Harissa roasted sweet potatoes with tahini maple sauce are a simple, slightly spicy side dish to make weeknight meals easy and healthy! With just a few ingredients, these bold-flavored sweet potatoes are perfect for meal prep, grain bowls, or pairing with your favorite protein.
If you're looking for an easy, comforting side dish that's elevated with a bit of spice, you've come to the right place my friend. Of course we love a simple sheet pan of salt-and-pepper oven roasted sweet potatoes, but sometimes we also need to change up our weeknight veggie roasting routine with different flavors. Keeps things interesting, right?
With that, we welcome these harissa roasted sweet potatoes - a spicier sister to the classic roasted sweet potato - and SO delicious drizzled with a simple tahini maple sauce (dipping is an option, too!). Let's spice up our weeknights, learn about harissa (if you haven't tried it before), and enjoy some delicious roasted sweet potatoes.
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Key Ingredient & Notes
- Sweet potatoes - Your favorite kind will do! I usually get an orange fleshed variety because they're easy to find locally year-round in Southern Wisconsin.
- Harissa paste - Harissa paste is a spicy red chile paste (sometimes a sauce) originating from North Africa. It typically contains chiles, garlic, olive oil, citrus, and warming spices like cumin or caraway. I usually buy mine from Trader Joe's, but you can find it in most grocery stores.
- Tahini - Another primary component for the simple sauce. We LOVE making our own tahini sauce and use it in other recipes, like these Moroccan roasted carrots. It can really go on anything! In this recipe, we're sweetening it slightly with maple syrup to create a spicy-sweet contrast with the harissa. It's also helpful to use a bit of water to thin out the sauce and make it more drizzly.
Substitution Notes: Feel free to use honey or agave instead of maple syrup! Note, using honey will make this recipe no longer vegan.
How to Make These Harissa Sweet Potatoes
- Step 1: Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a reusable silicone mat. In a small bowl, whisk together harissa paste, olive oil, maple syrup, salt, and pepper. Pour over sweet potato cubes and toss to evenly coat.
- Step 2: Place sweet potato cubes into a large bowl and add the harissa mixture. Toss to evenly coat.
- Step 3: Transfer the sweet potato cubes to the prepared sheet pan, making sure they're in an even layer with some space between. Roast at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway through.
- Step 4: While the harissa sweet potatoes are roasting, make the tahini sauce. Whisk together tahini, maple syrup, and a bit of water in a small bowl until completely smooth.
- Step 5: Once the sweet potatoes are done (they'll be fragrant and easy to pierce with a fork), take them out of the oven and serve immediately with tahini maple sauce. Feel free to drizzle or dip! Yum!
Sustainability & Low-Waste Tips
- Do you have extra tahini sauce? Don't let it go to waste! Drizzle it over some lemon dill hummus, everything bagel hummus (makes for a beautiful presentation!), or modern three bean salad. You could also sauce up some grain bowls, sandwiches, or serve with other veggies like this delicious sweet and savory air fryer butternut squash.
- Can you buy local? I love sweet potatoes because they just might be my favorite root veg, AND I can easily find them locally year round at my co-op (yay!). Through years of buying locally, I learned that sometimes it's as simple as paying closer attention in your local stores, and doesn't necessarily mean going out of your way to a separate farmers market. Even mainstream grocery stores tend to put up signs around local produce!
More Roasted Veggie Sides
Do you love roasted veggies as a side dish? Me too! Here are a few of my other favorites (air fryer recipes have oven roasting instructions too!):
Did you make these harissa roasted sweet potatoes? Don't forget to leave a star rating 🌟 and comment below, and tag me on Instagram and Pinterest so I can see what you made!
📖 Recipe
Harissa Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Tahini Maple Sauce
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
These harissa roasted sweet potatoes are an easy and healthy veggie side dish that can be paired with your favorite protein or used in salads or bowls! Slightly spicy, this fresh take on roasted sweet potatoes will add some fun into your veggie roasting routine.
Ingredients
- 1 pound sweet potatoes, cut into cubes
- 2 tablespoons harissa paste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup, divided in half
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup tahini
- Optional: water for whisking into tahini sauce
Instructions
- Preheat & prep. oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and place cubed sweet potatoes in a large bowl.
- Season sweet potatoes. In a separate small bowl, whisk together harissa paste, olive oil, the ½ tablespoon of maple syrup, salt, and pepper. Pour over sweet potato cubes and toss to evenly coat.
- Roast sweet potatoes. Spread sweet potatoes evenly across baking sheet and roast for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway through, until cooked through and slightly golden brown on the outsides. Potatoes should be easy to pierce with a fork but also have lightly crisped edges.
- Make tahini maple sauce. While sweet potatoes are roasting, whisk tahini and remaining ½ tablespoon maple syrup together in a small bowl. If using, whisk in 2-4 tablespoons of water to thin out the sauce, if desired. When sweet potatoes are done, drizzle tahini maple mixture over the top, or leave on the side for dipping. Yum!
Notes
- Storage & freezing. Store leftover sweet potatoes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in the oven, air fryer, or microwave. You can also freeze these sweet potatoes in an airtight container or zip-top bag for up to three months.
- Extra tahini sauce. If you have extra tahini sauce, store it in the fridge and use on other roasted veggies, sandwiches, salads, or grain bowls!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Sides
- Method: Roast
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern Inspired
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ sweet potatoes + 2 tablespoon sauce
- Calories: 265
- Sugar: 8.8 g
- Sodium: 448.9 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Carbohydrates: 30.5 g
- Fiber: 4.1 g
- Protein: 4.4 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Billy says
This looks so delicious. I've been looking for more harissa inspired dishes to make. This looks so interesting with the maple syrup too! Cannot wait to try making this at home. Thank you so much for sharing!
Tera says
Thanks Billy! I hope you enjoy it 🙂
Kajigs says
Wow another winner by Ms. Gigot! Sweet potatoes a great side any time of the year. Thanks for educating me on the harissa paste, I was unfamiliar with how to use it. I will definitely try this on the grill.