Recipe first published on February 17th, 2012. Last updated on October 20th, 2015.
If you follow me on instagram, you probably already know that Mack and I are currently soaking up all things fall in Illinois (M is at home working, so I promised him I'd make a pie upon return). Coming home always brings with it a bit more nostalgia, especially during fall. The feel of the crisp air, watching the leaves change, and being curled up in my youth bed (which is a three-quarters antique four-post bed that creeks amazingly loud with every move). And so I've let my nostalgia spill over to the blog by sharing these tacos (and another recipe on Thursday). Both are a couple of my favorite recipes from the archives that have been updated with new information and new photos.
Hands down, this recipe is the most popular one from the site (with good reason). The chipotle seasoning is such a great pairing with the sweet potatoes and the guacamole helps balance the spice. It's the type of meal that is hearty enough to sustain you through a winter day while still feeling fresh.
The taco shells: When I originally posted these tacos, they were in a blue corn hard shell (as seen here). I actually prefer the crispness of the hardshell with these sweet potato tacos but it's rare that I have them in the house so I usually eat them with soft shells. Use whichever you prefer!
The guacamole: I've only made one change to the entire recipe over the years and it was to ditch the tomatoes. I've actually become a fan of not having tomatoes in my guacamole and with these tacos a good fall/winter treat- store bought tomatoes didn't make a good addition. However, if you're a tomato fan, you can definitely add them back in.
The sweet potato: I will always make these tacos with sweet potatoes because in my book, that's what they are best with. However, if you have some cubed butternut squash or pumpkin you're looking to use up, it would work well in these tacos.
Make it a Soup: Melissa from The Fauxmartha used these tacos as inspiration to make a sweet potato taco soup.
Make it vegan: Swap out the honey for your favorite sweetener and that's it! I would recommend keeping some type of sweetener though, it helps to cut down the spice from the chipotle!
I know, I want to use the chipotle-honey marinade on everything 🙂 We've been making similar tacos for a healthy, quick dinner around here. Yum!
These seriously need to be in my life. I am freaking in love!
Yes, I agree- it NEEDS to be in your life 🙂
Lovely! I adore chipotle and sweet potatoes. I often toss diced sweet potatoes with chipotles in adobo, roast, and use them to top salads. So delicious.
Great photos too, lady. Looks great.
Thank you! I have a feeling I'll be eating this combo on salads once summer hits!
O wOw!
Going to make these tonight for dinner and I'm super zigged! Thank you for sharing, they look awesome! : )
This looks delicious. The adobo sauce, honey, lime combo is intriguing me.
Absolutely making these next week!
Just stumbled upon your blog and am so pleased that I did. It's absolutely gorgeous! Awesome recipes and fantastic photos! 🙂 I too have a blog focusing on vegetarian & vegan food at thefigtree.blogspot.com 🙂 It's nice to see someone share the same interests as me. Have a lovely day!
Thank you!
Love everything about this meal!
This is the first time I am at your blog. I was looking at the tacos and it looked so delicious. I like your blog.
[...] Chipotle sweet potato, black bean, and guac tacos @ Naturally Ella [...]
I have at LEAST three recipes on my blog that combine honey and chipotle...it really is a miraculous combo. And this shall surely be a fourth! Sounds SO tasty.
Wow that looks amazing. I just finished subliminally making my boyfriend love avocado (he was not a fan at first. Something about it being green...) so I think he would love this recipe. Speaking of unprocessed, do you have your own recipe for making taco shells?
I'm still working on that! I do have a recipe for homemade flour tortillas (which could turn this into a delicious soft-shell taco!) https://naturallyella.com/2010/01/22/426/
This link doesn't seem to work! 🙁
I use this recipe replacing the lard with butter or olive oil: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/homemade-flour-tortillas-233305
Made this, more or less, the other night - it was sublime! I served the bean/sweet potato combo over a bed of quinoa, instead of as tacos, and added a diced orange to the guacamole mixture. Soooo good, and will definitely be making a frequent appearance in the rotation.
I have recently made some changes to how my family eats, and strive for 5 'meatless' dinners a week. Love the recipes on your blog - so happy to have stumbled across it. 🙂
That's an awesome goal for your family! I think this is a great recipe to have in your rotation!
Made this last night! The flavors were delicious and Guacamole and chipotle sauce really complemented each other nicely. Husband enjoyed as well. I definitely will be making again but will tweak the recipe a bit. One complaint I have is that the sweet potatoes took much longer than anticipated (I cut the potatoes really small too). I think I might try to cook the sweet potatoes in the oven with some chipotle adobo sauce (so you can walk away and not stand and watch them cook. Plus you get a little crispiness to the potatoes). Once they are done, through them into the onions, add the sauce and beans and then dinner is done. I think also I might like the guacamole on top instead of at the bottom, but that is just my preference. Thanks for the recipe!!
Agreed. Was just checking comments to see if anyone else got stuck waiting for the potatoes to cook through! Beautiful recipe, though- Can't wait till it's ready!!!
Uh oh- sorry to hear you're having trouble getting the potatoes to cook. I wonder what's happening. I've cooked this dish so many times without issue. What kind of pan are you using?
This looks amazing! I can't wait to try the recipe. I shared this on: http://fuckyeahvegantacos.tumblr.com/post/18524588916/chipotle-sweet-potato-black-bean-and-guac-tacos
xotaco!
Hi Erin,
I just made these and ate them and my boyfriend and I thought they were amazing! It had the perfect combination of sweet and spice. I recently started making healthier meals, but one of the problems I've encountered is that the food is often bland. Many blogs I've been to have recipes that sound and look good but require too many ingredients and time. This took me about a half hour and I had most of the ingredients. Thanks so much for posting something easy and delicious!
You're welcome! I'm so glad you enjoyed them!
These look so amazing! Recently had sweet potato tacos for the first time (with chicpeas) and these look equally delicious!
[...] you read ROASTED avocado. That was a mistake, but boy it was a pretty delicious one. After seeing Naturally Ella’s Chipotle Sweet Potato, Black Bean, and Guac Tacos, I was inspired to make something simple with some butternut squash. I love the nutty flavour of [...]
My husband has recently gotten way more on board with vegetarian eating, mostly because of recipes like this one! He seriously kept saying ... "I don't know if I've ever tasted anything this good before..." Thank you!
You're welcome! That's what I like to hear!
Love these! I've made them twice this last week. Love the combination of the chipotle, honey and lime. I could eat that over and over. Made burritos with whole wheat tortillas, plain greek yogurt and a handful of fresh spinach. Was awesome! Thanks for a great recipe.
My 12 year old, EXTREMELY picky, little sister ate these with us the other night. and actually LIKED them!!
Definitely worth the work. Appeals to the entire palate- sweetness of the potatoes and honey, sourness from the lime and spiciness from the chipotle!! NOM NOM!!!
Yes! That's what I like to hear!
Made these last night and they were SO good. Next time I'm making double.
[...] creating healthy, seasonal (and affordable) vegetarian dishes that will make your neurons fire. Her Chipotle Sweet Potato, Black Bean & Guac Tacos will blow your mind (I had to say it, ’cause it’s true!). The spicy, sweet, and citrusy [...]
Wow..these look really interesting! Another favorite combination of mine is chipotle and raspberry.
This is a great recipe, I made them twice already, they are delicious and really easy to make. Thank you, you saved my dinner tonight!
[...] to try these sweet potato + black bean tacos. Yum! (via snippet & [...]
Holy Moly! Saw this on pinterest and tried thm after a friend said she made them. These were delicious! Even my "sweet potato hating" husband loved them! Thank you for sharing!
Guacamole + chipotle = tastttteeee. Love the blue corn tortillas and totally impressed you broke out the mortar and pestle instead of pulling the lazy me way with my food processor.
hahaha- the only reason I did that because I don't have a dishwasher and am too lazy to wash the food processor 😉
I am not a vegetarian by any stretch of the imagination, but I do try and make healthy food choices and I am trying to go meatless several days a week for my cholesterol issue.. I don't know what these will taste like, but my house smells amazing right now! If I don't like the way they taste, what a great air freshener it makes!! Haha.. anyway.. love your site, it is giving me lots of ideas for great food to try!!
OH MY!! Dinner is done! I don't know how in the world you stopped at just 2!! These are amazing! Thanks!!
[...] Chipotle Sweet Potato Black Bean Tacos from Naturally Ella [...]
[...] Chipotle Sweet Potato and Guac Tacos [...]
This recipe is out of this world! It's so refreshing to have something different, and you're right - I didn't miss the cheese, salsa or sour cream one bit! Thank you!
Sounds delicious!
[...] Chipotle Sweet Potato, Black Bean & Guac Tacos. Definitely trying this superfood recipe! Share this:EmailShare on TumblrPrint Pin ItLike this:LikeBe the first to like this. [...]
[...] me want to live on a farm. Best recipes: Snap Peas and Soba Noodles with Honey Soy Dressing, Chipotle Sweet Potato, Black Bean, and Guac Tacos, Pumpkin Oat Bread (pictured)4. Prevention RDWhat I like: Nicole for being a registered dietician [...]
[...] my chipotle sweet potato and guac tacos I seem to always crave? My dear friend Melissa from the Fauxmartha makes them on the regular and [...]
[...] addition to the pizza we made tonight, last night we made some sweet potato tacos. We loosely followed the recipe but they turned out really well. The mix of the sweet potatoes and [...]
[...] favorite dinner: chipotle sweet potato tacos. Made them twice in the last week, mmmm… via [...]
I made these last week, and they were delish! I added ground turkey to the recipe in order to appease my husband, who refuses to eat a meal without meat. We enjoyed it, but I can't wait to make them again without the turkey. Great recipe, thanks!
[...] Chipotle Sweet Potato, Black Bean, and Guac Tacos @ Naturally Ella Share this:TwitterFacebookPinterestStumbleUponTumblrDiggRedditPrintEmailLike this:LikeBe the first to like this. [...]
[...] whipping up quickly before a party. Or do what we did last Sunday night and scoop some on top of these chipotle sweet potato tacos from Naturally [...]
These were so good. I love how the honey takes away that harsh taste of the chipotles in adobe sauce that I'm not fond of. Definitely making these again!!
I just made this and seriously I'm 100% in love. So amazingly yummy. Thanks for the amazing recipe and ENTIRE WEBSITE!
These were delicious!!! I'm planning on using the sweet potato mixture for breakfast burritos and just as a delicious side dish. So great!!!!
[...] you read ROASTED avocado. That was a mistake, but boy it was a pretty delicious one. After seeing Naturally Ella’s Chipotle Sweet Potato, Black Bean, and Guac Tacos, I was inspired to make something simple with some butternut squash. I love the nutty flavour of [...]
Erin, these are seriously divine. I made a double batch for our super bowl party (we had shrimp & BBQ pork options as well) and I found myself indulging in these as my favorite! My boyfriend's two young sons (one has a dairy issue & we suspect a gluten issue too like his dad) come over every weekend & we introduce them to a new veggie or two and healthier alternatives than they get the other five days a week. I know they love ground beef in their tacos, so I can see this mixture easily becoming little patties, quickly sauteed up in the skillet to go with an egg or two for a healthy weekend breakfast. I made up another double batch last evening & will be enjoying it over the next few days! I love how inexpensive, healthy, and delicious these are and will become a bi-weekly staple in my kitchen.
[...] kind of obsessed with the combination of chipotle/honey/sweet potato that I first came across in these tacos (my favorite!) from Naturally Ella. It’s good in everything! Well, that might be an [...]
[...] breakfast tacos ever since Kimberly posted her tacos with a radish salsa. I love veggie tacos (especially these sweet potato ones.) I had an abundance of Kale and cilantro from the CSA and I’ve been learning more about [...]
[...] was immediately drawn to this recipe from Naturally Ella. I love the classic combo of sweet potato and chipotle, and love even more that that they come [...]
These tacos do look addicting! Adding it to the menu for next week...
These tacos are AMAZING. We made them last night and stuffed ourselves full! We used a whole 15 oz can of black beans just to avoid leftovers and the proportions were still perfect. SOOOO good. And fast! And easy! Thank you!
Hi there! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! It was an instant hit at my house and I've made a variation of it several times. I posted some pictures of the "taco salad" version on my blog (with links back to you), if you are interested Chipotle Sweet Potato and Black Bean Taco Salad . Honey Chipotle. SO YUMMY.
Cheers,
Lindsey
sugar is smoking
I hope you're loving Illinois and all the beautiful fall they're having right now. These tacos look fantastic. I'm not usually a tomato in guac type of person, but I'll allow it when the tomatoes are bright, juicy, acidic cherry tomatoes that are perfectly ripe.
There is NOTHING better than the combination chipotle spices, sweet potato, and guac. Plus tacos, oh my goodness. Can I have a margarita on the side? 🙂
Ahh this looks so good! I never really thought of combining sweet potato and chipotle, but it really seems like a no-brainer now!
This looks delicious and healthy. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Ahh!! Delicious!!! I love tacos!!!
I LOVE this website. But two comments on this particular recipe--I can't imagine using that much chipolte and adobo sauce. Just too, too hot. Also sweet potatoes take a lot longer to cook. I added water to steam sauté. I doubled the recipe and used a whole can of black beans, so as not to waste.
Thanks for the comments Deb! I've never had trouble getting my sweet potatoes to cook but I always make sure they are 1/4" cubed- good suggestion for those having trouble though.
Congratulations for your site, is beautiful and complete, I was looking for vegetarian recipes for long, but I always find the same again and again and I was really disappointed, but just looking your first page I was excited, I want to try every recipe, and think this way can be difficult move on to vegetarian life. I love sweet potato and Squash and you did a great job with them. Thanks so much, I’m your follower right now.
yep yep yep. just made your recipe and love it! i'll need to tone down the heat for my gringo family, but thought the flavors were well balanced. thanks!
Hands down the BEST sweet potato black bean taco recipe I've ever found!! I am absolutely in love. I would give this 10 stars if I could.
I did make a few small changes: I roasted the sweet potatoes at 425 degrees F for about 15 min with olive oil, salt, and pepper. I also doubled the amount of beans and seasonings. I think I'll make this citrus slaw to go with it: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/red-cabbage-citrus-slaw.html
Made this for lunch today for the first time. Love at first bite. Love the heat with the sweet. I added a bit of greek yogurt/lime/cilantro sauce to the top too and liked the bit of coolness. Thanks for sharing this. Amazingly delicious!!
I'm literally waiting for the last 15 min to be done and the tasty chipotle smell is killing me! I want to eat now! As a vegan (and mexican), I don't need the honey but extra lime juice and believe me...It tastes great! As far as I can smell! lol!
Thanks a lot for your brief explanation about this amazing recipe, I will surely gonna try it and share it with my family 🙂