This Southwest Sweet Potato, Kale and Black Bean Skillet is a delicious addition to your breakfast plate! Eat it on its own to keep it vegan, or build a plate with eggs, avocado and tomato. Perfect for meal prep!

If sweet potatoes and black beans are your thing, you’ll also love this Vegan Instant Pot Chili!

Sweet Potato, Kale and Black Bean Breakfast Skillet in a black skillet viewed from overhead

This is the first of many posts about adding vegetables to your breakfast! It’s so easy to reach for carb-loaded foods in the morning (think bagels and cereal…or Tim Horton’s drive through, if you’re Canadian like me), but with a little planning and prep, you can have a delicious, colourful meal waiting for you in the morning.

Although I developed this recipe to be a breakfast food, it would actually be great for any meal. It works as a lunch bowl, or as a side at dinner. No matter when you eat it, you’re doing your body a favour with all the amazing nutrients and fibre that are packed into this dish!

Ingredients

For the spice blend you’ll need

Ground cumin
Chili powder
Sea salt
Onion powder
Oregano
Smoked Paprika
Garlic powder
Black pepper

For the skillet you’ll need

Olive oil
Yellow onion
Garlic – 3 cloves
Red bell pepper – one large
Sweet Potato – about 1 large, grated
Green curly kale – 4 cups of bite size pieces (one large bunch should give you enough)
Black beans – a 15oz can, drained and rinsed

For serving, you could add

Eggs, if not vegan. I like to make egg “muffins” for meal prep – see below for instructions.
Sliced avocado or guacamole
Sliced cherry tomatoes or salsa
Grated cheese, if not vegan or dairy free
Hot sauce, especially Frank’s Red Hot

Sweet Potato, Kale and Black Bean Breakfast Skillet on a white plate served with avocado, sliced cherry tomatoes and an egg muffin

How to make it

1. Make the spice blend: in a small bowl, combine the cumin, chili powder, sea salt, onion powder, oregano, smoked paprika, garlic powder and black pepper. Set aside.

2. Heat about a tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet (you’ll need a skillet with a lid, or if you don’t have a lid, you can use a pizza pan as long as it’s large enough to cover your skillet…I’ve been known to do this in a pinch!). Once the oil is warm, add the diced onion and sauté until turning translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the diced bell pepper and continue to sauté another couple minutes, until the pepper starts to soften, then add the minced garlic and stir continuously for about 30 seconds.

3. Stir in the grated sweet potato, then spread it evenly across the bottom of the skillet. Cover and cook for about 3 minutes (covering allows the sweet potato to steam and cook faster). Stir the mixture, then cover again and cook for another couple minutes.

4. Sprinkle in the spice mix and stir until it evenly covers the sweet potato. Add the kale and black beans on top, but don’t stir. Season with salt and pepper. Cover to wilt the kale for about 3 minutes, then mix it up until the beans and kale are well distributed. Serve immediately or divide among 4 glass containers for meal prep. Cool completely before putting in the refrigerator.

How to make easy egg muffins

When I’m making eggs for meal prep to go along with another recipe, I keep it simple and bake eggs in a muffin tin.

Preheat oven to 350 °F. Grease a regular-sized muffin tin well, OR use 12 silicone muffin cups on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Crack one egg into each spot in the muffin tin (or one per silicone cup). Bake for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through. Silicone liners may need about 5 minutes more.
Cool for a few minutes in the pan and serve. If storing for meal prep, remove the eggs from the muffin tin to cool completely on a baking rack. This will prevent over cooking the egg. Overcooking eggs can bring on a chemical reaction that will cause a green/grey colour to form on the bottom of the egg muffin (it would still be fine to eat, but it’s not very pretty!).

Sweet Potato, Kale and Black Bean Breakfast Skillet in glass meal prep containers served with egg muffins

Do I need to grate the sweet potato?

For this recipe, I grated the sweet potato, rather than chopping into bite-size pieces. I did this for two reasons: one, it cooks faster when it’s grated and, two, it gives a nice texture to the dish! Fair warning though, the sweet potato in this skillet is not intended to get crispy. Crispiness wouldn’t hold up well to refrigeration and reheating, so that wasn’t the goal with this meal prep recipe.

How do I grate sweet potato?

I use my box grater because I prefer to clean fewer dishes. But, if you want to grate it faster (and with less arm muscle required), use a food processor with the larger-sized grating attachment. Be sure to peel the sweet potato first.

Tips for Success

1. Don’t let the sweet potato cook for more than a few minutes at a time without stirring. Some browning is great, but you don’t want it to burn! Be sure to start with a well oiled skillet.

2. Don’t skimp on the salt and pepper. Season to your taste!

More breakfast meal prep recipes