Black Bean Sweet Potato Enchiladas
Amazing black bean and sweet potato enchiladas, smothered in salsa verde. A delicious, hearty vegetarian entrée.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on October 22, 2024
Quick! I’m sharing these enchiladas with you as a suggestion for a post-Thanksgiving meal this weekend (don’t forget, I have lots of vegetarian Thanksgiving options here).
The enchiladas are stuffed with creamy, hearty sweet potato, plus black beans, feta cheese, and spices. The sauce is super easy—just grab some mild salsa verde at the store. Or, you can go the extra mile and make your own.
Most restaurant enchiladas are so cheesy that I leave with a belly ache, but not these. They are delicious, satisfying and leftovers taste even better the next day. If you want to make a vegetarian dinner and hear, “I don’t even miss the meat,” these enchiladas are for you.
This recipe is actually one that I shared back in 2011, but it was missing some key instructions, like how to roast the sweet potato. So, I revisited it and tweaked it a bit, and they’re better than ever.
These enchiladas taught me some valuable lessons about cooking back then, so I’m leaving my notes for you below.
From 2011: Do you ever cut corners when you’re following a recipe? I do—all the time—and I’m always learning from my mistakes.
Take these black bean sweet potato enchiladas, for example.
I blundered through Gluten Free Goddess’ recipe, made it my own, and came out a better cook in the end.
Lessons learned:
- Substitutions can be ok: I subbed Target’s salsa verde for the Karina’s green chile sauce, which worked out fine.
- Skipping steps is usually not ok: I ignored her recommendation to warm up the corn tortillas first, so they broke to pieces when I tried to wrap the tortillas around the inside ingredients. As a result, my enchiladas weren’t as pretty as they could have been, but it didn’t affect the flavor. I need to trust that my fellow cooks will not recommend additional steps if they are not integral to the dish’s success!
- Additions are just fine: I love spicy food, so I knew adding a jalapeño was a good idea. And it was.
- Pay more for high quality ingredients: Packaged breads, including tortillas, tend to be full of preservatives and unnecessary ingredients. I paid more for these sprouted grain corn tortillas at my local health food store, and go figure, they taste better than the rest!
- Some flavors are so good together, you can’t go wrong: Black beans and sweet potatoes are a delicious combination. Even with all my mistakes, I ended up with a mighty delicious meal.
Please let me know how these enchiladas turn out for you in the comments! I hope they’re your new favorite.
Craving more Mexican-ish, cheesy goodness? Don’t miss my roasted veggie enchilada casserole or baked jalapeño poppers.
Watch How to Make Enchiladas
Vegetarian Black Bean Sweet Potato Enchiladas
Amazing black bean and sweet potato enchiladas, smothered in salsa verde. A delicious, hearty vegetarian entrée. Recipe yields 10 enchiladas, enough for about 5 servings.
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 ¼ pounds sweet potatoes (2 small-to-medium)
- 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked black beans
- 4 ounces (1 cup) grated Monterey Jack cheese
- 2 ounces (½ cup) crumbled feta cheese
- 2 small cans (4 ounces each) diced green chiles
- 1 medium jalapeño, seeded and minced
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon salt, more to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
Remaining Ingredients
- 2 cups (16 ounces) mild salsa verde, either homemade or store-bought
- 10 corn tortillas
- 4 ounces (1 cup) grated Monterey Jack cheese
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 tablespoon water
- ¼ cup chopped red onion
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup.
- Slice the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise and coat the flat sides lightly with olive oil. Place the sweet potatoes flat-side down on the baking sheet. Bake until they’re tender and cooked through, about 30 to 35 minutes. Leave the oven on, since we’ll bake the assembled enchiladas soon (no temperature adjustments necessary).
- Meanwhile, pour enough salsa verde into a 9 by 13-inch baking dish to lightly cover the bottom (about ½ cup). In a medium mixing bowl, combine all of the remaining filling ingredients.
- Once the sweet potatoes are cooked through and cool enough to handle, scoop out the insides with a spoon. Discard the potato skins, and lightly mash the sweet potatoes with a fork or the back of a spoon.
- Stir the mashed sweet potato into the bowl of filling, and season to taste with additional salt (I added ¼ teaspoon) and pepper.
- Warm up your tortillas, one by one in a skillet, or all at once in a microwave so they don’t break when you bend them. Wrap them in a clean tea towel so they stay warm.
- Working with one tortilla at a time, spread about ½ cup filling down the center each tortilla, then wrap both sides over the filling and place it in your baking dish. Repeat for all of the tortillas.
- Top with the remaining salsa verde and cheese. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until sauce is bubbling and the cheese is lightly golden.
- Let the enchiladas cool for about 5 minutes. Whisk the sour cream and water together to make a drizzly sour cream sauce. Drizzle it back and forth over the enchiladas, then top them with cilantro and red onion. Serve.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Gluten Free Goddess.
Make it gluten free: Use certified gluten-free corn tortillas.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Omit the cheese. Stir a scant 1 cup vegan sour cream into the filling, reserving a few tablespoons for drizzling on top. Once baked, thin the vegan sour cream with a little extra water to make it extra-drizzly and drizzle it on top as shown.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
The black bean and sweet potato enchiladas are sooooo good!!
These are delicious! Will definitely make them again. Only problem was that the tortillas fell apart when I moved the enchiladas from pan to plate. Any advice on keeping them intact?
Hi Denise, glad to hear it! I wonder if a different brand of tortilla might hold up better. Other than that, maybe let the enchiladas cool a bit longer before serving, and use a sturdy wide spatula for scooping. Hope that helps!
I TOTALLY forgot to let them cool, so that’s probably the issue. They looked and smelled so good, I didn’t wait!
I made these but with flour tortillas because corn is unhealthy, and they were absolutely delicious! 10/10
IEIS– Corn is unhealthy vs flour? That’s the opposite of the general accepted sentiment on the topic.
Forgot to mention in my earlier comment that I made the vegan version and, instead of vegan sour cream, I added a small can of creamed corn to the filling. It was FABULOUS!
Hi! My family loves this recipe! I was wondering if these can be made ahead at all (or frozen)? I wasn’t sure if the tortillas would get soggy? Thank you!
Hey Bekah, glad to hear it! I’m planning to do some extensive casserole freezing tests soon in order to offer better guidance. I suspect that you could assemble these a day or two in advance before baking, though I haven’t tried. There’s a chance the tortillas might get soggy, but maybe not terribly so? I’m really not confident in offering freezer suggestions, but will definitely update the recipe notes once I figure it out.
Thank you so much! I’ll be so curious what you learn!
I froze half of the sweet potato filling for another time, and it held up really well! Then I just needed to assemble and bake :) These are SO yummy, and I share this recipe with everyone. Thank you!!
I’ve made this dish twice now and both times froze the left over filling — and both times it held up spectacularly and made the next assembly that much easier.
I love this take on enchiladas! Whenever my friends tell me they are trying to eat more vegetarian meals, I share this recipe with them. Thank you so much!!
How would this go with red enchilada sauce? My daughter doesn’t eat spicy so I have red and the green sauce. I guess I will know soon! Thanks for the recipe! Love your site!
I think red enchilada sauce would be great!
Highly recommend this recipe!! So good!
Thank you for sharing, Megan!
These are seriously so good! My husband who regularly reminds me that he misses meat even said how much he liked them and is asking if we can make them again pronto! That’s a high compliment!!
Wonderful to hear, Jen! Thanks for your review.
Thanks for this recipe! It was easier than I anticipated, and I’ll definitely make it again. (I also roasted the potatoes a couple hours before I started prepping dinner and that made it all the more a breeze.) It’s harder to find the canned diced green chiles here in the UK, but it was still great without them!
I just made this for dinner and it is fabulous!!! Thank you so much for the great recipe! A hit with meat eaters, even!
I LOVE this recipe. I was trying out different vegetarian recipes and this dish really stood out to me. I was amazed with how delicious it was and highly recommend giving it a shot if you are on the fence. It was fun to make as well.
Can they be frozen?
These should freeze well, Lillian.
My daughter request this recipe all the time. We usually make it as written, which is delicious, but lately we’ve been avoiding dairy. We followed the recipe, but omitted the cheese and sour cream. We topped with homemade cashew cream, chopped red onion, and cilantro. Still amazing. Thank you for such an awesome recipe!
Sounds like a great way to make this work for you, Cathy!
I made this during the 2020 isolation period, when delicious, comforting food seems especially important. It exceeded all expectations!! The prep was surprisingly easy, and even with mods due to the food on hand (had to sub mozzarella and cheddar for the jack and feta; omitted a can of green chiles), it was incredible! Savory, creamy, flavorful and hearty– I think hubby thanked me 5 times during dinner. :) Thank you so much for the recipe!!
Great to hear it was a hit and that you were able to make it work with somethings you had on hand, Janelle! I appreciate your comment and review.
I’m making now and want to freeze….should I assemble and then freeze and then bake when ready for them? Or should I assemble bake and freeze?
Hi Gloria! That’s a good question, and I’m doing some test runs soon for a freezer guide. I’m not 100% confident, but I think the odds would be more in your favor if you bake, allow to cool completely, then freeze. Then, you can simply reheat until heated through.
This recipe came out so good! I wound up using larger lowcarb wraps and cutting them in half to fit across the length of the pan. So tasty and easy to reheat the next day under the broiler! Will certainly make these again.
Delicious. Will definitely use again. I used regular salsa but salsa verde will definitely be tried next time.
This Is one of my favorite dishes!! I was so happy once our store got beans back in stock so I can make it during our “safer at home” lockdown. HORRAY Enchiladas!
Excited to try this recipe today! Have all ingredients except for canned black beans. Darn it. Have cannellini, dark red kidney and retried black beans. Might these work as substitute?
Out of your list, you could try refried beans or red kidney beans? The texture of refried would be a little different, but still work. Red kidney would give you different flavor too.
Loved this recipe! I always tent to steer away from the recipe if I don’t have something but I followed this one 99% and it was absolutely delicious.
Two changes I made:
More beans, 1 extra jalepeno
Result was a delicious spicy enchilada with hints of sweetness in every bite.
Loved this recipe! I always tent to steer away from the recipe if I don’t have something but I followed this one 99% and it was absolutely delicious.
Two changes I made:
More beans, 1 extra jalapeno
Result was a delicious spicy enchilada with hints of sweetness in every bite.
Love to hear that, Preeti!
So happy to realize that I had all the ingredients on hand to make these, and even happier for the accolades at the dinner table! My husband who normally doesn’t appreciate vegetarian meals went back for seconds. Success! Thanks so much!
Kate, every single recipe I have attempted that is created by you is absolutely stellar. These enchiladas are no exception. My entire family gobbled them up and wanted more. I used your homemade tomatillo salsa with these – WOW. Simply delectable.
I’m always impressed with how you manage to perfectly blend flavors and balance spices and textures. Thank you for sharing your beautiful creations!
Could this be layered and made into a casserole instead of rounded up enchiladas? If so, how would you modify it? Thanks!
Hi Karen, You could try it. I do have a enchilada casserole: https://sooka.info/vegetarian-enchilada-casserole-recipe/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
I made this tonight and used your homemade red enchilada sauce instead of tomatillo salsa since we didn’t have it…wow yum!! Thanks for a great meatless option!
I made these last night and topped them with your Quick-Pickled Onions — so delicious. Thank you for helping me expand my collection of meatless meals!
This was delicious! I agree the sweet potatoes and black are a natural. I used green salasa as the enchilada sauce. I put extra cheese and a sprinkling of raw onion in each tortilla then the sweet potato/black bean mix. Almost-vegan wife was happy. Good, easy meal. Thanks.
Made the recipe exactly as described. It is now easily one of my favorite recipes! Even my non-vegetarian family went back for seconds and asked for the recipe.
With about 1/2 c. filling in each enchilada, I ended up with 9 enchiladas.
This recipe is the best! I have come back to this recipe time and time again. Now that we are making bulk meals it’s been doubled and tripled.
Thank goodness for you, Kate!
P.S.
The only thing we add is roasted bell peppers – any extra filling gets eaten on the spot. Haha
These are by far my family’s new favorite. We were not precise with the ingredients, but the general flavors were fantastic. We used turmeric instead of cumin. We omitted the feta. We used chipotles in adobe for a rich, smoky dimension instead of the green chiles. We felt so nourished with the sweet potatoes and black beans.
Thank you.
this recipe has earned a spot in our regular dinner rotation. i usually make it as written, but this week i didn’t have any salsa verde so i used your enchilada sauce and i think it was even better!
Thank you for sharing, Carolyn! I appreciate your review.
How long will these freeze for?
Hi Samantha! Recipes like this usually last for 3 or so months. If longer, you tend to get freezer burn.
delish/made for the family tonight, they loved em. my daughters hate sweet potato.
Are half of the instructions missing?
Hi Elsa! I’m seeing all steps from 1 through 9. Are you not?
Sorry I think it was my phone. Looks like a great recipe. I’m excited to try it. Thanks.
Made this today was AMAZING! We don’t get Canned salsa verde in the UK so I used your roasted red pepper sauce instead and it was still just super super tasty! I was going to freeze it but as it’s so tasty I’ll eat it again tomorrow! Thank you so much I’m going to try the butternut squash tacos next! Love your work ! Xx
Delicious! Will make again for sure!
This was so yummy! My picky eater husband approved! He’s usually a big skeptic with sweet potato but he was the first to say “this is so good” tonight!
Really good! Such an interesting mix of ingredients but totally on the mark!! Everyone in my family liked it!!
What temperature do you bake the enchiladas at?
Hi Mary! 400 degrees F, just like roasting the vegetables. I hope this helps!
This is one of my favorite recipes to make. It’s so easy and delicious!
Thank you for sharing, Rachael!
I accidentally peeled sweet potatoes and are roasting them now. Can I still use them?
For sure! Did you slice them in half or into smaller cubes? Either way works. Cubes might be done sooner than suggested within the recipe. Just bake until they’re nice and tender. You could try mashing some of the cubes with a fork for some creamy texture.
Hi, what could I replace the salsa verde with? It’s impossible to find here in France and tomatillos don’t exist here…
Or it is possible to make a kind of salsa verde with regular tomatoes instead?
Thank you for your reply!
Hi Annie! I think you’ll want to use either red salsa or enchilada sauce instead (I’d probably opt for the enchilada sauce). If you make the sauce, use a mild chili powder (I’ve heard they’re generally quite spicy outside of the States).
Just made these except I added chicken to half of them cuz you know the boyfriend can’t eat anything without meat in it ♀️ But they were a hit! Sweet mixed with the spicy was a perfect combination! Will definitely try this recipe again ☺️
OK I never, ever leave comments. But I have to tell you I have been making this recipe for 2 or 3 years and it is my go to comfort food, it is so, so good. Truly a splendid recipe that everyone loves. I double the recipe now with my houseful of quaran-twenties (adult kids) it is gobbled up at a single meal. Your recipes are wonderful, solidly successful, and I thank you for everything you put into your site and sharing your recipes
Can you use flour tortillas instead?
Sure! The smaller-sized flour tortillas (about 8″ diameter) will work well. Given their larger size, you’ll likely want to stuff them fuller than indicated here, so you’ll end up with a few less enchiladas (but each enchilada will be more hearty).
Thank you for answering the question about flour tortillas! I am not a huge fan of corn tortillas so I was going to substitute flour tortillas:)
Made these tonight for my family of 4. My daughter and I are vegetarians and then I have two meat lovers and the meat lovers really liked it a lot and agreed I can add it to the rotation. I added some raw chopped onion to the filling and doubled the chili powder to kick it up a little. Will definitely make again and recommend to some friends.
I’m so glad to hear it, Kelly! Hooray for a dish that pleases everyone. Have a great weekend!
This was so delicious! My family loved it.
This was really delicious. I baked the sweet potato ahead of time, so it made a quick weeknight dinner.
I made this recipe for the second time tonight and it is my new addiction. The filling is my favorite of any enchilada I have ever made. I used homemade tortillas for half of the enchiladas tonight and they held up way better than the store bought ones. Looking forward to my lunch leftovers!
One of my favourite Cookie & Kate recipe’s! There’s so much flavour packed into these tasty enchilada’s. An idea for any leftover filling mix is to fry up a quesadilla the next day. Thanks Kate!
Thank you, Annie! This is a great favorite to have.