These Thai-inspired peanut stuffed sweet potatoes with crispy chickpeas take loaded sweet potatoes to a whole new level of yum! Ready in as little as 15 minutes, this easy vegan meal is as tasty as it is nourishing. Tender sweet potatoes are topped with crispy chickpeas, the most addictive Thai curry peanut sauce and a simple, fresh cabbage slaw.
Thank you to Stahlbush Island Farms for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.
If you're looking for a sweet potato dinner idea that's not only quick and easy, but also super delicious and budget friendly, this vegan recipe is for you! Nutrient and fiber rich, this plant-based meal is feel-good and satiating. Sweet, savory, salty and tangy, this is a flavor rich sheet pan recipe which is kid-friendly and includes a gluten-free option.
How to Make Thai Peanut Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Crispy Chickpeas
Simply roast the chickpeas at the same time as the sweet potatoes. While they bake, prepare the peanut sauce and the easy cabbage slaw.
Step 1: Bake the Sweet Potatoes and Chickpeas
The beauty of this vegan sheet pan meal is that it nearly cooks itself - the sweet potatoes and chickpeas can all be done on a baking tray in the oven freeing up your time for something else. While I use large baking sheets, I chose to use one for the potatoes and one for the chickpeas. The chickpeas will be crispier when there's air flow between them rather than being crowded.
Tips for Baking Sweet Potatoes:
Baked sweet potatoes are one of the easiest bases for any healthy meal. Simply scrub them, pat them dry and brush with a little oil so the skins get a bit crispy. No peeling necessary! The skins helps keep the moisture locked into the sweet potatoes so the insides are tender, creamy and flavorful!
As this is a quick meal, we don't want to wait an hour for our sweet potatoes to bake, which is how long baked potatoes typically need. The solution? Cut the sweet potatoes in half to bake them, cutting the time down to only about 25 minutes. If your sweet potatoes are on the smaller side, they may be ready in as little as 15-20 minutes. Regular potatoes are great in this recipe, too, and have similar cooking times.
Tips for Roasting Chickpeas:
I used Stahlbush Island Farms' frozen chickpeas which have the best texture and are perfect for crisping (no overcooked, falling apart chickpeas here!) Simply thaw the chickpeas and rub them dry. Drying chickpeas before tossing them in oil and seasoning allows the oil to remain on the chickpeas rather than sliding off. This results in crispy, flavorful exteriors!
Short on Time?
While the prep time for these Thai Peanut Stuffed Sweet Potatoes is pretty short, we can make it even quicker if we cook the sweet potatoes in the microwave and pan fry the chickpeas. While this method is faster, I prefer the baking option for crispy potato skins and hands-off cooking.
Baked Sweet Potatoes in 5-12 minutes. Cook the sweet potatoes in the microwave. Using a sharp knife or a fork, poke holes all over the sweet potatoes and place them on a microwave safe plate. These holes will allow the steam to escape so that the sweet potatoes don't explode during cooking. Cook them on high power for about 5 minutes for each sweet potato plus an additional 2 minutes for each additional sweet potato. Carefully turn them over halfway through cooking (use tongs). You'll know they are cooked when there isn't any resistance when you poke the potatoes in the middle with a fork. If there is, continuing cooking them for 30-60 seconds increments until they are tender. Cooking times will depend on the size of the sweet potatoes. Many microwaves even have a potato cooking preset which is helpful.
Crispy Chickpeas in 5-10 minutes. Toss the dried chickpeas in oil and seasoning per the recipe. Sauté the chickpeas in a bit of oil in a skillet on medium high until they are lightly browned and crisped as desired. This takes about 5-10 minutes.
Step 2: Whisk Together the Peanut Sauce
The Thai curry peanut sauce is loaded with flavor and you may find yourself wanting to pour it on everything! I usually make a double batch - it keeps well and is great for last minute meals like veggie bowls, salad wraps and noodles. This sauce is very similar to satay sauce and is also great for coating fried tofu and tempeh.
Start by dissolving the Thai curry paste with boiling water. Doing so prevents lumps of curry paste in your sauce, and the boiling water is enough to make the sauce warm for serving. I used a yellow Thai curry paste as it has less heat than red or green Thai curry pastes. Green curry paste is typically the spiciest. Use whichever you prefer and adjust the amount to taste.
Once the Thai curry paste is dissolved, whisk in the rest of the peanut sauce ingredients. Here we use a combination of soy sauce for saltiness and umami, maple syrup for subtle sweetness, lime juice or rice wine vinegar for acidity, ginger and garlic for their rich flavors and (of course) peanut butter! Any type of peanut butter works in this sauce - crunchy varieties will obviously give you more texture. I use a natural creamy peanut butter for a robust peanut flavor.
Step 3: Toss the Coleslaw Together
The easy cabbage slaw is mayo-free, bright and so simple. Nothing against mayo, but for fresh, tangy flavors we're going with just a bit of oil and lime juice here. Toss the shredded cabbage, green onions and cilantro together with the oil, lime juice and salt and you're done!
Serving Stuffed Sweet Potatoes as a Main
To serve these Thai peanut stuffed sweet potatoes, top each sweet potato half with the crispy chickpeas, peanut sauce and then the slaw. Other baked sweet potato toppings that are great here include vegan sour cream, chopped peanuts and a dash of hot sauce if you like a little more heat! We find these are enough as a dinner main, but if you're really hungry a side of soup ought to round this vibrant meal out.
Storing Leftover Thai Peanut Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
These stuffed sweet potatoes are best served straight away. If you have leftovers or are doing some meal prep, store the coleslaw separately. Like any salad, it will soften as time goes on. We enjoy the potatoes stored with the chickpeas and peanut sauce already assembled, but naturally the chickpeas will lose their crispiness. To enjoy the chickpea leftovers crispy, you'll need to store them separately and then reheat in a bit of oil in a hot skillet on the stovetop.
More One-Pot Vegan Meals:
- Pesto Risotto, Roasted Tomatoes and Chickpeas
- One-Skillet Baked Greek Lemon Chickpeas and Rice
- Garlic Miso Pasta
- Sweet Potato Lentil Curry
If you make this Thai Peanut Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Crispy Chickpeas recipe, please give it a rating in the recipe card and leave a comment below! Follow along on Instagram where you can tag me in your creations using my recipes! You can also follow me on Pinterest for vegan recipe inspiration and on Facebook. Thank you for reading!
Thai Peanut Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Crispy Chickpeas
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 4-6 medium sweet potatoes, washed and patted dry
- 1 tablespoon vegetable or sesame oil
For the Thai Peanut Sauce:
- ½ cup hot water
- 1 tablespoon Thai curry paste (see notes)
- ½ cup natural peanut butter
- 3 tablespoon soy sauce (or tamari for gluten-free option)
- 2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar (or lime juice)
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated or minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
For the Crispy Chickpeas:
- 16 oz cooked chickpeas, drained and rubbed dry in a clean tea/paper towel (about 2 cups)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Easy Cabbage Slaw:
- 2 cups shredded cabbage
- ¼ cup green onions, sliced (about 3)
- 1 carrot, peeled and shredded
- ⅓ cup cilantro leaves, torn
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- black pepper, to taste
Serving Suggestions:
- vegan sour cream
- roasted peanuts
Instructions
For the Sweet Potatoes:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C/gas 7. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Cut the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise. Brush them all over with oil and set them cut side down on the prepared baking sheet. Roast them in the oven for 20-30 minutes, or until soft through the middle when pierced with a fork. Smaller sweet potatoes will cook faster than larger ones.
For the Crispy Chickpeas:
- In a small bowl, toss the dried chickpeas with the oil, onion powder and salt. Place the chickpeas in a single layer on the same baking sheet as the sweet potatoes if there's room. Otherwise, use a separate parchment lined tray. Roast for 15 minutes. If you like really crispy chickpeas, roast them on a separate baking sheet and increase roasting time to 20-25 minutes, or until they've reached desired crispiness.
- While the sweet potatoes are roasting, prepare the Thai peanut sauce and cabbage slaw.
For the Thai Curry Peanut Sauce:
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the hot water and Thai curry paste until the paste is dissolved. Add in the rest of the peanut sauce ingredients, whisking until smooth.
For the Easy Cabbage Slaw:
- In a medium sized bowl, toss all of the ingredients for the easy cabbage slaw together.
To Serve:
- Place the baked sweet potatoes on serving plates. Top each sweet potato half with vegan sour cream (optional), roasted chickpeas and drizzle with curry peanut sauce. Top with cabbage slaw and roasted peanuts, and enjoy!
- Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days. Keep the slaw in its own container for best quality. The chickpeas will lose their crispiness in the fridge - to reheat, heat a small amount of oil in a skillet over medium heat and fry until recrisped, about 5 minutes. The sweet potatoes can be reheated in the microwave. The peanut sauce may need thinning - whisk in a bit of warm water.
Nutrition Info:
Notes:
The Nutrition Information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the Nutrition Information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.
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