4 Servings || Estimated Preparation Time: 60 minutes
Photo by Nourish & Thrive
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos
Nourish & Thrive
When in doubt: tacos. It’s a life lesson. Tacos always feel like a celebration, and these take “Taco Tuesday” to a whole new level. If you’ve tried the Sweet Potato and Black Bean Bowls, you know what kind of treat you’re in for…and if you haven’t, try it next! Either way, these tacos have the flavor profile of a fresh and tangy street-taco but with homey sensibilities; enjoy your now-fancy Taco Tuesday, or Wednesday, or Thursday…
4 Servings
1/2) cup apple cider vinegar
1 red onion, diced (1/2 for cooking with the beans, the other half sliced for pickled topping!)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 large sweet potato, scrubbed and diced in ½ “ cubes (keep the vitamin-rich skin on, just scrub!)
2-3 garlic cloves, minced or very finely chopped
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional if you can manage a little spice)
2 tablespoons of coconut oil, divided
4 omega-3 organic eggs (One for each taco. Simply omit to make this vegan!)
1 package small corn tortillas
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
1 lime, sliced into wedges
1 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped*
Sea salt
favorite hot sauce (optional)
Wash and prep all your vegetables and rinse the black beans, in a fine mesh sieve or colander and set aside.
Pickled Onions:
Pour (1/2) cup of apple cider vinegar into a glass container or small jar, then add (1/2) of the sliced red onion to quick pickle. Let them sit while you prepare the remaining components.
Black Beans:
Warm the small saucepan over medium heat for several minutes. Once the pan is hot, add (1/2) tablespoon of coconut oil, immediately followed by the (1/2) chopped red onion.
Let the onions cook for 3-4 minutes until sweating, then add the rinsed black beans and let the mixture simmer. Add a couple tablespoons of water and cover the pot to hold in the moisture. Keep this on low heat while you prepare the remaining components.
Sweet Potatoes:
Toss the cubed sweet potato with (1) teaspoon coriander, (1) teaspoon cumin, (1/4) teaspoon of cayenne pepper (optional), and a hearty pinch of sea salt in a mixing bowl.
Preheat your medium sauté pan over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. (If making the eggs, start preheating the pan now. Details below.)
When the large sauté pan is hot, add (1.5) tablespoons of coconut oil then add the seasoned sweet potato. Let the potatoes cook and be still for about 4-5 minutes, then give everything a stir and let them cook for 2-3 more minutes. (if the potatoes start to stick, don’t add more oil, add a tablespoon or two of water and cover the pan to let it steam a bit. It will get those bits to release right up!)
Add the (2-3) minced garlic cloves to the sweet potato mixture and sauté for about 45 seconds until garlic is fragrant. When the sweet potatoes are soft to a fork tine, turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
Eggs (optional):
Take the medium sauté pan, fill it with water about 2 inches of water, season with sea salt, and bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer.
Stir the simmering water in the medium sauté pan, then gently drop your eggs into the water, continuing to give them a warm bath by spooning hot water over the tops of the eggs. Continue until the whites are set and the yolk is cooked to your desired doneness. (at least 4 minutes and longer if following a neutropenic protocol). Then remove the eggs with a slotted spoon to drain.
Combine Ingredients:
Check to make sure the sweet potatoes are soft enough, and if so, you are ready to assemble the tacos!
If you have a gas range, try charring the tortillas on a medium flame for a few seconds each side, then load up those tacos!
Start with beans and sweet potatoes as the base, top with the poached egg, then finish with the pickled onions, fresh cilantro, and crunchy pepitas (pumpkin seeds).
Smother the whole thing with fresh lime juice and pinches of sea salt.
Dash on a little of your favorite hot sauce, if desired.
When in doubt: tacos. It’s a life lesson. Tacos always feel like a celebration, and these take “Taco Tuesday” to a whole new level. If you’ve tried the Sweet Potato and Black Bean Bowls, you know what kind of treat you’re in for…and if you haven’t, try it next! Either way, these tacos have the flavor profile of a fresh and tangy street-taco but with homey sensibilities; enjoy your now-fancy Taco Tuesday, or Wednesday, or Thursday…
Health Highlights
When you have fiber-packed black beans and carotenoid rich sweet potatoes, it’s hard to go wrong, but add the cancer prevention power of garlic, plus magnesium-filled pumpkin seeds and tangy pickled onions, and it’s a healthy party. These tacos call for eggs for some extra flavor and healthy fats, but you can easily omit them if you only have access to conventional eggs and make this entirely vegan. There’s plenty of protein and nutrients in the beans, so don’t fret! This is a great recipe to make a big batch of the sweet potatoes and black beans, then assemble easy tacos for leftovers in the days to come…if they last that long.
Ingredients
- (1/2) cup apple cider vinegar
- (1) red onion, diced (1/2 for cooking with the beans, the other half sliced for pickled topping!)
- (1) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- (1) large sweet potato, scrubbed and diced in ½ “ cubes (keep the vitamin-rich skin on, just scrub!)
- (2-3) garlic cloves, minced or very finely chopped
- (1) teaspoon cumin
- (1) teaspoon coriander
- (1/4) teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional if you can manage a little spice)
- (2) tablespoons of coconut oil, divided
- (4) omega-3 organic eggs (One for each taco. Simply omit to make this vegan!)
- (1) package small corn tortillas
- (1/4) cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
- (1) lime, sliced into wedges
- (1) bunch cilantro, roughly chopped*
- Sea salt
- favorite hot sauce (optional)
*avoid if following a neutropenic protocol
Tools
- cutting board and knife
- prep bowls
- colander/fine mesh sieve
- small glass prep bowl or jar
- small saucepan
- medium mixing/prep bowl
- (2) medium sauté pans
- wooden spoons or silicone spatulas
Method
- Wash and prep all your vegetables and rinse the black beans, in a fine mesh sieve or colander and set aside.
Pickled Onions
- Pour (1/2) cup of apple cider vinegar into a glass container or small jar, then add (1/2) of the sliced red onion to quick pickle. Let them sit while you prepare the remaining components.
Black Beans
- Warm the small saucepan over medium heat for several minutes. Once the pan is hot, add (1/2) tablespoon of coconut oil, immediately followed by the (1/2) chopped red onion.
- Let the onions cook for 3-4 minutes until sweating, then add the rinsed black beans and let the mixture simmer. Add a couple tablespoons of water and cover the pot to hold in the moisture. Keep this on low heat while you prepare the remaining components.
Sweet Potatoes
- Toss the cubed sweet potato with (1) teaspoon coriander, (1) teaspoon cumin, (1/4) teaspoon of cayenne pepper (optional), and a hearty pinch of sea salt in a mixing bowl.
- Preheat your medium sauté pan over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. (If making the eggs, start preheating the pan now. Details below.)
- When the large sauté pan is hot, add (1.5) tablespoons of coconut oil then add the seasoned sweet potato. Let the potatoes cook and be still for about 4-5 minutes, then give everything a stir and let them cook for 2-3 more minutes. (if the potatoes start to stick, don’t add more oil, add a tablespoon or two of water and cover the pan to let it steam a bit. It will get those bits to release right up!)
- Add the (2-3) minced garlic cloves to the sweet potato mixture and sauté for about 45 seconds until garlic is fragrant. When the sweet potatoes are soft to a fork tine, turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
Eggs (optional)
- Take the medium sauté pan, fill it with water about 2 inches of water, season with sea salt, and bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer.
- Stir the simmering water in the medium sauté pan, then gently drop your eggs into the water, continuing to give them a warm bath by spooning hot water over the tops of the eggs. Continue until the whites are set and the yolk is cooked to your desired doneness. (at least 4 minutes and longer if following a neutropenic protocol). Then remove the eggs with a slotted spoon to drain.
Combine Ingredients
- Check to make sure the sweet potatoes are soft enough, and if so, you are ready to assemble the tacos!
- If you have a gas range, try charring the tortillas on a medium flame for a few seconds each side, then load up those tacos!
- Start with beans and sweet potatoes as the base, top with the poached egg, then finish with the pickled onions, fresh cilantro, and crunchy pepitas (pumpkin seeds).
- Smother the whole thing with fresh lime juice and pinches of sea salt.
- Dash on a little of your favorite hot sauce, if desired.
Cancer Tips
- Garlic contains the oil soluble compound allicin, which forms when the garlic tissue is damaged or crushed and converts to a sulfer-containing compound. (To increase the production of this compound, mince garlic for maximum exposure, and let the garlic sit for at least 10 minutes before applying heat.) Cell and animal studies have found that garlic’s allyl sulfur compounds may play a role in cancer prevention by several mechanisms, including: inhibiting enzymes that activate carcinogens, potentially cancer-causing compounds, boosting enzymes that detoxify carcinogens, helping with DNA repair, slowing growth and stimulating self-destruction of cancer cells without disturbing normal cells, limiting cancer’s ability to spread by decreasing tumor’s ability to grow new blood vessels (angiogenesis), and garlic’s allyl sulfur compounds – both the water and oil-soluble – also seem to prevent cancer by turning on tumor suppression genes!! [More info]
- Sweet potatoes are rich in carotenoids (such as beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, zeaxanthin), which may inhibit cancer cell growth, work as antioxidants and improve immune response [More info]
- Eating foods rich in carotenoids such as sweet potatoes has been linked to a reduced risk of breast cancer recurrence. Carotenoids are the natural pigments found in yellow and orange foods (such as carrots, sweet potatoes and squash) and dark leafy greens such as kale, spinach and Swiss chard. In a 2009 study published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, increased consumption of carotenoids was associated with "greater likelihood of breast cancer-free survival." [More info]
- Cilantro has been found to suppress lead accumulation in rats, which gives promise for the use of cilantro to combat lead and other heavy metal toxicity [More info]
- "Dry beans and peas are rich in fiber (20% of Daily Value) and a good source of protein (10% of Daily Value). They are also an excellent source of folate, a B vitamin. Pulses contain other health-promoting substances that may also protect against cancer: Lignans and saponins, Resistant starch, starch not digested in the small intestine, is used by healthful bacteria in the colon to produce short-chain fatty acids, which seem to protect colon cells. Antioxidants from a variety of phytochemicals, including triterpenoids, flavonoids, inositol, protease inhibitors and sterols." [More info]
Recipe adapted from, Andrew Weil’s Yucatan Black Bean and Sweet Potato Tostadas in Fast Food, Good Food
