Oil-free Roasted Sweet Potato Cubes with Cumin and Chili Powder

Tender and full of flavor, these oil-free roasted sweet potato cubes with cumin, chili powder and other spices are delicious in tacos, burrito bowls or enchiladas. Or, use them as toppings for nachos, tostadas or salad.

These flavorful little smoky TexMex sweet potato morsels are whole food plant-based no oil, gluten-free and nut-free.

🎙 What people say about this recipe

"I've roasted sweet potatoes many times but this recipe is by far the best tasting I ever had. I couldn't stop eating them. And my dog loved them too! I will make them this way every time from now on."

- Steve A.

🧄 Very useful ingredient notes

• Sweet potatoes - Look for sweet potatoes that are firm, without a lot of blemishes or indentions on the surface (these indicate the sweet potato may be old or bruised and going bad).
• Chili powder - a blend of spices used to make Texas Chili and other TexMex-inspired recipes. Not to be confused with chile powder (with an "e"). Chile powder is typically one type of chile pepper, dried and ground.
• Ground cumin - Cumin seeds ground into a powder is a key aromatic and warm spice in TexMex cuisine.

📋 Substitutions and variations

Here are some suitable substitutions for the ingredients in this recipe:

• Sweet potatoes - instead of sweet potatoes, you can use butternut squash or summer squash (these may roast faster, so watch them) or even white or yellow potatoes
• Chili powder - instead of chili powder, you can use taco seasoning (reduce the salt if using this, since taco seasoning is already salted), smoked paprika or sweet paprika. You can also use ancho chile powder, chipotle pepper powder or other chile pepper powder you have, but may want to reduce the quantity since these will produce a spicier result since they are 100% hot chiles.
• Dried parsley or cilantro - use finely chopped fresh parsley or cilantro instead and use ¼ cup instead.

Switch things up with these variation ideas!

• Spicy - add cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to increase the spice level
• Russets - Make this other recipe on my site using russet potatoes and onions with the same seasonings of cumin, garlic and chili powder.
• Italian-inspired - make these to go with an Italian meal by using an Italian blend of herbs (basil, oregano, marjoram, rosemary, parsley) and garlic
• Greek-inspired - make these to go with a Greek meal by using Greek oregano, onion powder, garlic powder and finishing them with a drizzle of red wine vinegar or lemon juice

🔪 Instructions

Step by step instructions for how to make roasted sweet potato cubes without using oil in the oven.

🥡 Make ahead and storage tips

These TexMex sweet potatoes can be made ahead or meal-prepped and then stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. They can also be frozen in an airtight bag or container for up to 3 months.

👨‍👩‍👦‍👦 Serving suggestions

These diced roasted sweet potatoes go well on loaded vegan tostadas (pictured below). You can also use them as a filling for tacos or burritos.

❓ FAQ

🗺 Cultural influences

This recipe is inspired by my mixed ethnic background and heritage as a native of Houston, Texas, where the flavors of this dish (chili powder, ground cumin, garlic and cilantro) are abundant and common. The spice combination is based culturally in Mexican cuisine and Southern or Texan cuisine.

See About for more information on my cultural influences and how I attribute recipes.

📖 Recipe