Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
on Sep 16, 2020, Updated Feb 14, 2026
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Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet is a 30 minute, easy and delicious recipe the whole family will love! It’s all made in one pan, works great for meal prep and there’s so many ways to serve it!
I bet you were a little surprised to see a ground beef recipe on my blog. I’m definitely more of a chicken, turkey, fish girl, but every once in a while I get a craving for beef. Lately I’ve been making more ground beef recipes including this Mongolian ground beef, ground beef pasta, burger bowls, and now this incredible Southwest ground beef and sweet potato skillet!
This is an easy one pan dinner that has flavors most people can get behind. You’ve got spice from the chili powder, savory from the ground beef and a little sweetness to balance it out from the sweet potatoes. Don’t let the sweet potato fool you into thinking this is going to be an “sweet” recipe. This skillet meal takes about 30 minutes to make and there’s many ways to serve it, which I’ve shared below.
Table of Contents
- Ingredients Needed to Make Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
- How to Make Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
- How to Serve the Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
- Can I Make it Ahead of Time?
- Can I Freeze the Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet?
- Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet Recipe
- More Southwest Inspired Recipes
Ingredients Needed to Make Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
- Yellow onion – White onion can be used as a substitution.
- Garlic – I like to grate the garlic with a microplane zester so it melts in with the other ingredients and you don’t risk having any burnt pieces.
- Ground beef – I use grass fed 90/10%. You want to use lean ground beef so it doesn’t get too greasy.
- Chili powder and ground cumin – The spice blend that adds earthy, warm flavors to the dish. Be sure to use mild chili powder.
- Sweet potato – Sweet potatoes are packed with nutrients, a good source of carbs and they add a little sweetness to balance all the savory flavors. My sweet potato hash is another great way to add sweet potatoes to a savory recipe.
- Fire roasted tomatoes – Fire roasted tomatoes are simply canned diced tomatoes that have a hint of smoky flavor from the fire roasting.
- Diced green chiles – I use mild green chiles, but use hot if you want it to be spicy.
- Cheese – cheddar, Colby Jack or Pepper Jack cheese can all be used. Grate the cheese from the block for the best flavor and melting.
How to Make Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
To make this skillet recipe start by adding the ground beef and diced onion to a large skillet with a little bit of olive oil. Use a wooden spoon to crumble the beef. When the beef is nearly cooked through add in the garlic, chili powder and ground cumin. Cook everything for another minute and then pour it out onto a plate.
Wipe out the skillet and add in the diced sweet potato, fire roasted tomatoes, green chiles, water, more chili powder and cumin. Stir everything together, cover it with a lid and let it simmer for about 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are tender.
Add the ground beef mixture in with the sweet potatoes and stir everything together. Top it with shredded cheese and cover with a lid for a couple minutes so that the cheese melts. Garnish with cilantro and serve with slices of avocado if you’d like.
How to Serve the Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
Rice – Serve on top of white or brown rice. For extra flavor try it with cilantro lime rice.
Cauliflower rice – For a lower carb option try cauliflower rice. I season mine with salt, pepper and a little garlic powder. You could also docreamy mashed cauliflower.
Quinoa – Quinoa is another great option if you want something other than rice. For my tips on how to cook perfect quinoa check out refer to this post for sun dried tomato quinoa salad. The ground beef and sweet potato skillet would also go great with this Mexican quinoa salad with honey lime vinaigrette on the side.
As is – Since this skillet recipe contains both protein and carbs, it’s actually quite satisfying to serve on it’s own.
Tacos – Use it as taco or burrito filling. Top it with cilantro, chunks of avocado and even some pickled red onions would be delicious!
Can I Make it Ahead of Time?
Absolutely! This recipe not only tastes great the day you make it, but the leftover are delicious for several days after. It’s a great option if you meal prep.
Can I Freeze the Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet?
Yes. After everything is cooked let it cool completely. I suggest skipping the cheese on top and waiting until you plan to eat it to add it on. Once it’s cooled transfer it to a freezer safe container and freeze for up to two months.
Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 5 teaspoons chili powder divided
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon grated garlic
- 2 cups peeled and diced sweet potatoes
- 14.5 ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 4 ounces canned diced green chiles
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Cilantro for garnish optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add in the ground beef and diced onion and crumble the beef with a wooden spoon. Add in 1 tablespoon (3 teaspoons) of chili powder, 1 teaspoon of cumin, and season with salt and pepper. When the beef is nearly cooked through add in the garlic and cook for another minute. Pour it out onto a plate and wipe out the skillet.
- Add the diced sweet potato, fire roasted tomatoes, green chiles, water, 2 teaspoons of chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, salt and pepper to the skillet. Stir everything together and cover it with a lid. Lower the heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are tender.
- Add the ground beef mixture in with the sweet potatoes and stir everything together. Top with shredded cheese and cover with the lid again for another minute or until the cheese is melted. Top with chopped cilantro and serve.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Great dinner for an easy night of cooking. My two year old loved it!!! I needed something that I could use up my sweet potatoes with and was trying to switch up the menu.
Out of curiosity, have you tried it with ground turkey? As is was perfect, but ground beef is so expensive these days that we’ve been subbing turkey in a lot of recipes…it helps that it’s a tad healthier too.
I’m so glad it was a hit with everyone Jen! Yes, I have made this with ground turkey and ground chicken, both work great. I completely understand looking for more affordable swaps with how expensive groceries are these days.
Can you use chopped frozen sweet potato?
Yes, they work great.
Enjoyed this hearty dish! Reducing the chili powder was the only change for us (personal preference). Made it for a couple with a new baby and they loved it, as well. Thanks!
Thanks for giving it a try and sharing the recipe with friends!
I think the flavor is great! Easy week night meal using only two pots!
Can’t beat that! Thanks for trying it out.
Do you drain the fire roasted tomatoes and the green chiles ?
No. Add them in with any juices.
Very tasty! Was enjoyed by the whole family, and not a bite left over. Next time I would add a diced bell pepper and a can of black beans. I did use green salsa instead of diced green chiles (using what I had on hand), and topped with pepper jack cheese.
Thanks for trying it out Sheri! Happy to hear the whole family enjoyed it.
The flavors were good but it almost had the consistency of a thick chili. I think next time I will try to make it with less liquid from the tomatoes.
Easy
Excellent for commuting families. I add a small scoop of sour cream on top of my serving 👌🏻