. It will get too tough and chewy if you overcook it, so keep a close eye on it. Practice makes perfect. Once you do this a few times you will get the hang of it and easily tell when they are cooked just right and need to be flipped to cook on the other side.

Turn the tortilla over and fold it in half with a pair of tongs. Continue to fry it until the tortilla starts to brown just a tiny little bit on both outside halves. Using tongs, remove the cooked shell from the oil, allowing the excess oil to drip back into the skillet.

Place the tortilla shell on a paper towel lined platter and immediately sprinkle the outsides with a generous sprinkling of grated Parmesan cheese. For extra cheesy shells, open the tortilla and sprinkle the inside with a little extra Parm too. YUM! YUM! YUMMY! YUM! YUM!

To serve the tacos, place a generous amount of the cooked sweet potatoes into the prepared shell then add a layer of the onion/corn/bean mixture.  Top with Feta cheese, Cilantro, avocado, tomatoes, salsa and a squeeze of lime.  Adding sour cream is a must at our house but these are scrumptious even without sour cream.

Sweet Potato Tacos

• Sweet potatoes, cubed
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 15 oz. can of corn, drained, or 15 oz. frozen corn
• 15 oz. can of black beans
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2-4 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 bunch Cilantro, chopped
• 1 Avocado, diced
• Feta cheese, crumbled
• Lime, quartered
• Corn tortillas
• Vegetable oil
• Grated Parmesan cheese
• Tomatoes, diced
• Sour cream, optional

Preheat oven to 400^◦.  Prepare a cookie sheet by lining it with a layer of foil.  This makes clean up a breeze! 

Place cubed sweet potatoes in a large bowl and coat the pieces with oil.  I find using my hands works best.

Sprinkle sweet potatoes with a teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon pepper and a teaspoon of Italian seasoning.  Mix to get the seasonings evenly disturbed.

Place prepared sweet potatoes on the cookie sheet in a single layer and place in the preheated oven.

Bake for 30-35 minutes.  After the first 15 minutes remove them from the oven and use a spatula to turn them over.  Return them to the oven and continue to cook until they soften and begin to crisp a bit along the edges.  Be sure to keep an eye on them so they do not burn. 

While the sweet potatoes are in the oven, heat a couple of tablespoons oil in a large skillet.  When the oil is hot sauté the onion until it softens.  Add minced garlic and cook for an additional minute, until fragrant.

Add drained corn and black beans and cook until bubbling hot.

Prepare the corn tortillas by using a pair of tongs and holding them over the flame of your gas stove to heat and char them.

To serve the tacos, place a generous amount of the cooked sweet potatoes into the prepared shell then add a layer of the corn/bean mixture.  Top with Feta cheese, Cilantro, avocado, tomatoes.  Adding sour cream is a must at our house but these are scrumptious even without sour cream.

Top with a spoonful of salsa and dig in! You can make your own salsa with this easy recipe that is the perfect topping for these tasty tacos. You can find Mama Rita’s Salsa recipe here.

Serve with a side of my favorite restaurant style Spanish rice. You can find the recipe for it here.

Perhaps you’re in the mood for some fresh Quacamole and chips to serve alongside? Try this easy recipe here for a tasty Guac that you can whip up in no time.

A big shout out to my co-worker Shannon. I happened to overhear her talking about these tacos at work one day and she was kind enough to share the recipe with me. Usually I detest working in cubicle city but every once in a while it has it’s benefits.

I can’t believe how delicious these were.  I confess, I wolfed down 2 fat ones! I encourage you give these a try, they are very good and come together quickly. You might even get lucky and get a thumbs up from your favorite carnivores, maybe. 🙂  

THANK YOU SHANNON👍🏻