During the winter months, you can almost always find sweet potatoes waiting in my pantry. I love them steamed, boiled, roasted, baked, cooked on the stovetop… any which way. Recently I discovered their power to transform the summery, garden-fresh flavor of tortilla soup into a cozy, winter-friendly sweet potato tortilla soup.
There isn’t anything else too innovative about this sweet potato tortilla soup. I used frozen corn, and I have half a mind to use frozen zucchini next time too – the fresh zucchini was a fairly out-of-season purchase. Another element that really makes the soup cold weather-friendly for me is the fire-roasted tomatoes. I think they’re totally worth the splurge.
I had intentions of pairing this recipe with some gorgeous crispy stuffed sweet potato skins, to show you what can be done with the peel so that it doesn’t go to waste. But unfortunately, I was distracted trying to set up the photoshoot for the soup itself and burned them in the oven. I’ll try to make those again soon…
P.S. coriander seeds are one of those spices that taste so amazing when freshly ground, including in this soup! Investing in a cheap coffee grinder to grind my spices, and buying the spices whole from the Indian grocery store near me, has saved me a lot of money in the long run. I highly recommend this strategy!
Sweet Potato Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
- 1 to 2 tsp. olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 3 to 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium sweet potato peeled and diced
- 1 yellow or red bell pepper diced
- 1 jalapeno diced
- 1 medium zucchini diced
- 1 pinch ground black pepper
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ancho chili powder (or other chili powder)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp ground coriander
- 1 and 1/2 cups frozen corn (or use fresh if available)
- 28 oz diced or crushed fire-roasted tomatoes (I used two 14-oz. cans)
- 2 and 1/4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 and 1/2 cups cooked black beans (I used one can)
- juice of 1/2 of a lime
- optional garnishes: tortilla chips; chopped raw red onion; fresh cilantro; avocado
Instructions
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In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sprinkle with salt. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is softened and translucent, stirring occasionally to prevent the garlic from burning.
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Stir in the sweet potato and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the sweet potato is slightly softened.
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Add the bell pepper, jalapeno, and zucchini and saute for 5 minutes more, stirring occasionally.
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Add the black pepper, cumin, chili powder, cayenne pepper, and ground coriander, stir, and cook for about 1 minute, until fragrant.
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Add the corn, tomatoes, and vegetable broth, and stir. Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium heat. Simmer the soup, covered, for about 20 minutes, or until the sweet potato is cooked through.
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Uncover the soup, stir in the black beans, and simmer for 2 minutes more. Stir in the freshly-squeezed lime juice. Season to taste with additional salt, pepper, lime juice, and cayenne pepper. Serve hot, topped with garnishes of choice.
Recipe Notes
This recipe makes a fairly chunky soup. Add more broth after simmering the sweet potatoes if you want a thinner soup.
To make this sweet potato tortilla soup grain-free, omit the frozen corn, substituting with additional black beans if desired.
Sweet potato tortilla soup adapted from the the Oh She Glows Cookbook.
If you’re a sweet potato lover like me, try some of my other popular recipes that feature sweet potato!
BBQ Pulled Sweet Potato Sandwiches
One Pot Tandoori Quinoa with Sweet Potatoes and Chickpeas
I'm Shannon, the writer and photographer of Yup, it's Vegan! I'm a morning person based in Baltimore, USA. My mission is to create healthy plant-based recipes that anyone would enjoy, using seasonal produce with inspiration from global flavors.
Crystal says
Are the beans to be drained and rinsed?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Yes.
Cheyenne says
How long would you suggest cooking this if it’s done in a slow-cooker?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
I would guess the sweet potatoes would cook through in about 6 hours on low or 3 on high, but I haven’t tested this.
Aunt Lori says
It’s us again. We made this for dinner, omitting the jalapeño and going easy on the cayenne for kiddo palates. CJ approved with a dollop of guac and crumbled tortilla chips on top. Added in some hot sauce and a drizzle of chipotle in my bowl. Yummy. Love, Aunt Lori and CJ.👌❤️
Rachael says
Made this today. Turned out really good!! I️ blended up all the cooked veggies before I added the beans and corn due to picky eaters. I will definitely make it again! Thanks
Susan says
The recipe calls for diced sweet potatoes but the recipe photo looks like the sweet potatoes are cubed. Can you help me understand if I should dice or cube them? Thanks.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
The sweet potatoes are cut into small cubes which is the same thing as dicing. The exact size is not super important for this recipe though. Hope that helps!
Doug Zabor says
Superb. I made this twice over a three week span the the ultimate test of taking it to a church dinner group of non-vegans. It was a hit. Seconds for all. So colorful. And each time the results were the same, so directions and ingredients amounts and order were great.
FYI I used Ancho Chili powder which has more smokey or, perhaps, luscious flavor. But all good. Will now make for another group of non-vegans.
Deb says
I made this for dinner today and it was delicious. I loved how the sweetness from the sweet potato contrasted for the other flavors and it was light enough to enjoy a big bowl. Will definitely make again.
JALEESA says
Made this tonight and was very pleasantly surprised. I usually don’t like sweet potatoes in more savory dishes but it was not sweet at all. I topped it with some blue corn chips and spicy wholly guac. As I’m pretty new with the vegan journey this will definitely be a keeper. Thanks for sharing!
Izzy @ She Likes Food says
I always make sure to have some sweet potatoes on hand all winter long too! They are some of my absolute favorites and make everything that you add them to taste better! This soup sounds amazing!
jamee says
big bad having to go through a third party to save or print…i have my own system, tyvm! if all blogs use different programs, it will get quite messy
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Jamee, thanks for your comment! It would be really helpful if you could tell me exactly what isn’t working for you. On my computer, if I click print I’m taken directly to a printing page. It has ‘EasyRecipe’ in the url but logging in or creating an account is not required. And copy/paste is enabled if you want to copy the recipe details to your own personal location. I would love to help make this an easier experience for you but it is difficult for me to tell what your specific problem is.