Switch out traditional potato salad for this flavorful Mexican Sweet Potato Salad! This easy gluten free and vegan recipe is filled with healthy and delicious ingredients like quinoa, avocado, black beans and peppers. Serve it as a side dish with carne asada, tacos or fajitas, or meal prep it for lunches throughout the week.

Mexican sweet potato salad in bowl

Table of contents

When it comes to eating healthier, no one (especially me!) likes to compromise taste. That’s why I always try to create healthy recipes that are still packed with flavor!

When it comes to potato salads, I usually think of the salads served at Summer BBQ’s that are weighed down by tons of mayonnaise, and provide little nutritional value. This sweet potato salad, on the other hand, has tons of nutritional value, it’s gluten free and vegan, yet still packed with protein from the quinoa and black beans.

This recipe is also right on track for keeping with my goal of creating flavorful, delicious recipes, that are also healthy! This salad is delicious served cold, making it perfect for meal prep. Mix up the salad on Sunday and eat a delicious salad throughout the week.

It’s also a great side dish for your next Mexican meal. This Mexican-style sweet potato salad goes great with grilled meats, like carne asada or fajitas. It’s also the perfect pairing for tacos and enchiladas!

ingredients for Mexican sweet potato salad on white wood board

Ingredients

  • Sweet potatoes – sometimes labeled as yams in American grocery stores, you want potatoes with a reddish-brown skin and orange flesh.
  • Quinoa – you can cook the quinoa up to 3 days ahead of time and mix it into this salad. I recommend checking out this blog post for how to cook quinoa 3 ways, on the stove, in an Instant Pot or in a rice cooker. Hint: the Instant Pot is my favorite method, and the fastest method!
  • Black beans – to make this recipe easy, I recommend using canned black beans that have been drained from the can and rinsed.
  • Red onion
  • Red bell pepper
  • Jalapeño – if you don’t like spice, feel free to leave out the jalapeno. This salad is definitely not spicy because we remove the seeds and membranes (which hold most of the heat) from the jalapeno. But if no spice is your thing, simply omit the jalapeno, or replace it with 1/4 cup diced green bell pepper.
  • Avocados – the avocados are the base of the salad dressing. Since avocados vary greatly in size, and the amount of flesh in each avocado varies depending on the size of the seed, I recommend measuring out the avocado after the skin and seed has been removed. You’ll need 1 cup of avocado for this recipe.
  • Garlic – I always recommend fresh minced cloves for the best flavor!
  • Ground cumin + salt – to season the salad dressing.
  • Ground chipotle pepper (or chili powder) – I love the slightly smoky flavor of chipotle powder, but if you can’t find it at the store, feel free to use chili powder in it’s place.
  • Fresh cilantro
  • Lime juice – I always recommend fresh-squeezed for the best flavor.
  • Olive oil – or another neutral-flavored olive oil, like vegetable oil or avocado oil.

Instructions

I’ve included step by step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full detailed recipe instructions, recipe video and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

black beans, quinoa and diced vegetables in mixing bowl with avocado salad dressing
Mexican sweet potato salad mixed together in large mixing bowl
  1. Cook the sweet potatoes. Peel and dice the sweet potatoes into small cubes. Bring a large pot of water to boil on the stove. Once the water is boiling, add the sweet potatoes and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until fork tender. Make sure to remove the sweet potatoes from the boiling water before they’re falling apart. Usually 10 minutes will be enough time. Drain and rinse the sweet potatoes, then place them in a large mixing bowl and into the refrigerator to cool while preparing the rest of the salad ingredients.
  2. Cook the quinoa. If you don’t already have cooked quinoa, you can cook the quinoa while the sweet potatoes are boiling, either on the stove, in an Instant Pot or in a rice cooker. To cook the quinoa on the stove, add 1/2 cup quinoa to a medium pot with 1 cup of water, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Follow this link for instructions on how to cook to quinoa in an Instant Pot or rice cooker. Once you cook the quinoa, transfer it to the bowl with the sweet potatoes in the refrigerator to cool.
  3. Dice the veggies. Dice the red onion, red bell pepper and jalapeno. Add them to the bowl with the sweet potatoes and quinoa, along with the drained and rinsed can of black beans.
  4. Prepare the salad dressing. Add avocado, garlic, cumin, chipotle chili powder, cilantro, lime juice and olive oil to a blender. Blend until smooth and creamy.
  5. Toss the salad. Add the salad dressing to the bowl with all of the other ingredients. Toss until the salad is fully coated in the dressing. Be sure to toss it lightly, so that you don’t accidentally mash the sweet potatoes or black beans.
sweet potato salad in large serving bowl with spoon

Pro tips

  • Be sure not to overcook the sweet potatoes! Because the potatoes are diced so small, they only need about 10 minutes to cook in boiling water. If you overcook the sweet potatoes, they will fall apart and your salad will be mushy.
  • I always recommend measuring out the avocado for the dressing. Since avocados vary greatly in size, I’ve found over the years that it’s best to measure the avocado flesh to 1 cup. This recipe was originally written to be made with 2 avocados. But if the avocados are really large, that will be too much and the dressing will weigh down the salad. Usually 2 small avocados, 1 1/2 large avocados or 1 extra-large avocado will equal 1 cup of avocado once the skin and seed has been removed.
  • Always cool the sweet potatoes before mixing up the salad. If the sweet potatoes are still hot, they’re more likely to fall apart when you mix up the salad. I recommend at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator. But you could also cook them up to 2 days ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator before making the salad.
  • Be gentle when mixing up the salad! Both sweet potatoes and black beans are easily mashed up if they’re mixed too vigorously with the other ingredients. Take your time and gently toss the salad with the dressing.
  • This sweet potato salad recipe is naturally vegan and gluten free.
  • Store leftover sweet potato salad in an airtight container in the fridge. I do not recommend reheating the salad, as it’s best eaten cold. The salad should be eaten within 7 days.
  • If you prefer to roast the sweet potatoes, instead of boiling them, toss the diced sweet potatoes with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Arrange them in an even layer on a baking sheet and into a preheated 425°F oven for 15 minutes, or until fork tender. Transfer the roasted sweet potatoes to a large bowl and cool them in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before preparing the salad.

Optional additions

While this salad is perfect just the way it is, if you want to add some cheese, spice it up or incorporate more veggies, here are some of the ingredients that I’ve added to this salad over the years!

  • Cherry tomatoes
  • Queso fresco or cotija cheese
  • Corn – either drained and rinsed from the can, or cooked, then removed from the cob.
  • Pumpkin seeds – 1 or 2 tablespoons sprinkled on top adds a nice crunch to the salad.
  • Serrano peppers – mince up 1 or 2 serrano peppers to add spice to the salad.
  • Jicama – 1/2 cup of diced jicama added with the peppers, adds a nice crunch to the salad.
sweet potato salad with quinoa and black beans in bowl with forks

What to serve it with

This salad is delicious as a meal on it’s own. It also makes a great side dish with grilled meats, or paired with your favorite Mexican main dish. Try it with any of these popular recipes!

More sweet potato recipes

Try these other popular recipes with sweet potatoes!

Thai Peanut Sweet Potato Buddha Bowl

Honey Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Sweet Potato Ravioli

Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Chipotle Chili

Sweet Potato Soup

Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
sweet potato salad in bowl with forks
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Mexican Sweet Potato Salad

Switch out traditional potato salad for this flavorful Mexican Sweet Potato Salad! This easy gluten free and vegan recipe is filled with healthy and delicious ingredients like quinoa, avocado, black beans and peppers. Serve it as a side dish with carne asada, tacos or fajitas, or meal prep it for lunches throughout the week
Servings: 8 people
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Author: Whitney Bond
Course: Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Sweet Potato Salad

Avocado Salad Dressing

Instructions

  • Add the diced sweet potatoes to a large pot of boiling water on the stove.
  • Cook for 10-15 minutes or until fork tender (but not so tender they’re falling apart).
  • Remove from the heat, drain and transfer to a large bowl.
  • Place the bowl of sweet potatoes in the refrigerator to cool for at least 30 minutes while preparing the rest of the salad.
  • While the sweet potatoes are cooling, cook the quinoa on the stove using the instructions below, or follow this link for instructions on how to cook to quinoa in an Instant Pot or rice cooker. 
  • Add the quinoa to a medium pot with 1 cup of water, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes.
  • Remove the quinoa from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes.
  • Add the cooked quinoa to the bowl of sweet potatoes in the refrigerator to cool.
  • Dice the red onion, red bell pepper and jalapeno.
  • Add the diced veggies to the bowl of sweet potatoes and quinoa, along with the can of drained and rinsed black beans.
  • To make the salad dressing, add the avocado, garlic, cumin, chipotle pepper powder, cilantro, lime juice and olive oil to a blender or food processor.
  • Blend until smooth and creamy.
  • Pour the dressing over the sweet potato salad and gently toss to combine.
  • Serve immediately, or store in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve the salad.

Video

Notes

  • Avocados – the avocados are the base of the salad dressing. Since avocados vary greatly in size, and the amount of flesh in each avocado varies depending on the size of the seed, I recommend measuring out the avocado after the skin and seed has been removed. You’ll need 1 cup of avocado for this recipe. Usually 2 small avocados, 1 1/2 large avocados or 1 extra-large avocado will equal 1 cup of avocado once the skin and seed has been removed.
  • Be sure not to overcook the sweet potatoes! Because the potatoes are diced so small, they only need about 10 minutes to cook in boiling water. If you overcook the sweet potatoes, they will fall apart and your salad will be mushy.
  • Always cool the sweet potatoes before mixing up the salad. If the sweet potatoes are still hot, they’re more likely to fall apart when you mix up the salad. I recommend at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator. But you could also cook them up to 2 days ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator before making the salad.
  • Store leftover sweet potato salad in an airtight container in the fridge. I do not recommend reheating the salad, as it’s best eaten cold. The salad should be eaten within 7 days.

Nutrition Facts

Serving 4servingCalories 336kcal (17%)Carbohydrates 45g (15%)Protein 7g (14%)Fat 15g (23%)Saturated Fat 2g (10%)Sodium 274mg (11%)Potassium 896mg (26%)Fiber 11g (44%)Sugar 6g (7%)Vitamin A 16520mg (330%)Vitamin C 26.4mg (32%)Calcium 70mg (7%)Iron 2.7mg (15%)
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