The nachos to end all nachos…the most epic Sweet Potato Nachos recipe ever! With just 4 ingredients and a quick blitz under the broiler, this healthier nacho recipe will be ready in minutes. Full of flavor and perfect as an easy dinner idea for the family. {Recipe first posted on May 14, 2014. Last updated, February 17, 2022}
Any other middle aged runners out there?
I’m the girl, who in the sixth grade had a quasi panic attack when told I was going to have to run a mile for some presidential youth fitness challenge (thanks a lot George H.W. Bush). I don’t think I even went once around that track before I passed out. Let’s just say I’ve been calisthenically challenged my whole life.
10 years ago, in my early 30s, I had the brilliant idea to go for a jog and my love of running was born. Just this past week I even agreed to be the assistant coach for my kid’s track team! My 12-year-old self would never believe it.
I just love the way it makes me feel. There’s a freedom to it that can’t be beat.
Another (more obvious) reason I’ve gotten into running is it allows for a significant carb load every now and again. One of my current favorites are these sweet potato nachos.
Really, melty cheese on anything floats my boat, but caramelized roasted sweet potato fries topped with creamy black beans and smoked cheddar cheese is outta this world.
Why You Need To Make These Sweet Potato Nachos
Maximum flavor. Minimum effort. With just 4 ingredients, this recipe is dead simple, but definitely not boring. Each ingredient highlights a different flavor: sweet potatoes, creamy black beans, smoky cheese, and fresh cilantro–it’s the perfect combination!
Completely adaptable. Think of this nacho recipe as a jumping off point. Enjoy them just how they are or add pico de gallo, seasoned ground turkey, roasted bell peppers, guacamole, thinly sliced jalapeños, sour cream, whatever you like, the options are endless.
Way more nutritious than tortilla chips. Using sweet potatoes as the base for these nachos ups the fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Although if you did want to use tortilla chips instead, you could go with baked tortilla chips and still be pretty healthy.
More Sweet Potato Recipes
Sweet Potato and Chorizo Quiche
Ingredients
No funky cheese sauce here just four basic ingredients (plus salt and olive oil) and the rest is up to you!
- Sweet Potatoes
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Canned black beans
- Smoked cheddar cheese
- Chopped cilantro
How To Make Them
Toss the sweet potatoes with the oil, salt, and pepper in a large bowl if you like. I like to do it right on the sheet pans–one less dish to wash.
step one
Cut the sweet potatoes. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into 1/2-inch thick sticks. Some of them will be more like 1/4 inch but try to get them as even as possible.
step two
Bake the sweet potatoes. Divide them between two sheet pans so they have plenty of room. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper, then spread out into an even layer.
Arrange the oven racks so one is at the top of the oven and one is at the bottom of the oven. Bake at 425°F until tender, rotating the pans halfway through. Start checking after 20 minutes, mine usually take around 25 minutes.
step three
Prepare toppings. While sweet potatoes are baking, drain and rinse the beans, shred the cheese, and chop the cilantro.
step four
Make nachos. Once sweet potatoes are tender, transfer one baking sheet of sweet potatoes to an oven-safe platter or leave them on the baking sheet and serve the nachos from there.
Top with half of the beans and half of the shredded cheese. Place the other baking sheet of sweet potatoes on top and finish with the rest of the black beans and cheese.
step five
Broil nachos. Heat broiler to high and arrange the oven rack to the middle of the oven. Place the nachos under the broiler and broil until cheese is browned, melted, and bubbly. This will take anywhere from 3-5 minutes.
step 6
Garnish and serve. Top nachos with cilantro and any other toppings you’d like to add. Serve immediately!
What Readers Are Saying About This Recipe
You guys are just LOVING this recipe and better yet, making it your own—which just makes me so incredibly happy. Here are a few raving reviews from readers:
“I forgot to buy black beans! I used vegan crumbles instead and added roasted corn. My family loved it and said they want it on the menu often. So good!” – Elisa Jones
“I used sweet potato waffle fries instead. Tasty!” -Anne Cato
Hungry For More?
How about making some loaded sweet potato nachos for breakfast? These Sweet Potato Breakfast Nachos are EVERYTHING!!
More Easy Vegetarian Recipes You’ll Love!
- Best Ever Canned Black Beans
- Creamy Lentil Soup with Salsa Macha
- Vegan Ceviche with Avocado and Lime
- How To Make Huevos Rancheros At Home
- Homemade Sofrito Black Beans
- Spicy Vegan Enchilada Recipe
- Step-by-Step Huaraches Recipe
Fill Your Belly with Healthy Nachos!
If you love nachos you are going to really dig these nachos topped with all the good stuff! When you try them, please snap a pic and tag me on Instagram @holajalapeno and #holajalapeno so I can see or leave me a comment below (don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating) ! Also, make sure to sign up for my weekly newsletter, lots of good stuff there too!
Sweet Potato Nachos with Smoked Cheddar and Black Beans
The recipe below is a pretty pared-down version but you could top to your heart's content. Browned and crumbled chorizo, sliced jalapeños, or shredded chicken would all be delicious tucked in between the sweet potatoes. Or you could leave them as is and serve them with a plethora of toppings like guacamole, salsa, pickled jalapeños, or sour cream.
Ingredients
- 4 large sweet potatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 (15.5 ounce can) black beans, drained and rinsed
- 8 ounces smoked cheddar cheese, shredded (about 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese)
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Heat oven. Arrange racks in the upper and lower third of the oven and heat the oven to 425°F. Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into 1/2-inch thick sticks.
- Bake sweet potatoes. Divide sweet potatoes evenly between two sheet pans and drizzle each pan with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Season generously with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Spread out the sweet potato sticks into a single layer and roast in the oven until tender, about 25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through.
- Heat broiler. Remove sweet potatoes from the oven and move the upper rack to the middle of the oven. Heat the broiler to high.
- Assemble nachos. Transfer one tray of sweet potatoes to an oven-safe platter and top with half the black beans and half the cheddar. Top with the other tray of sweet potatoes and layer the remaining black beans and cheddar over the top.
- Broil. Place under the broiler until the cheese is melted and bubbly, 3-5 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 340Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 37mgSodium: 436mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 6gSugar: 11gProtein: 13g
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Congrats on the 5k! Any distance is a challenge and an accomplishment – high five! And these nachos…I have a few sweet potatoes sitting in my pantry…just looking for some cheese! Have a great weekend!
Thank you Mallory! You have a great weekend too (guaranteed these nachos will make them better)!
Congrats on your 5k race, Kate!!!
This dish looks terrific! I am about to drool over my keyboard…
Thanks Denise! You have to make them…they are ridiculously good!
Congratulations! I have yet to actually run a race, but I really do want to do it soon, thanks for the inspiration! And I know I will want to reward myself with these nachos, they sound amazing!
Hi Tiffany! Thank you! You just have to get out there and do it. You won’t believe how amazing it will make you feel. I’m rootin’ for you girl! xo
you guys are SO cute! Congratulations! I love that you said that about how you feel in your head. I feel the same way in my head when I am working out to good music. like it’s my secret inside my headphones- lol! Oh yeah! these “nachos” look amazinG!
Thank you Heather, I know what you mean. Sometimes when I’m at the gym I pretend like no one can see me and lip-sync to my music in what is probably a really obnoxious way—oops, I didn’t see you starring at me from the elliptical. :0
Stumbled upon this recipe and conveniently had a sweet potato lying around so I gave it a try. I like spice, so I added cumin, paprika, and hot pepper flakes to the sweet potatoes while baking them. Turned out very delicious! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Thank you! I bet it was good with the spices—I’ll be giving that a try next time!
Hi Kate, congrats on your first, and likely not last 5k! As an ex smoker, my first 5k 17 years ago changed my life. Another perk is the recovery meal, which I plan to use your recipe for this Saturday night. Thanks & best of luck to you!!
Thank you Terri! Yes, I’ve ran 2 other 5Ks since this one and I’m planning on running another in September. I hope your run went well, congratulations to you too!
These look incredible!! Definitely a must try. Congrats on the 5k! I will be including this recipe in a round up on saturday. i do hope that is ok. if not, please let me know I will remove it. Have a great weekend!
Thank you so much for including me in your round up! I really appreciate it! Have a great weekend!
Congratulations on your accomplishment!! I saw a picture of this recipe while looking for ideas for some recipes for Thanksgiving leftovers. Ready to try it right now. Looks yummy. Thanks. And keep up the good work.
Thanks so much Carol! I’m preparing now for next year, there will be more 5Ks in my future, for sure! Happy Holidays to you!
oh my god… my mouth is watering. we are making these tonight!
Thanks so much Katie! I hope you love them as much as we do!
Great recipe! I added some corn, salsa, taco sauce and mozzarella cheese. Can’t wait to make it again.
Gonna totally do these tomorrow for gameday but make them vegan by using Daiya and sprinkling with some smoked paprika!
Sounds delicious!! What time shall I come over? 🙂
Esta receta de sweet potatos nachos me encantó. Soy fans de la cocina mexicana. Amo tus recetas.
Muchísimas Gracias Fabiola!
Kate the recipe is exactly what I need this wekend my detox is over. A healthyish sheet of nachos! This recipe sounds amazing!
Oh yes! Perfect Super Bowl food!
Congrats on your 5k!
And I love every single one of the ingredients in this recipe! Yummy!!
Oh, thank you so much Estefania! I hope you give them a try!
Everything looks delicious. what a craving I’ve been
Thank you so much Adriana!!
I accidentally ended up with a glut of sweet potatoes and this came up in a search. I had half a can of black beans in the freezer, so it was fate 🤷♀️
Added ground cumin, coriander & Mexican chilli to the chip seasoning. Sadly the avocado was way too green for guacamole, but added green onion and corn with the beans & cheese, and topped with sour cream and salsa.
Will make again. I find sweet potatoes too sweet, usually, but this was the bomb.
Congrats on the 5k. I started with a 5…now I have 2 ultras and 6 maras under my belt, with two more trail ultras booked this year.
Running is as addictive as good food, so be warned!
Thanks Kym! I’m so happy you liked them! And wow! Congrats on the races. I’m still running too!