Few food combinations are more humble—or more delicious—than lentils and sweet potatoes.

The earthiness of lentils and the natural sweetness of sweet potatoes were meant to be paired.

lentils and sweet potatoes

Lentils and Sweet Potatoes

The health benefits of lentils and sweet potatoes are also impressive.  Together, they make a filling meal that’s high in fiber, protein, and a slew of vitamins that assist with heart, vision, and immune system health.

My favorite way to make lentils and sweet potatoes a meal is by simply cooking the lentils on the stovetop and roasting the sweet potatoes.  I serve them with lettuce or spinach, and drizzle tahini sauce on top.

This meal feeds a family of four for about $1.95/person, officially making lentils and roasted sweet potatoes a poor kid recipe.

For smaller families, leftovers make a great lunch the next day.  Serve leftovers cold, at room temperature, or reheated in the oven and/or microwave; this is a leftovers lunch that, in my opinion, is delicious at any temperature.

Make Lentils and Sweet Potatoes!

If you’re looking for a cheap, delicious, and healthy meal, this is it.

Make lentils and roasted sweet potatoes with tahini for dinner this week!

For the Fancy Poor Kid

Nutritional yeast is deactivated yeast.

If that doesn’t sound too appetizing, I understand.

But take my word for it, nutritional yeast (nooch) is absolutely delicious.  High in protein—with 8 grams per 1/4 cup—nutritional yeast imparts a nutty, cheesy flavor to the food it’s served or prepared with.

lentils and sweet potatoes

Nooch is an optional (but highly recommended) ingredient in my sweet potato recipe below.  If you’re a fancy poor kid looking for even more flavor, sprinkle nooch over the sweet potatoes halfway through roasting.  The nooch will also add a light coating of crispness to the potatoes.

You can find nutritional yeast at stores like Trader Joe’s, on Amazon [aff. link], and in my Amazon store here.

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lentils and sweet potatoes
5 from 5 votes

Poor Kid Lentils and Sweet Potatoes

Few food combos are more humble—or more delicious—than lentils and sweet potatoes. Serve with my tahini sauce for a tasty, affordable meal.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Total Time55 minutes
Servings: 4
Print Recipe

Ingredients

For the lentils:

  • 1 ½ cups lentils, rinsed
  • 3 ½ cups water
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • ½ tsp onion salt
  • ½ tsp sea salt

For the potatoes:

  • 2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and diced to ½ inch pieces
  • 3 Tbsp olive oil
  • ¾ tsp sea salt
  • ½ tsp onion salt
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • 2-3 Tbsp nutritional yeast, optional, but recommended

For the tahini sauce

  • ½ cup tahini
  • ⅓ – ½ cup water
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 tsp fresh parsley, minced
  • ¼ tsp sea salt
  • 1 pinch of ground black pepper
  • ½ tsp maple syrup
  • 1-2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Cook the lentils

  • Place the rinsed lentils, water, garlic powder, and onion salt in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
  • Once boiling, turn the heat down to low, cover the pot, leaving the lid slightly ajar, and bring the lentils to a simmer. Simmer for about 35-40 minutes, until the lentils are cooked through but still have a bite to them.
  • Once the lentils finish cooking, drain any excess water and add the salt. Lentils are done.
  • While the lentils cook, prepare the sweet potatoes and the sauce.

Roast the sweet potatoes

  • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
  • Place the sweet potatoes, seasonings, and olive oil on a standard-sized baking sheet. With your hands, toss everything together until the potatoes are well coated.
  • Roast the potatoes at 375 degrees for 17 minutes.
  • Take the sweet potatoes out of the oven. Drizzle an additional Tbsp of olive oil over the potatoes if the baking sheet seems dry, then sprinkle the nutritional yeast on top, if using.
  • Use your spatula to toss the olive oil, nutritional yeast, and sweet potatoes together, then spread the potatoes out evenly on the baking sheet, and roast the potatoes for an additional 17 minutes.
  • Take the sweet potatoes out of the oven. If you want them crispier, toss the potatoes with your spatula once more, and roast for an additional five minutes. The sweet potatoes are done.

Make the parsley tahini sauce

  • While the potatoes roast, make the parsley tahini sauce. Add the tahini, salt, pepper, garlic, parsley, maple syrup, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, and ⅓ cup water to a cereal bowl.
  • Whisk everything together until combined. If the sauce is too thick, whisk in an additional 2-3 Tbsp water. Taste, and add more lemon juice, if desired. Tahini sauce is done.

Serve and enjoy!

  • Serve the lentils and sweet potatoes with greens. Drizzle the parsley tahini sauce over the top of each serving. Enjoy!

Notes

This dish is vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free.
Serve the lentils and sweet potatoes with lettuce, spinach, or kale.
After roasting the sweet potatoes, you can keep them warm in a 200 degree oven.