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Crispy Jerk Sweet Potato Tacos

21 February, 2017 by Giselle Rochford 26 Comments

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with veggies. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner.

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with plant-based goods. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner. ExSloth.com

Over the weekend we were hit with unseasonably warm weather here in Canada. I’m talking 15+ C or 59+ F, if you’re into that kind of thing.

Obviously, I opted to spend the majority of my long weekend outdoors celebrating the uncommonly good weather. But the few hours I did spend at home were used to make some summer inspired eats and drinks.

And by that I mean tacos and margaritas.

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with plant-based goods. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner. ExSloth.com

The margs were gone the second I made them so I don’t have any photos – or a recipe really – to share. However, I did manage to take pics of these crispy jerk sweet potato tacos before I devoured them.

The idea for these jerk sweet potato tacos has actually been kicking around in my mind for a few months now. So I’m really glad the weather and this month’s Recipe Redux theme aligned perfectly to encourage me make them a reality.

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with plant-based goods. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner. ExSloth.com

The recipe is fairly simple and only takes about 40 – 50 minutes. I made my jerk marinade from scratch this time but I’ve used the store bought stuff in the past and it was just as good.

After making the marinade you have a couple options. First, you can precook and marinate the sweet potato for a couple hours, before breading and baking. The jerk flavour shines through a bit more  but it does add a couple hours to the prep time.

Alternatively, you can dredge and bread the uncooked sweet potato and bake right way. The sweet potato isn’t as intensely jerk flavoured but this method is much quicker and yields slightly crispier pieces.

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with plant-based goods. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner. ExSloth.com

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with plant-based goods. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner. ExSloth.com

Either way, these crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with lots of plant-based goodness. I topped mine with kale, avocado, this mango pineapple salsa and an easy cilantro yogurt drizzle.

Next time I plan to go for coleslaw and this cilantro-line avo dressing, which I think will go amazing together. But since I know tacos are intensely personal things, feel free to switch up your toppings as you see fit.

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with plant-based goods. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner. ExSloth.com

If you make these crispy sweet potato tacos, I’d love to hear what you think. Leave a comment and rate the recipe or take a pic and tag it @ExSloth on Instagram!

More Caribbean-inspired recipes:

  • lentil rice bowl with plantains
  • cilantro pesto pasta
  • mango pineapple slaw

These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with plant-based goods. They make a great vegan lunch or dinner. ExSloth.com

Crispy Jerk Sweet Potato Tacos
 
Print
Prep time
15 mins
Cook time
35 mins
Total time
50 mins
 
These crispy jerk sweet potato tacos are hearty, spicy, flavourful and filled with veggies.
Author: GiselleR @ ExSloth.com
Recipe type: Lunch, Dinner
Cuisine: Vegan
Serves: 8
Ingredients
For the sweet potato:
  • 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
  • ⅓ cup flour*
  • ¾ cup almond milk*
  • ¼ - ⅓ cup jerk marinade, more or less to taste
  • 1 cup breadcrumbs
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • ½ tsp chili powder
  • ¼ tsp allspice
  • salt and pepper to taste
For the jerk marinade:**
  • 3 green onions
  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme*
  • 2 tbsp cilantro
  • 2 shallots or ½ an onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tsp grated ginger
  • ½ tbsp coconut or brown sugar
  • 1½ tsp ground allspice
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp nutmeg
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 - 2 scotch bonnet peppers, more or less to taste
  • ¼ cup soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp vinegar
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • juice of ½ an orange
For the cilantro yogurt drizzle:
  • ¼ cup unsweetened vegan yogurt
  • ¼ cup cilantro
  • 1 tbsp milk
  • juice of ½ a lime
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • optional: scotch bonnet pepper or pepper sauce to taste
For the tacos
  • flour or corn tortillas
  • veggies of choice - I used kale, tomatoes, cilantro, mango, pineapple and avocado
Instructions
For the marinade:
  1. Add all ingredients to a blender and process until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. You will have extra.
For the cilantro yogurt drizzle:
  1. Add all ingredients to a blender and process until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Refrigerate until ready to use
If marinating sweet potato:
  1. Cook sweet potato until tender by boiling, steaming, baking or microwaving
  2. Add sweet potato and jerk marinade to a bowl and mix to combine. Set aside to marinate for 1 - 2 hours
  3. Once ready to cook, preheat oven to 425F and mix together breadcrumbs and spices in a bowl
  4. Working in batches, coat 3 - 4 marinated sweet potato pieces in breadcrumbs and transfer to a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Continue until all sweet potato is coated
  5. Bake until crispy, 15 - 20 minutes, turning or tossing once halfway through to so they brown evenly
If baking sweet potato without marinating:
  1. Preheat oven to 400F
  2. Add flour to one bowl, almond milk and jerk marinade to another and breadcrumbs and spices to a third
  3. Working in batches, coat 3 - 4 sweet potato cubes in flour, submerge in milk/marinade mixture then coat in breadcrumbs
  4. Transfer to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and continue until all sweet potato is coated
  5. Bake until sweet potato is tender, 20 - 25 minutes, turning once halfway through then increase temp to 425F and bake for 5 - 10 more minutes or until sweet potato is browned and crispy
Assemble the tacos:
  1. Warm tortillas in oven or in a dry skillet
  2. Top with veggies, sweet potato and cilantro yogurt drizzle and serve immediately
  3. Sweet potato is best when served immediately but will last in the fridge for 2 - 3 days. Reheat in oven or toaster oven
Notes
*you won't need the milk or flour if you plan to marinate cooked sweet potato before baking
*can sub fresh thyme for ½ tbsp dried thyme
*can use store bought jerk marinade if you prefer but you may need to thin it out a bit or use less depending on how spicy it is
3.5.3226

Want more tacos? Try these for breakfast:

These vegan breakfast tacos are filling and flavourful, especially when topped with this super simple mango pineapple salsa via @ExSloth | ExSloth.com

recipe-redux-linky-logo

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Filed Under: Mains, Apps & Sides, Recipes

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Comments

  1. Emily says

    21 February, 2017 at 10:05 am

    These are genius Giselle; seriously it’s amazing how you combined so many flavors; you would have a lovely exotic restaurant if you had one! :o)

    Reply
  2. Denise says

    21 February, 2017 at 3:29 pm

    I love jerk combinations and these tacos look great!What a creative way to fix those sweet potatoes!

    Reply
  3. Izzy | pinch of delight says

    21 February, 2017 at 3:32 pm

    This looks so good!
    I love sweet potato! 🙂 x
    Izzy |https://pinchofdelight.wordpress.com

    Reply
  4. Stephanie@ApplesforCJ says

    24 February, 2017 at 2:31 pm

    These look amazing!! I have some sweet potatoes I was trying to decide what to do with. I’ll be giving this a go really soon. That marinade I’m sure just puts this over the top 🙂
    Stephanie@ApplesforCJ recently posted…Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad

    Reply
  5. Veena Azmanov says

    24 February, 2017 at 5:13 pm

    I love anything jerk.. and this look so delicious. So colorful too!

    Reply
  6. rachel @ athleticavocado.com says

    24 February, 2017 at 5:22 pm

    So in love with the sweet potato “meat” in these tacos! Such a tasty plant-based meal perfect for taco tuesday 🙂
    rachel @ athleticavocado.com recently posted…Crispy Barbecue Spiced Brussels Sprouts {Vegan,Paleo + Whole30}

    Reply
  7. ManilaSpoon says

    24 February, 2017 at 5:59 pm

    I just read the recipe ingredients and was wowed by the yummy flavors from the marinade you used for these sweet potatoes. What a delicious meat-free alternative to the usual tacos!

    Reply
  8. Adriana Lopez Martn says

    25 February, 2017 at 12:16 am

    I am in love with sweet potatoes really enjoy cooking with them and this idea of yours is so creative and perfect. Must try it soon at home.

    Reply
  9. Gloria @ Homemade & Yummy says

    25 February, 2017 at 10:41 am

    What a great “meatless” taco recipe. Jerk seasoning is so delicious. Sweet potatoes are so nutritious and are perfect to round out a meal.
    Gloria @ Homemade & Yummy recently posted…Freezer Friendly Egg Muffin Baked Omelette

    Reply
  10. Gunjan says

    25 February, 2017 at 12:41 pm

    I like the ingredients of your marinade. Also how nicely and beautifully you crisped the sweet potatoes. I will try your way of crisping sweet potatoes because yours look perfect.

    Reply
  11. Amy says

    25 February, 2017 at 3:04 pm

    The flavors in these tacos sound amazing! Like, my mouth is seriously watering just thinking about them.

    Reply
  12. Corrine says

    26 February, 2017 at 9:20 am

    That jerk marinade sounds amazing! I’ve always wanted to try and make it myself, might have to get on that this weekend. Thanks for sharing!
    Corrine recently posted…Roasted Cauliflower with Chickpeas and Toasted Coconut

    Reply
  13. Dene' V. Alexander says

    26 February, 2017 at 2:34 pm

    How cool is this!?! What an awesome idea that I would love to try!!

    Reply
  14. Megan Marlowe says

    26 February, 2017 at 4:17 pm

    CAn I just say that I LOVE that you breaded the sweet potatoes to make them crunchy? I love a little texture to my food so this is perfect! I’m totally digging these and that pineapple slaw, YUM!
    Megan Marlowe recently posted…Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas

    Reply
  15. swathi says

    26 February, 2017 at 5:50 pm

    Your jerk sweet potato tacos looks delicious, I need to give it a try. I know sweet potato goes with any seasoning. while ago I tried barbecue spiced sweet potato tacos. .

    Reply
  16. Christine McMichael says

    26 February, 2017 at 8:05 pm

    Love that these are vegan! Also love jerk tacos, so will definitely need to try this recipe!

    Reply
  17. Hanady | Recipe Nomad says

    27 February, 2017 at 12:21 am

    The flavor combination sounds amazing! I have a lot of sweet potatoes in my pantry and now I know exactly what to do with them!

    Reply
  18. Molly Kumar says

    27 February, 2017 at 1:12 am

    I;m so hungry looking at them !! I love the combination of jerk chicken tacos and with the mango pineapple salsa & cilantro yogurt sauce, this would be just super yum.

    Reply
  19. Natalie | Natalie's Food & Health says

    27 February, 2017 at 8:39 am

    This looks so SOOO delicious! I LOVE crispy baked sweet potato. Such a brilliant and delicious idea. I could eat a whole plate of these tacos, no doubt that. Pictures are so beautiful too. Sharing this!
    Natalie | Natalie’s Food & Health recently posted…Easy Carrot Ginger Soup

    Reply
  20. Julie | Bunsen Burner Bakery says

    27 February, 2017 at 10:42 am

    These sound so good!! I love sweet potato tacos, and that seasoning sounds incredible. I bet the tacos would be great with portobello mushrooms, too.
    Julie | Bunsen Burner Bakery recently posted…Sheet Pan Asian Salmon

    Reply
  21. Kylee from Kylee Cooks says

    27 February, 2017 at 10:51 am

    Sweet potatoes are awesome for adding to tacos! The jerk flavoring would complement it perfectly. What a lovely dinner idea.
    Kylee from Kylee Cooks recently posted…Whole Wheat Banana Oatmeal Muffins

    Reply
  22. Amanda says

    27 February, 2017 at 8:45 pm

    This is so unusual, but I totally love the flavors in this. I’ve never tried making a vegan taco, but this sounds delicious!
    Amanda recently posted…Maple Sesame Glazed Chicken and The Migraine Relief Plan- A Book Review

    Reply
  23. Daniela Anderson says

    28 February, 2017 at 5:04 pm

    I have only tried the flour tortillas, although I guess that the corn ones are as tasty. I would definitely make this dish, it looks amazingly colourful and tasty, the kind of healthy food you can’t have enough of. Sweet potatoes are always a big hit in my family.
    Daniela Anderson recently posted…One-pan pesto quorn meat free pieces with veggies

    Reply
  24. Sandhya Ramakrishnan says

    1 March, 2017 at 2:31 pm

    We are vegetarians and this is a great way to use sweet potato meat in the taco. Thanks for the jerk marinate recipe, I think marinating makes the dish much more flavorful and I would not mind spending that extra time.
    Sandhya Ramakrishnan recently posted…French Green Lentil Salad with Balsamic Vinegar Dressing

    Reply
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    Here https://mediaonemarketing.com.sg/top-burgers-singapore/ you can try the iconic burgers from professional chefs and find exactly the perfect taste for which you will definitely come again and again.

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