Tahini Chickpea Bowl with Sweet Potatoes

The colorful salad is great for lunches or dinners.  It comes together in a little more than 30 minutes and can be used for meal prep.  The lemon herb tahini uses garlic, fresh lemon juice, dijon mustard, and fresh cilantro for a flavor-packed sauce to coat smoked paprika roasted sweet potatoes, and fresh kale.  It's a veggie-packed bowl that's vegan, gluten-free, and oil-free!

Turn the kale chickpea bowl into a Buddha bowl by adding cooked quinoa.  For more Buddha bowls for dinner or meal prep, try a butternut squash Buddha bowl with a dijon tahini dressing, maple mustard tempeh Buddha bowl with quinoa, tofu Buddha bowl with peanut sauce.

For more sweet potato bowls, try a vegan Southwest sweet potato bowl with cilantro cashew dressing or roasted sweet potato nourish bowl with smoky tahini dressing.

Recipe features

• It's dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan, and oil-free!
• Packed with nutrient-rich veggies!
• Great for lunch or dinner!

Ingredient notes and substitutions

Please see the full list of ingredients and exact measurements in the recipe card below.

Sweet potatoes - Sweet potatoes can be roasted with or without oil.

Lemon juice - The lemon juice is used for oil-free roasting so the salt, garlic powder, and smoked paprika will stick to the potatoes.  If you're not oil-free, use a neutral-tasting oil or a small spritz of avocado spray.  Additional lemon juice will be needed for the lemon herb tahini sauce.  A fresh lemon is best to give the tahini dressing a tangy citrusy flavor.

Garlic powder and smoked paprika - These are used to flavor the sweet potatoes but feel free to swap them out for different spices.

Chickpeas - This roasted sweet potato chickpea bowl recipe needs one can of drained and rinsed chickpeas.  They can also be substituted with 1 ½ cups of freshly cooked chickpeas. For more recipes with chickpeas, try a Mediterranean-inspired power bowl, chickpea couscous bowl, vegetable soup with orzo, or butternut squash curry recipe.

Kale - Kale is packed with nutrients, but if you're not a fan of kale you can always try a different green.

Tahini - This is made from ground sesame seeds and can vary in consistency with different brands.  Your brand will most likely have a layer of oil on top that has separated. It will need to be stirred back into the tahini, then measure the needed amount for the recipe.  

The contents at the bottom of the jar tend to be drier than what's at the top, so each time I use tahini for a recipe I give it a good stir to redistribute.  So depending on your brand and if the tahini came from the bottom of the jar, you may need to add more water than the recipe calls for.  Since it's a major contributor to the flavor of the herbed tahini sauce, use a high-quality tahini that's pourable.

For leftover tahini, try tahini pasta with sundried tomatoes, tahini soba noodles, or dijon mustard tahini dressing.

Fresh garlic - I love the flavor of fresh garlic in the sauce, but you can also try ¼ teaspoon garlic powder instead of fresh.  It will still flavor the sauce without being as intense.

Maple syrup - This cuts through the bitterness of tahini but can be left out if you don't want the added sweetness.  This can also be substituted with agave syrup.

Dijon mustard - The recipe calls for just a teaspoon of Dijon mustard, so it adds a hint of the sharp tangy flavor.  It can be substituted with stone ground mustard, but I wouldn't substitute it with regular yellow mustard.  The sauce will still be delicious without it.

Cumin and allspice - The spices add a more complex flavor to the dressing. My original tahini sauce recipe calls for just a pinch of allspice, but I mainly left it out while testing this recipe.  Feel free to add just a pinch to the dressing.

Ice cold water - The water helps to thin out the tahini to make it more creamy and pourable.  If you want to use a blender for the dressing, then there's no need for the water to be ice cold.

Fresh Cilantro - The cilantro can be substituted with different herbs, try it with fresh flat-leaf parsley or a mix between the two fresh herbs.  You can use any leftover cilantro in cilantro lime brown rice or cilantro cashew dressing.

Tips

• Shred the kale into small bite-size pieces.  Alternatively, if you prefer not to shred the leafy green and have larger pieces, take a tablespoon or two of the dressing and massage it into the kale.  This will break down some of the fibers and become more tender.
• Use ice-cold water if you want to whisk the dressing in a bowl.  If you want to use a small blender, the water doesn't need to be ice cold.
• For the dressing, how much water you'll need depends on how thick or thin your tahini is and your desired consistency. If you want to use it as a dip and be thicker, use less water.
• The sweet potatoes may take longer or shorter depending on the size of the cubes they're cut into.

Variations for the sweet potato chickpea bowl

• Roasted chickpeas are great in the tahini chickpea bowl.  Homemade oil-free ones will lose their crunch, so for meal prep, I opt for just using them straight out of the can.
• Feel free to add broccoli or cauliflower, prepared either roasted or fresh.
• Try a sprinkle of shelled pumpkin or sunflower seeds for a little crunch.
• Add cooked quinoa, couscous, or millet.
• Instead of the herb tahini sauce, try the salad with maple syrup mustard dressing.

Instructions

Start the kale chickpea bowl by preheating the oven to 425 F (218 C) and line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.

Wash and scrub clean the sweet potatoes.  Cube them into bite-size pieces. Then toss the cubed sweet potatoes with lemon juice (for oil-free) or a neutral-tasting oil, salt, garlic powder, and smoked paprika. 

I toss the potatoes, lemon juice, and spices in a bowl, then pour them out onto the prepared baking sheet. Roast the potatoes for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway through.

Meanwhile, prepare the lemon herb tahini dressing.  In a small or medium bowl, whisk together tahini, lemon juice, crushed garlic, maple syrup, dijon mustard, salt, cumin, and pepper. 

Then whisk in cold water to thin, start with 4 tablespoons then add more if needed. Then stir in chopped cilantro, taste, and adjust for seasoning.

When the potatoes are done roasting, let them cool.  Then toss the potatoes, chickpeas, and kale together.  Add the dressing, toss, and enjoy.

Storage

The cooked sweet potatoes and chickpeas can be stored together for about 5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  Then store the kale and tahini dressing in separate containers.  Wait to add the tahini dressing until ready to enjoy.

Related recipes

• Roasted sweet potato nourish bowl with smoky tahini dressing
• Butternut squash Buddha bowl with tahini dressing
• Mediterranean hummus bowl with black olives

I hope you enjoy this vegan chickpea bowl!  If you did feel free to rate it and leave a comment.