This vibrant roasted red cabbage and sweet potato dish is full of color, texture, and flavor. An easy, satisfying vegetarian meal that’s nourishing and delicious.
Why You’ll Love My Roasted Red Cabbage and Sweet Potato with Tahini Sauce
- Colorful & visually stunning: Roasted red cabbage and sweet potato create a beautiful contrast of deep purple and warm orange. The sauce and toppings create a final dish that looks special and layered.
- Balanced textures: A beautiful blend of creamy sweet potato, tender cabbage with caramelized edges, crunchy scallions, and a smooth tahini sauce.
- Complementary flavors: Sweetness, nuttiness, earthiness and a touch of acidity all work together here.
- Nourishing: Made with simple, quality ingredients that pack vitamins, fiber, and even some protein.
- Great as a main or side: Serve it as a plant-forward main or alongside your favorite protein.
A Closer Look at the Ingredients
Ingredients for the Roasted Red Cabbage
- Red cabbage: You only need a small head for the recipe. If using a larger one, you may find that the slices are quite large and need to be cut in half.
- Olive oil: Helps the cabbage brown and caramelize on the edges.
Possible substitutes: avocado, vegetable, canola, or grapeseed oil - Salt & pepper: A light seasoning is enough because the sweet potato, sauce, and toppings bring plenty of flavor.
Ingredients for the Sweet Potato Mash
- Orange sweet potato: I prefer using 2 medium sweet potatoes (rather than 1 large) for faster roasting.
Note: I do not recommend substituting with white or purple sweet potatoes. - Ground cumin: Adds warmth, earthiness, and subtle smokiness. It keeps the mash savory, rather than making it taste like a classic “sweet” holiday-style dish.
- Milk: Helps create a lighter, fluffier mash. Use whole milk for the best texture and flavor.
Possible substitutes: low-fat milk, dairy-free milk, half-and-half, or vegetable broth - Butter: Makes the mash silkier and richer.
Possible substitutes: olive oil or crème fraîche - Salt & pepper
Ingredients for the Tahini Sauce
- Tahini: A creamy paste made from ground sesame seeds. I love the Alwadi Tahina and Al Kanater brands, but any good-quality tahini works, including homemade.
Tip: Like any natural nut or seed butter, tahini separates over time. Stir it well the first time you open it (over a sink because it can get messy!). - Olive oil: Adds richness and helps create a silky texture.
Possible substitutes: avocado, canola, or any mild nut oil - Lime: Provides acidity to balance and brighten the tahini. Also helps thin the sauce to the perfect consistency.
Possible substitutes: equal quantity lemon or a touch of apple cider vinegar - Caraway seeds: Their flavor is reminiscent of anise, dill, and fennel with subtle peppery notes. Toasting them softens the bitterness and brings out their warmth.
Possible substitute: cumin seeds - White sesame seeds: Toasting them brings out a deep, nutty aroma and adds crunch. Their flavor is different from tahini.
Possible substitute: black sesame seeds - Maple syrup: Just enough sweetness to round out tahini’s natural bitterness and the tartness of the lime juice, while adding caramel notes.
Possible substitute: honey - Red pepper flakes: For subtle heat
Possible substitute: ground cayenne pepper - Garlic powder: Adds gentle savory depth
Note: Fresh garlic is too sharp and distinctive here, so I don’t recommend it. - Salt
Ingredients for Topping
- Scallions: Bring a mild onion flavor, crunch, and beautiful color. (Also called green onions.)
Possible substitutes: Chives (milder) or shallots - Cilantro: Adds bright, citrusy notes and freshness.
Possible substitutes: fresh parsley with a squeeze of lime
An Overview of the Cooking Process
This recipe has three moving parts, but I promise that each is easy! Keep reading for all the information you need to have a calm, successful cooking experience.
Start by pre-heating the oven and roasting the halved sweet potatoes on a sheet pan. 10 minutes in, add the sliced red cabbage to the sheet pan and roast for another 20 minutes. While the vegetables are roasting, make the sauce and chop up the toppings. That’s it!
I dive into each of these processes below, with tips and tricks. For ingredient quantities and succinct steps that you can follow when cooking, check out the recipe card.
Tips for Making Mashed Sweet Potatoes
I tested this recipe using several methods for cooking the sweet potatoes—boiling, steaming, and roasting—all of them work. My personal favorite is roasting, because it gives the mash a richer, more concentrated flavor. It also reduces cleanup, since the sweet potato and cabbage cook on the same sheet pan.
Follow my tips for achieving perfect mashed sweet potatoes:
- Leave the skin on – it helps the inside stay moist as the potato cooks, which is important for creating a smooth mash.
- Rather than roasting the sweet potato whole, I cut it in half lengthwise, rub some olive oil on the flesh, and roast it cut-side/flesh-side down. This significantly reduces the cooking time and adds extra flavor (the flesh caramelizes slightly when in contact with the hot sheet pan).
- Use a fork or knife to poke a few holes on the skin-side so steam can escape during cooking. This prevents the pressure build-up that could cause an explosion during roasting.
- Bring the butter to room temperature and cut it into small cubes before adding it to the hot sweet potatoes, so that it melts faster. You can alternatively fully melt the butter in the microwave before adding. It’s also important to add the butter before adding the milk; this allows fat to coat the starch molecules of the potatoes, resulting in a creamier mash.
- Mash the sweet potatoes with a fork, hand masher, ricer or food mill. Stop mashing as soon as they are smooth; over-mashing causes stickiness. Do not use a food processor, which causes excessive starch release and a gluey texture. If you want to use a machine, you can use an electric mixer with a paddle attachment.
- Warm the milk before adding it to the mash. At the very least, bring it to room temperature. Cold milk does not absorb well into mashed potatoes.
Tips for Making Roasted Red Cabbage
- Use a bare metal sheet pan or line it with aluminum foil for the best browning. (Otherwise, use parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.) In this recipe, the cabbage slices are added to an already hot sheet pan, which also promotes caramelization.
- Remove the tough core from the cabbage before slicing. To do this: set the cabbage upright with the stem-side on the cutting board. Slice it in half vertically through the core. Then use a small, sharp knife to remove the triangular core from each half.
- To allow the edges to crisp and brown, leave a little space between each slice of cabbage when roasting (at the very least, place them in one layer). Overcrowding makes it harder for the water that evaporates from the cabbage to escape; this causes you to steam the slices, rather than roast them.
Roasted Red Cabbage and Sweet Potato with Tahini Sauce
This vibrant roasted red cabbage and sweet potato dish is full of color, texture, and flavor. An easy, satisfying vegetarian meal that’s nourishing and delicious.
Equipment
- 1 large sheet pan
- 1 pan
- 1 large bowl
- 1 medium bowl
Ingredients
For the sweet potato mash
- 2 medium orange sweet potatoes (approx. ½ lb / 230 g each)
- drizzle of olive oil
- 1 Tbl butter (15 g)
- ½ cup whole milk (120 ml)
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- pinch of salt
For the roasted red cabbage
- 1 small red cabbage
- 1 Tbl olive oil (plus more, if needed)
- pinch of salt and pepper
For the sauce
- ¼ tsp caraway seeds
- ½ tsp white sesame seeds
- 2 Tbl tahini
- 1 Tbl olive oil
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- ½ of a lime (juice)
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- pinch of salt
Toppings
- 1 scallion
- cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C) conventional or 425°F (220°C) convection.
- Cut the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise. Drizzle cut-side with olive oil. Place cut-side down on a sheet pan. Poke the skin with a fork. Add to the middle of the oven for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile:Remove the butter from the fridge, cube it, and let it come to room temperature.Remove the outer leaves and the hard core from the cabbage. Cut six ¼ inch (½ cm) slices.
- Remove the sheet pan from the oven. Add the cabbage slices to the sheet pan in one layer. Brush each side of the cabbage with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Return the sweet potato and cabbage to the oven for 20 minutes. It's ready when the sweet potato is fork tender and the edges of the cabbage start to brown.
- While the vegetables are roasting: Toast the caraway and sesame seeds on a dry skillet on medium heat, stirring often for a few minutes until golden and fragrant. Add them to a medium-sized bowl. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients to the same bowl and stir to combine (tahini, olive oil, maple syrup, lime juice, garlic powder, red pepper flakes). Add cold water to the sauce, one spoonful at a time, until the consistency is thin enough to drizzle. Chop the scallions and cilantro. Reserve.
- Add the cubed butter to a large bowl. Add the sweet potato flesh on top (discard the skin). Mash until smooth. Warm the milk in the microwave. Add the warm milk, cumin, and salt to the mash. Mix until just combined.
- Serve: add sweet potato mash to the plate, top with cabbage slices, tahini sauce, cilantro, and scallions. Enjoy!
Did you make this roasted red cabbage and sweet potato with tahini sauce?
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Looking for more delicious and satisfying vegetarian recipes? Give my Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie with Lentils, Mushrooms, and Sweet Potato a try!