This is a hearty, flavorful and fun breakfast dish, which could easily be made for dinner. I happened to have some leftover cooked beans from another dish that I made, so this dish came together very quickly. The addition of a simple fresh lime guacamole and fresh cilantro garnish really make all the flavors pop!
Feel free to adjust the spices to your liking. Some people like it hot, others, prefer the sweeter side to this dish. Either way it is a delicious twist on traditional eggs and potatoes.
Spicy sweet potato recipe, comments, and the photos were shared with me by Karen Calanchini, Food Stylist and Photographer, of Redding, CA.
- 1/2 of a large avocado, peeled and pit removed
- Juice from one small fresh lime
- 1/2 teaspoon Piment de Espelette*
- 2 strips bacon, thick cut
- 1/2 medium-size onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, diced
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 tablespoon Chipotle chili powder
- 1 small sweet potato, chopped into less than bite-size pieces (I like the ones that have the pinkish skin and are brilliant orange inside)
- 1 1/4 cups Rio Zape beans, cooked, or use 1 (15-ounce)can or black beans, rinsed and drained**
- Himalayan Sea Salt or coarse salt, freshly-ground
- Black pepper, freshly-ground, to taste
- 1 tablespoon hot chili oil
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup cilantro leaves for garnish
- Lime wedges for garnish
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Make an Avocado-Lime Guacamole Sauce by mashing the avocado with the lime juice, salt, and Piment de Espelette in a small bowl; set aside until ready to serve.
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Cook bacon in a heavy skillet until crisp. Remove bacon to paper towels to drain and then cut into chunks. Reserve the bacon grease in the skillet.
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Over medium-high heat, add onions to the bacon grease and cook until tender, about 5 minutes or less. Add the garlic, cumin, and chipotle chili powder and cook until fragrant, less than a minute.
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Add chopped sweet potato, in a single layer, and let them cook until browned on bottom side. Flip them over and continue to cook until browned. I put a lid on the pan after browning the potatoes, which speeds up the cooking process.
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Mix in the beans, season with salt and pepper to taste, and continue to heat through.
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While potatoes are cooking, heat chili oil in a small non-stick pan. Add the eggs and fry the eggs to your preference. When done, place them on top of the sweet potato and bean mix.
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Serve onto two plates, garnish with fresh cilantro leaves, and lime wedges if desired. Add a dollop or two of the prepared Avocado-Lime Guacamole Sauce and toss chunks of crisp bacon over the top.
* Piment d’ Espelette is a red chili powder from the Basque region of France and Spain and named after the village of Espelette in France’s Nive Valley. Piment d’Espelette can be found in powdered or paste form. To purchase Piment d' Espelette chile pepper powder, check out What's Cooking America's Amazon Store.
** Rio Zape beans are a rich, dense, pinto-like bean with hints of chocolate and coffee. Also known as the Hopi String Bean. This bean is similar in size and shape to the popular pinto bean and is purple with dark burgundy slashes. They go great with Mexican food.