These Sweet Potato Black Bean Tacos have been a busy-night staple in our house for many years! You’ve got caramelized sweet potatoes and spiced black beans, all topped with a creamy avocado crema. It’s the kind of taco filling that converts even the pickiest of eaters!

Love a vegetarian taco recipes? You need to try our Sheet Pan Black Bean Tacos as well as our Shredded Tofu Tacos and our Chickpea Tacos!

sweet potato and black bean tacos drizzled with an avocado crema. they're sitting on a white plate with royal blue rim

Why you’ll love these vegan tacos!

This flavor combination is one that I find myself coming back to again and again because it’s the same pairing that inspired my stuffed sweet potatoes recipe A regular here so much. And honestly, it might be even better tucked into a warm tortilla.

Here’s why you’ll love these:

Great textural contrast – caramelized sweet potato, hearty beans, and a CREAMY avocado dressing in every single bite.
Protein-packed – the black beans keep this filling and satisfying, it’s not only a side of veggies in a tortilla!
Meal-prep friendly recipe – all three components of the tacos holds up well in the fridge for unfussy assembly through the week.
Straightforward to customize – swap toppings, adjust the dice size, roast additional veggies such as poblano pepper or bell pepper, or add a broil for extra char!

Ingredients needed

The ingredients for this method are listed fully down in the recipe card but let’s briefly go over the pantry staples needed including a few substitutions you can make as desired!

Sweet Potatoes – these are diced into half inch cubes for the dependable balance of caramelization and speed in cooking. Go smaller if you want more filling packed into each taco!
Olive oil – this helps the potatoes roast up crisp and caramelized instead of steaming. We’ll also use a little to cook the onion and black beans.
Spices – chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder are used as a warm spice blend that flavors the potatoes as they roast. Meanwhile, we’ll use cumin and chili powder to season the black beans.
Black Beans – We’re using 1 can of black beans. We’ll mash about 1/3 of these lightly to help the filling hold together and overall give it a creamy texture. you could swap these for refried beans as well!
Yellow onion and garlic – this is the old-school aromatic base for the beans.
Lime juice – this gets added at the end for brightness.
Tortillas – A regular here flour tortillas in this method but corn tortillas also work well!

labeled ingredients needed to make avocado cream including sour cream, avocado, salt, and lime juice

For the Avocado Crema

Avocado – the CREAMY base of the crema sauce.
Sour cream OR Greek yogurt – adds tang and helps thin the crema to a thinner consistency.
Lime juice – balances out the richness of the avocado and adds a needed bit of acidity to the dressing.
Water – added as needed to reach your desired consistency. I usually add about 2 tablespoons to thin the sauce and make it drizzlable.

How to Make It

Simply a reminder that you can find the FULL written vegetarian tacos recipe down in the recipe card, but I want to quickly go over how to make them with visuals for you:)

sauteed black beans and onion in a stainless steel skillet

Make the black bean mixture. In a large skillet, saute the onion in olive oil over medium-high heat until soft, about 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds more, until fragrant. Stir in the black beans and spices and cook for about 5 minutes, mashing about 1/3 of the beans with the back of your spoon. Finish with lime juice.

roasted sweet potato on a white sheet pan

Roast the sweet potatoes. Toss the cubes of sweet potato with olive oil, spices, salt and pepper. Spread in an single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes, flipping halfway, until fork tender and caramelized along the edges.

Make the avocado lime crema. In a blender or food processor, blend together the avocado, sour creamy, lime juice, water, and salt until smooth. A mini food processor or immersion blender will also work well here.

Assemble. Serve with warm tortillas then layer with roasted sweet potato, black beans, and a drizzle of avocado crema. Top with fresh cilantro and your regular toppings and serve. These would be great served with cilantro lime rice!

Recipe Tips

Adjust your dice size – Smaller cubes roast faster and pack more into each taco, but you’ll love a but of that deep caramelization.
Try a short broil – Broiling the sweet potatoes for the last 203 minutes can give you those crispy, charred edges people love in a taco filling.
Choose your creamy base – Sour cream gives a tangier, thinner crema while Greek yogurt makes it thicker and more neutral but both work GREAT!
Double the black beans for extra filling power – If you want a heartier, more protein forward taco filling, doubling the black bean portion is an unfussy variation.