Sweet Potato Tacos with Avocado and Pepitas

Sweet Potato Tacos are a delicious combination of mashed sweet potato, salsa, avocado, and crispy tortillas! This taco recipe is gluten-free, vegetarian, and can easily be made vegan.

Three mashed sweet potato tacos on a white plate.

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Ingredients
How to make sweet potato tacos
Top tips
FAQ
More vegetarian Mexican recipes
Recipe

I want to introduce you to the laziest tacos ever: sweet potato tacos. They hardly even need a recipe, that's how lazy they are. Don't let that fool you though, these tacos are bring maximum flavor with minimal effort.

I know mashed sweet potatoes might seem like a weird taco filling, but don't knock it till you try it! The creamy sweet potatoes are mixed with spicy salsa, then topped with a simple guacamole, cheese, and pepitas for crunch. It's a combination of flavors and textures that will make you reach for taco after taco!

Ingredients

Sweet potatoes
Corn tortillas
Olive oil or canola oil
Salsa
Avocados
Lime
Coarse kosher salt
Queso Fresco
Pepitas
Cilantro, optional

How to make sweet potato tacos

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Rinse sweet potatoes, jab with a fork a few times, and wrap each one tightly in aluminum foil. Place wrapped potatoes on a baking sheet and bake in the center of the oven until soft, about one hour.
Place a few drops of oil in a large skillet and heat over medium heat. Once hot, add one or two corn tortillas so they lay flat but don't overlap. Move the tortilla around to coat it in oil and let cook a few minutes until beginning to char and crisp a little. Flip and continue to cook until the other side is also charred. Remove to a plate and continue with as many tortillas as desired, adding a few drops of oil to the pan each time you add a new tortilla.
Meanwhile, remove the skin from the sweet potatoes and mash roughly with a fork in a medium bowl. Add salsa and stir.
In a small bowl mash avocados. Add lime juice and salt to taste and mix thoroughly.
To assemble the tacos, spread a layer of the sweet potato mixture down the middle of a tortilla, top with a dollop of avocado, and sprinkle with cheese, pepitas, cilantro, and more salsa if desired.

A hand holding up a mashed sweet potato taco.

Top tips

Frying the corn tortillas

If you think you don't like corn tortillas, I recommend you try frying them in a little oil. They come out a little chewy (a little crispy, a little soft) and perfectly bendable for holding your taco fillings.

If frying more than one tortilla you may need to keep adding a little oil to the pan each time you fry another tortilla. If you don't want to cook with oil and you have a gas stove you could also char them directly over a medium-low flame.

I like to dip one side of the tortilla in the hot oil before flipping it over to cook on the first side. This allows both sides to cook more evenly. You likely won't need to cook the second side for as long as you cook the first side.

Tortillas are done when both sides are lightly browned with a few darker spots. They should still be bendable with slightly crispy edges.

Preparing sweet potatoes

If you have the time you can make a few baked sweet potatoes in the oven in about one hour.

However, if you have an Instant Pot (affiliate link) you can do the same thing in about 25 minutes (including the time it takes to come up to pressure) similar to how we did when we made breakfast stuffed sweet potatoes.

How to store sweet potato tacos

These are best enjoyed shortly after making them, but if you need to store them, keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can reheat them in the microwave for about 30-60 seconds.

If you're able to fry the tortillas fresh before eating I would recommend doing that for the best texture. You can also freeze whole tacos for up to 6 months.

Tips for customizing sweet potato tacos:

Leave off the cheese to make them vegan
Swap whatever cheese you like such as cotija or monterey jack
Spice them up with a sprinkling of chili powder in the sweet potato
Sprinkle with chopped fresh jalapeños for extra spice
Add whatever other roasted vegetables you have on hand

A close up on a mashed sweet potato taco next to a lime wedge and a bowl of queso fresco.

FAQ

What's the difference between sweet potatoes and yams?

Yams and sweet potatoes are often confused for one another, but they're easy to tell apart. Sweet potatoes have a thin skin while yams have a brown, almost bark-like skin.

While sweet potato flesh can be orange, white, red, or purple, yams only come in white or purple. Yams also have a dry, fluffy texture similar to a russet potato while sweet potatoes have a creamy texture when cooked.

Why are mashed sweet potato tacos better than cubed sweet potato tacos?

While most sweet potato tacos are out there strutting around with their cubed sweet potatoes, I'm going rogue and letting you know that mashed sweet potatoes also make a great taco! Not only is the texture and flavor there, but it's WAY easier than spending time cutting.
Another bonus is mashed sweet potato won't fall out of your taco shell like cubed sweet potatoes will. It all just kind of stays put, ready to be delivered to your mouth.