This rich and creamy sweet potato curry is perfect for a healthy weeknight dinner or weekly meal prep. This curry is simple to make and naturally dairy-free; it can also easily be made vegetarian OR vegan!
I love serving this sweet potato curry over cooked basmati rice and alongside naan bread with a few wedges of lime for serving. This is one of those recipes where leftovers taste even better the next day after the flavors have had a chance to develop and deepen.
How to make sweet potato curry
Pictures from picture collage (below text) correlate to written directions
- Saute the veggies: onion, garlic, ginger, and sweet potato chunks.
- See how to peel and cut a sweet potato on this roasted sweet potatoes post.
- Blooming spices: frying spices in oil (called blooming) releases more flavor in the spices and also distributes the spices better.
- Spices have been well incorporated and all the veggies (besides the sweet potato) is quite tender.
- Add in the coconut milk and fire-roasted diced tomatoes.
- Stirring ingredients in
- From here out, it’s just about simmering to get the potatoes tender, reduce the liquid, and intensify flavors.
- Once potatoes are fork tender and liquid is reduced, add in fresh spinach
- Season to taste and serve!
My favorite way to prepare basmati rice
- Place basmati rice in a fine mesh sieve and rinse in cold water for 2-3 minutes or until water runs clear. Set aside.
- Bring a very large pot of water to boil over high heat. Once boiling add in the rinsed basmati rice (do not adjust temperature of the stovetop).
- Cook, stirring occasionally, for exactly 5 minutes.
- Drain the rice thoroughly.
- Serve as the base for this sweet potato curry!
Sweet potato curry quick tips
- High quality ingredients: The three vital ingredients in this recipe: a good brand of coconut milk, high quality fire roasted tomatoes, (I love Muir Glen or San Marzano tomatoes; not sponsored) and a good curry paste (or even better a homemade red curry paste)!
- Taste and adjust: As with most recipes, taste and adjust the seasonings to your personal preference. Remember you can always add more, but you can’t remove seasoning. If you’re sensitive to spice I’d recommend using less curry paste and powder. Remember: the seasonings do intensify as the curry cooks/sits.
- Cut the sweet potato into small and even pieces. Small bite-sized pieces will cook quicker and be easier to eat. Aim to cut the sweet potato into even-sized pieces for uniform cooking time (you don’t want some overly tender sweet potato pieces and some hard pieces)
Variation ideas
- More spice: add up to a teaspoon of sweet paprika and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper. You can also add some red pepper flakes which will add some heat to this sweet potato curry.
- Different greens: use kale instead of spinach (you’ll need to cook it a bit longer to get it to wilt)
- Vegetarian: make sure to use vegetable stock/broth, a vegetarian curry paste (Thai Kitchen is vegetarian), and omit fish sauce.
- Vegan: same changes as above!
- Dairy free: this recipe is naturally dairy free.
- Lower calorie: use lite coconut milk instead of full fat. Note that the curry will be less creamy and less thick.
More plant based meals:
- Sweet Potato Burrito Bowls with a delicious Sriracha sauce
- Chickpea Salad Mediterranean inspired
- Healthy Tacos with black beans, corn, and a cilantro sauce
- Roasted Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad reader favorite recipe!
- Quinoa Chili packed with sweet potatoes and beans
This rich and creamy sweet potato curry is perfect for a healthy weeknight dinner or weekly meal prep. This curry is simple to make and naturally dairy-free; it can also easily be made vegetarian OR vegan!
- 1/3 cup diced shallot (~1 large shallot)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic (~3 cloves)
- 2 tablespoons finely minced ginger (~from a 1 and 1/2 inch piece)
- 4 and 1/2 cups diced sweet potato (~2 medium sweet potatoes; cut into bite-sized pieces)
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil (or ghee)
- 3 tablespoons red curry paste (Note 1)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons yellow curry powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
- 3/4 cup vegetable stock (or broth) (chicken stock or broth works too)
- 1 can (15 ounces) full-fat coconut milk
- 1 can (14.5 ounces) good quality fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1-2 teaspoons white sugar optional
- 3 cups fresh baby spinach
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce, optional (if not vegetarian)
- Serve with: cooked basmati rice, fresh lime, crushed nuts (optional; we like pistachios), and fresh cilantro
PREP INGREDIENTS: dice the shallot, mince the garlic, and mince the ginger. I peel the ginger with a spoon or vegetable peeler and then finely mince it. Peel and then dice the sweet potatoes to get about 4 and 1/2 cups. Set aside.
VEGGIES: Heat the coconut oil in a large deep pot over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and saute them for 2-3 minutes or until they are beginning to get golden. Add the sweet potato, garlic, and ginger. Stir to coat everything with the oil.
SEASONINGS: Add the red curry paste, yellow curry powder, and coriander. Stir until all the sweet potato is well coated. Continue to cook the spices and veggies for 3-5 minutes or until everything is fragrant. Pour in the vegetable stock, coconut milk, and entire can of tomatoes. Stir and add in the salt.
SIMMER: Bring the sauce to a simmer and then lower the heat and cover with a lid. Allow the sweet potatoes to cook all the way through, about 18-25 minutes. (Check tenderness by piercing with a fork; if it pierces easily, it's ready). Remove the lid and continue to simmer for a few minutes to thicken the sauce. Depending on the tomatoes you used, you may need to add 1-2 teaspoons white sugar. Taste and add as needed. Remove from heat and let cool for 1-2 minutes before very gently stirring in the baby spinach and allowing it to wilt (~1 minute). If desired add fish sauce.
SERVE: Serve curry over cooked basmati rice. Squeeze fresh lime over each dish and if desired top with finely chopped nuts and freshly chopped cilantro.
Note 1: if vegan, make sure your red curry paste is vegan; Thai Kitchen is vegan. If worried about spice, start with 2 tablespoons.
Nutrition Facts do not include rice or optional toppings
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