Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
on Nov 22, 2021, Updated Feb 27, 2025
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This easy, one pan, Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet is a hearty and healthy vegetarian dinner the whole family will love! Made with brown rice, sweet potatoes, black beans, green chiles, spices and topped with melted cheese. On the table in 30 minutes and great for leftovers the next day!
If you’re looking to add more vegetarian meals to your weekly dinner plans, but are worried you’ll still be hungry because there’s no meat in the recipe, fear not! This Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet is so hearty and full of flavor you won’t think twice about it being vegetarian.
This easy one pan dinner was inspired by one of my most popular recipes, Mexican Chicken, Sweet Potato and Black Bean Skillet. It has many of the same flavors, but without the chicken and the addition of brown rice.
Table of Contents
- Ingredients For Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
- How To Make Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
- Time Saving Tips
- Toppings For Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Skillet Dinners
- Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet Recipe
Ingredients For Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
Sweet potato – I like that it gives the recipe a touch of sweetness to balance all the savory flavors. Sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber and antioxidants and contain a good amount of vitamins A, C, and B6.
Chili powder, ground cumin, dried oregano, smoked paprika, garlic powder – The homemade spice blend that flavors this skillet recipe.
Diced green chiles – Use mild or hot depending on how spicy you like your food.
Salsa or salsa verde – Jarred salsa adds great flavor and helps to create a sauce. I often use the Whole Food 365 jarred salsas.
Brown rice – Long grain rice is best. If you don’t want to use brown rice, white rice can be used. Jasmine rice is great!
Black beans – Canned black beans or dry black beans that have been cooked can be used. I recommend low sodium if you’re using canned.
Cilantro and lime – Add a fresh, zippy flavor.
Cheese – Cheddar, colby jack, monterey jack, and pepper jack all work great. Grate the cheese yourself for the best flavor and consistency. Pre-shredded cheese contains anti-caking agents keep the cheese from melting as nicely.
How To Make Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
Heat a some olive oil in a large skillet, preferably one with a lid. If you don’t have a skillet with a lid use a piece of foil or a large plate. Add in the diced sweet potato, salt and pepper, and sauté it over medium heat for about about 8 minutes. It won’t be completely soft at this point.
Add several tablespoons of water to the skillet and cover it with a lid so that the sweet potato steams and doesn’t get overly browned while it continues to cook. Once the sweet potato is fork tender add in the green chiles, black beans, rice, dried spices, salsa, cilantro, lime juice, and additional salt and pepper.
Stir everything together and let it heat through for a few minutes. Add the shredded cheese on top and cover the skillet with the lid. Let everything cook for another couple minutes until the cheese is melted and everything is warm.
Time Saving Tips
- Use leftover cooked brown rice or my recipe for black beans and rice, minute rice, microwaveable bagged rice, or frozen rice to save 40 minutes of cooking time.
- If you have leftover roasted sweet potatoes those can be used instead.
Toppings For Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
Avocado – Since this is a vegetarian meal, avocado is a great way to add healthy fat, fiber, and a little protein to make it more satiating.
Greek yogurt or sour cream – The added creaminess and tang of the Greek yogurt goes so well with the spices, green chiles, and salsa in this recipe. Greek yogurt is also a good way to add in additional protein.
Tomatoes – They add a nice bit of sweetness.
Black olives – briny, salty, and a great addition if you enjoy olives.
Crushed tortilla chips – If you want a crunchy element to this dish, add the crushed tortilla chips when you add on the cheese. Sort of like nachos on top! Be aware that they’ll soften and won’t be crunchy if you plan to have this for leftovers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Cooked white rice, quinoa, or even cauliflower rice for a lower carb option would all work well and be delicious.
Yes. Pinto beans would be a great alternative if you or your family prefer them.
Regular salsa or salsa verde both work. I suggest not using a thick and chunky salsa because you’ll want the liquid to help create the sauce. I used Saso Classic Verde Salsa.
Try adding corn, diced zucchini, spinach, and/or a can of fire roasted tomatoes.
More Skillet Dinners
- Stuffed Pepper Casserole
- Greek Meatballs and Orzo Skillet
- Turkey and Vegetable Skillet
- Skillet Enchilada Chicken with Black Beans and Corn
- Southwest Ground Beef Sweet Potato Skillet
Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Rice Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cups peeled and diced sweet potato
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 4 ounces diced green chiles
- 1/2 cup salsa or salsa verde
- 2 cups cooked brown rice
- 15 ounce can low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- Juice of a lime
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar, colby jack, or monterey jack cheese
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add in the diced sweet potatoes, salt and pepper, and sauté over medium heat for about about 8 minutes. Add 3-4 tablespoons of water to the skillet and cover it with a lid. Let the sweet potatoes steam until they're fork tender, about another 4 minutes depending on the size.
- Add the green chiles, black beans, rice, spices, salsa, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper to the skillet. Stir everything together until combined.
- Add the shredded cheese to the top and cover the skillet with the lid. Let everything cook for another 3-4 minutes until the cheese is melted and everything is warm. Serve topped with additional cilantro, avocado, and plain Greek yogurt or sour cream if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Huge pet peeve when the recipe calls for something already cooked /: it doesn’t take 20 minutes if I needed to know that the *already prepared* rice wasn’t included as part of the recipe instructions.
It clearly states in the ingredients “cooked brown rice”. I’m sorry you didn’t see this beforehand. I always recommend that people read the recipe entirely before they start cooking.
This was delicious and will enjoy having the leftovers maybe for breakfast? Any time would be good I usually don’t change the recipe the first time but I had a yellow pepper that needed to be used I also added kielbasa sausage for my meat lover. I thought the spices were just right and I did most of the preparation in the morning so it went together fast after spending the day in the yard.
Happy you enjoyed it MaryBeth!
I made this for dinner tonight and it was so easy and delicious. I used vegan cheese so it took a little longer for the cheese to melt but 10/10. It had all the components that I love and I made it super spicy by adding fresh Serrano peppers.
Hearty and lots of flavor, easy to do
Thanks for the review Patti, happy to hear you liked it!