Sweet Potato, Portobello & Spinach Salad
Three temperatures in one bowl. The sweet potatoes come out of the oven caramelized and crisp at the edges, the portobellos come off the grill pan with char marks and warmth, and the spinach goes in raw, bright, and cool underneath it all. A drizzle of balsamic pulls the warm and cool layers together into something that tastes like way more work than 30 minutes.
The olive oil does double duty here. It browns the sweet potato on the baking sheet, and it gives your body the fat it needs to actually absorb the beta-carotene hiding in those orange cubes. 479 kcal, 59g of carbs, 11g of fiber, dinner for one.
Ingredients
- sweet potato 0.5 pound
- olive oil 1.5 tablespoon
- thyme, dried 1 teaspoon
- portobello mushroom 2 piece
- red onion 0.25 piece
- spinach 4 ounce
- balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon
Method
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Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
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Cut the sweet potatoes into approximately ¾-inch cubes. Spread them out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with ⅔ of the oil and sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper. Roast for about 25 minutes, stirring halfway through, until tender and lightly caramelized.
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Meanwhile, slice the portobello mushrooms into thick slices. Heat a grill pan over medium heat. Brush the mushrooms with the remaining oil and grill for about 4–5 minutes per side, until tender and marked with grill lines.
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Slice the onion into thin half-moons.
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In a large bowl, combine the sweet potatoes, portobellos, spinach and onion. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and toss gently to coat. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
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Serve the salad at room temperature.
The olive oil isn’t just for browning. Research found that cooking orange-fleshed sweet potato with oil increased beta-carotene bioaccessibility by 10 to 20 times compared to cooking without fat. The heat breaks down the cell walls, and the oil gives the released beta-carotene something to dissolve into so your gut can actually absorb it.
Why This Works
Behind this recipe
Is 12g of protein enough for a dinner?
This is a vegetable-forward dinner built around 59g of carbs and 11g of fiber, not a protein-heavy plate. If you want more protein, add grilled chicken, chickpeas, or a handful of feta. The salad works as a complete meal at 479 kcal when protein isn’t your priority for this sitting.
Does raw spinach have less nutrition than cooked?
Raw spinach keeps its full vitamin C and folate, which break down with heat. The bigger misconception is about iron. A lot of sources claim that oxalic acid in spinach blocks iron absorption, but research found that oxalic acid was not the actual inhibitor. The real blockers turned out to be polyphenols and calcium, not the oxalates most people worry about.
Read the full evidence reviewCan I use a fat-free dressing instead of olive oil?
You can, but you’ll miss most of the carotenoids. Research found that salads eaten with fat-free dressing produced near-zero carotenoid absorption. The olive oil in this recipe gives your body the fat it needs to actually absorb the beta-carotene from the sweet potato and the lutein from the spinach.
Read the full evidence review
