Description
With a touch of planning ahead, this super easy taco-style meal comes together in a breeze! Flavorful taco meat and riced vegetables are paired with creamy and sweet Japanese sweet potatoes!
Ingredients
- 4 servings sweet potatoes, about 1.5 pounds (I prefer Japanese or white, but any will do)
- 1 pound grass-fed ground beef (or any ground meat)
- ½ jar of salsa – hot, medium, or mild – about 1 cup, or 8oz
- 10–16 oz riced vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, or a combo)
- 8 oz frozen (chopped, organic) spinach or other greens
- Optional: ½ teaspoon each oregano, cumin, red pepper flakes (really not needed, but if you’ve got these spices on hand, they’re a great flavor boost!)
- Optional Toppings: cilantro, avocado, more salsa, hot sauce, lime cashew crema
Instructions
- First, prepare the sweet potatoes. I usually let them bake ahead of time on Sundays or Mondays while I’m doing other things, but you can totally “bake” them in your microwave! (Oven: pierce skin 4-6 times all over; bake 45-90 minutes on 425. Microwave: pierce skin 4-6 times all over; microwave 5-8 minutes, rotating halfway through.) I make a batch of baked sweet potatoes nearly every week to go with breakfast, lunch, or dinner, so I always have them ready, but if you don’t, use your microwave!
- Grab a large skillet – one with a lid can help speed things along, but it isn’t necessary. Brown the ground meat (with optional spices).
- Add frozen vegetables (riced veggies and frozen spinach) and stir well, then stir in the salsa. Cook uncovered or covered until warmed through. (Covered takes 4-5 minutes.)
- To serve: Split the sweet potatoes in half – I usually buy large sweet potatoes, so one potato is often 2-4 servings. Add a serving of sweet potato to each plate, then top with the ground beef and vegetable mixture!
- Optional Toppings: cilantro, avocado, more salsa, Lime Cashew Crema, Green Chile Cashew Crema, hot sauce – I highly recommend topping with cilantro if you’ve got it. Herbs are super packed with nutrients!
Notes
Although I listed a lot of toppings, I very rarely top this dish with anything besides maybe a little more salsa! The sweet potato – ground beef – salsa combo is really delicious, flavorful, and filling.
Also, you can definitely spread this out to 5 servings, especially if you have more sweet potatoes or if you’re not on Whole30 and you’re in the mood for black beans.
- Method: oven, stovetop
- Cuisine: Mexican-American