Sweet Potato Salad

This roasted sweet potato salad recipe is a perfect fall lunch or side dish! Feta cheese, avocado, and a bright tahini dressing fill it with flavor.

sweet potato salad recipe

I hope you’re all excited, because this sweet potato salad recipe is the first of many fall salads that I have coming your way this season! I love salad all year long (Like, who can say no to a tomato salad in the summer?), but fall salads have a special place in my heart. We move away from juicy summer bounty towards sweeter, starchier veggies like sweet potatoes and squash. And after a few months of craving leafless salads filled with tomatoes and corn, I want nothing more than a bowl of fall greens like spinach, arugula, or kale. Together, these fresh greens and hearty autumn veggies create salads that are light and healthy, but satisfying, too.

In this roasted sweet potato salad recipe, some of my all-time favorite ingredients come together in one place. It boasts arugula, feta cheese, pepitas, avocado, tahini dressing, and roasted sweet potatoes. I mean, talk about a perfect combination. The tangy feta contrasts with the caramelized sweet potatoes, while the creamy avocado plays off the crunchy pepitas. The arugula makes the whole thing light and fresh, and the bright tahini dressing ties it all together. If this sweet potato salad isn’t an ideal fall lunch, I don’t know what is.

Sweet potato salad recipe ingredients

Sweet Potato Salad Recipe Ingredients

A few basic ingredients fill this sweet potato salad recipe with delicious texture and flavor:

  • Sweet potatoes, of course! I roast them until they’re caramelized on the outside and tender in the middle.
  • Arugula – I’m obsessed with these soft bitter greens! If you don’t have arugula on hand, spinach, massaged kale, or baby lettuces would be great here too.
  • Avocado – It adds creamy richness to this hearty sweet potato salad.
  • Pepitas – For crunch!
  • Feta cheese – I love how its tangy flavor plays off the caramelized sweet potatoes. If you’re vegan, skip the cheese entirely, or replace it with a few pickled red onions for pop.
  • Tahini dressing – This bright, nutty dressing ties it all together! It’s a simple mix of tahini, lemon juice, maple syrup, olive oil, sesame oil, garlic, water, and salt.

To make this recipe, roast the sweet potatoes and whisk together the dressing. Then, assemble the salad in a large bowl or platter with the arugula, roasted sweet potatoes, avocado, pepitas, and feta cheese. Drizzle on the dressing, and enjoy!

Find the complete recipe with measurements below.

Hands tossing sweet potatoes with oil on a baking sheet

Tips and Variations

  • Let the sweet potatoes cool before you toss everything together. If you assemble the salad when the sweet potatoes are hot from the oven, the arugula will wilt. Instead, give them a chance to cool before you toss everything together. That way, the arugula will still be vibrant when you eat.
  • Add the dressing and the avocado at the last minute. This recipe is a great one to meal prep for lunch, but if you make it in advance, store the dressing and the avocado separately until you eat. If you add the dressing too early, the salad will get soggy. Similarly, if you cut the avocado too far ahead of time, it’ll turn brown and bitter. But if you add them both at the last minute, it’ll be delicious.
  • Change it up! I love this sweet potato salad recipe as-written, but feel free to get creative with it! Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Let me know what variations you try!

Roasted sweet potatoes on a baking sheet

Sweet Potato Salad Serving Suggestions

This sweet potato salad recipe is a delicious healthy lunch! Enjoy it on its own, or pair it with a slice of avocado toast, crusty bread, or homemade focaccia. It’d also be yummy with a grilled cheese sandwich or a cup of soup like my Tomato Basil Soup, Carrot Ginger Soup, Many-Veggie Soup, Butternut Squash Soup, or Curried Lentil Soup. Find more of my favorite soup recipes here!

I also love to serve this sweet potato salad as a side dish. Pair it with your favorite protein, or serve it with one of these recipes for a fresh, healthy dinner:

For more easy dinner ideas, check out this post!

sweet potato salad

More Favorite Hearty Salads

If you love this sweet potato salad recipe, try one of these hearty salads next:

For more of my favorite salad recipes, check out this post!

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Sweet Potato Salad

rate this recipe:
4.91 from 31 votes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Serves 4
This roasted sweet potato salad recipe is a delicious lunch or side dish! If you're making it in advance, wait to add the dressing and the avocado until right before you eat.

Ingredients

  • 2 Roasted Sweet Potatoes
  • 1 recipe Tahini Dressing
  • 4 cups arugula
  • â…“ cup crumbled feta cheese
  • 1 avocado, sliced
  • Lemon wedge, for squeezing
  • 3 tablespoons toasted pepitas
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

  • Prepare the Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Tahini Dressing according to the recipes.
  • Assemble the salad on a large platter with the arugula, a drizzle of dressing, the sweet potatoes, and feta. Top with the avocado slices and squeeze a little lemon juice over the avocado. Drizzle with more dressing and top with the pepitas. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

36 comments

4.91 from 31 votes (12 ratings without comment)

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Rate this recipe (after making it)




    • Jeanine Donofrio
      12.26.2024

      I’m glad you loved it!

  1. Angela
    12.14.2024

    3 stars
    This salad was SUPER dry. It needs something with more liquid – I would say tomatoes but that’s not really in keeping with the winter salad theme. Flavor profile is really nice but difficult to eat.

A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.