Kale and Sweet Potato Quinoa Bowls + VIDEO

Fluffy quinoa combined with chickpeas, sweet potato, kale, and a delicious maple tahini dressing. Make in advance to have a healthy lunch or dinner all week long. This quinoa bowl recipe is the meal prepper’s dream!

Quinoa bowls, power bowls, Buddha bowls, whatever you want to call them, are the best alternative to a salad. It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of them either.

Let’s talk about this quinoa bowl. We got super fluffy tri-color quinoa, crispy baked sweet potatoes, garlicky sauteed kale, creamy chickpeas all drizzled in a maple tahini dressing.

I promise you’ll want this addicting quinoa bowl dressing on EVERYTHING from here on out.

So let me introduce to you my new favorite quinoa bowl!

sweet potato and kale on marble background

Tips for making kale delicious:

Kale is one of those vegetables where if it’s not prepared right, you are left chewing this bitter mess in your mouth for what seems like centuries.

With these tips, you’ll be that much closer to making kale taste amazing!

  • Massage kale! I like to put my kale in a bowl of warm water and massage it generously. This helps to break down the toughness kale has.
  • Saute it! There’s debate on whether raw kale is even good for your digestive system, but even so, I prefer my kale cooked. It tastes great with some olive oil, salt, and garlic.
  • Add acid! Since the nature of kale is so bitter, kale tastes great paired with an acid. Once my kale is done cooking, I add a squeeze of lemon and it’s next level!
gold spoon pouring olive oil into mixing bowl with diced sweet potatoes

How to make perfectly roasted sweet potatoes:

Perfectly roasted sweet potatoes require some certain criteria. With these tips, you can be sure your sweet potatoes will come out perfect every time!

  • Mix them well! Lots of recipes call for throwing sweet potatoes on a sheet, pouring oil over them, and mixing with your hands. Yes, this method saves a dish, but it does not coat the sweet potatoes evenly. You will have unevenly seasoned sweet potatoes. Get a mixing bowl and give them a nice mix to ensure they are evenly coated with olive oil and seasoned.
  • Give them space! Don’t jam-pack a baking sheet. This goes for roasting any vegetables. They want room to roast. If a baking sheet is packed, the moisture gets trapped and you’re left with some soggy sweet potatoes.
  • Rotate them! To ensure even baking, rotate the pan halfway through cooking.
sweet potatoes, kale, quinoa, chickpeas, pepitas, and dressing on marble background

How to make a quinoa bowl:

There are a few components to this quinoa bowl recipe. The quinoa (duh), sweet potatoes, kale, and dressing. With a little bit of multi-tasking, it doesn’t take very long to get this meal to come together.

  • Roast sweet potatoes first. They take the longest
  • While those are roasted, cook the quinoa
  • While quinoa is cooking, saute kale
  • Last, rinse the chickpeas, and whip up the dressing

With this order, everything should be ready around the same time.

gold spoon pouring dressing on quinoa bowl with chickpeas, sweet potato, and kale

Are quinoa bowls great for meal prepping?

They’re the best! Prepare all the components and make the bowls in individual containers. When ready to eat, heat them up in the microwave and top with the dressing and some pepitas!

vegan quinoa bowl with sweet potatoes, kale, chickpeas, and a maple tahini dressing on a wood board. With blue napkin and gold forks.

Do you have to use quinoa?

In short, no! Any grain will do. Brown rice, sorghum, millet, bulgur, barely are all healthy grains that would taste amazing in this recipe.

This quinoa bowl is healthy, versatile, and naturally vegan and gluten-free!

hands holding vegan quinoa bowl with sweet potato, kale, and chickpeas

If you tried this kale and sweet potato quinoa bowl, let me know in the comments below and share a photo using #mindfulavocado. I’d love to hear from you! Want to see more recipes? Let’s get social! CONNECT WITH ME on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Pinterest to see what I’m currently cooking up!

If you like this quinoa bowl recipe, you’ll LOVE:

vegan quinoa bowl with sweet potatoes, kale, chickpeas, and a maple tahini dressing on a wood board. With blue napkin and gold forks.

Kale and Sweet Potato Quinoa Bowls

Fluffy quinoa, crispy sweet potatoes, garlic kale, chickpeas all drizzled in an AMAZING maple tahini dressing. This quinoa bowl recipe is perfect for lunch or dinner. Make meal prep super easy with this vegan, gluten-free, healthy meal!
5 from 4 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine: American, Gluten Free, Vegan
Keyword: plant based meal, recipes with quinoa, sweet potato and kale recipes
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 494kcal
Author: Amanda

Ingredients

  • 1 cup quinoa uncooked
  • 1 can chickpeas rinsed and drained

Sweet Potatoes:

  • 2 medium-sized sweet potatoes
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Kale:

  • 1 bunch kale de-stemmed and washed
  • 1/2 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 3-4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice about 1/4 lemon

Maple Tahini Dressing:

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 Tablespoons tahini (sesame seed butter)
  • 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 2 Tablespoons water
  • 1 Tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice about 1/4 lemon
  • salt and pepper to taste

Toppings (optional):

  • pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

Instructions

Prepare Sweet Potatoes:

  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and place the rack in the second to the top position.
  • Wash sweet potatoes and cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Mix in mixing bowl with 2 Tablespoons olive oil. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt.
  • Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.

Prepare Kale:

  • Destem kale and massage in warm water. Tear into pieces using hands.
  • Add olive oil to pan over low-medium heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add kale and cook until wilted stirring frequently (about 5 minutes).
  • Remove from heat and add salt and lemon juice. Set aside.

Cook Quinoa:

  • Rinse quinoa well in a fine mesh strainer. Bring 2 cups of water to boil and salt water. Add quinoa, cover, reduce heat to medium, and let simmer for 15 minutes.
  • Remove from heat and keep covered for 5-10 minutes. Fluff with fork.

Make Dressing:

  • Add all ingredients for dressing to a small mixing bowl and whisk until smooth.

Assemble Bowls:

  • Add 1/4 – 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa to bowl. Top with sweet potatoes, kale, and chickpeas. Top with dressing and pepitas (optional).
  • Leftovers keep in the fridge for about 5 days without dressing. Add the dressing before serving. 

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1bowl (1/4 recipe with dressing) | Calories: 494kcal | Carbohydrates: 65.9g | Protein: 13.6g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 2.9g | Sodium: 386mg | Potassium: 1001mg | Fiber: 9.3g | Sugar: 6.8g | Calcium: 130mg | Iron: 6.1mg

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12 thoughts on “Kale and Sweet Potato Quinoa Bowls + VIDEO”

  1. 5 stars
    I had kale and cooked chickpeas to use up, quinoa is a cupboard staple and I hadn’t eaten sweet potatoes for a while. Absolutely add the pumpkin seeds for crunch. I toasted mine in the oven during the last 10 minutes of the sweet potatoes baking for an extra bit of nutty flavour. The dressing really pulls it all together. A very tasty bowlful!

    Reply
  2. I went thru the Pritikin program for heart healthy eating. I had to modify this tasty recipe to adhere to the Pritican diet. I use veggie broth to saute my veggies , use non salt seasonings, and make a non oil dressing . . You can roast sweet potatoes w/o oil. Still a delicious bowl and even more healthy.

    Reply
    • I’ve never heard of this program, but I’m glad you were able to make the modifications needed and you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂

      Reply
  3. One great go-to to make kale delicious it to destem it then add the juice of one lemon (or lime I guess) throw in some salt then massage. This serves to not only soften the kale and make it more powerful but it also starts to break down strong sell walls to make it much more digestible too. Afterwards dress it however you want-the sky’s the limit but a basic preparation would add a drizzle of olive out and cracked pepper and mix. It’s cool and can be refrigerated and would easily figure into this recipe if you want to make a cooler bowl as the temperature goes to hell for funsies. Great recipe, I will probably try it tonight!!

    Reply

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