Ground beef sweet potato skillet is an easy 30-minute dinner. It’s perfect for busy weeknights. Everything is cooked in one frying pan. You can serve on its own, with rice, or quinoa.

Ground Beef Sweet Potato Skillet
Today I’m sharing a quick and easy ground beef dinner idea with you.
This recipe is inspired by my popular ground turkey sweet potato skillet recipe, but includes some flavor additions! From start to finish this recipe will take about 30 minutes.
Ground Beef Sweet Potato Skillet Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this easy recipe:
- Extra Lean Ground Beef – You’ll need 1 lb of ground beef for this recipe. You can also use ground turkey or ground chicken.
- Vegetables – This recipe uses garlic, onion, sweet potato, diced tomatoes and corn.
- Spices – To add flavor, you’ll need chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper.
- Mozzarella Cheese – Once the skillet recipe is cooked, sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. You can also use cheddar cheese, marble cheese, monterey, or jack cheese.

How To Make Ground Beef Sweet Potato Skillet
From start to finish, this recipe can be on your family’s plates in under 30 minutes.
- Prep The Vegetables: I like to wash and prep all my vegetables first. For this recipe, you’ll need to wash, peel and chop the sweet potato into small cubes. Dice half of an onion, and mince two cloves of garlic. You’ll also need to drain and rinse the black beans and corn. And drain the diced tomatoes.
- Cook The Ground Beef: Add a little bit of coconut oil into a frying pan and heat over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic, then cook for 1-2 minutes. Next add ground beef and break it into small pieces. Cook until it’s no longer pink. Remove the ground beef from the pan and add to a plate with paper towel.
- Vegetables: Add sweet potato, diced tomatoes, corn, black beans and spices to the skillet. Cover the skillet with a lid and let cook for about 20 minutes.
- Add The Ground Beef Back To The Pan: Stir everything together and heat 1-2 minutes. Next, add the grated mozzarella cheese and sprinkle on top. Dish up and enjoy!

Recipe Tips and Tricks
- The entire recipe can be cooked in one frying pan. I like to use my cast iron skillet as it heats evenly and is large enough to fit everything. This recipe will also work in any frying pan or even a large pot with a lid.
- While prepping and measuring, you’ll have leftovers from the canned black beans, onion, corn, tomatoes and sweet potato. Add those all to a freezer bag, label it, and freeze for up to 3 months. You can use this next time you make this recipe!
- Are you using a frying pan and don’t have a lid that will fit? Try using a baking sheet or aluminum foil to cover the frying pan instead!

More Quick Dinner Recipes To Try
These recipes are all fast, easy, and cooked in one frying pan:
- Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet – A similar recipe but uses less ingredients and ground turkey instead.
- Sweet and Sour Meatballs – Ground beef is paired with an easy and delicious sweet and sour sauce made with crushed pineapples as the base.
- Rigatoni Ground Chicken and Peas – This recipe is quick and fast and perfect for busy weeknights.
- Easy Skillet Lasagna – Takes less time to make than traditional lasagna and the results are just as delicious.
- Sweet and Sour Sausage – Meat and veggies all cooked in one frying pan.
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Ground Beef Sweet Potato Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 lb extra lean ground beef
- 2 garlic cloves - minced
- ½ yellow onion - diced
- ½ Tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 cups sweet potato - peeled and chopped small
- 14 oz canned diced tomatoes - drained
- 1 cup corn - canned or frozen
- 1 cup canned black beans - drained and rinsed
- ½ cup grated mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Heat a frying pan with a bit of cooking oil. Add in the minced garlic and chopped onion. Cook until the onion turns translucent, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the ground beef along with chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Mix together and cook until the ground beef is no longer pink.
- Pour the ground beef onto a plate lined with paper towel. Drain any excess grease from the frying pan.
- Add the chopped sweet potato, diced tomato, corn and beans to the frying pan. Season with ½ tsp chili powder, plus salt and pepper. Cover with a lid and cook for 20 minutes or until sweet potato is soft when poked with a fork. Stir occassionally. Tip: don't have a lid that will fit? Try using a baking sheet or aluminum foil to cover the frying pan.
- Once the sweet potato is soft, add the ground beef back to the frying pan and mix everything together.
- Sprinkle the grated mozzarella cheese on top, serve and enjoy!
- TIP: While prepping and measuring, you'll have leftovers from the canned black beans, onion, corn, tomatoes and sweet potato. Add those all to a freezer bag, label it, and freeze for up to 3 months. You can use this next time you make this recipe!
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is an estimate and is per serving.
Cherie
Monday 28th of November 2022
I didn’t have orange sweet potatoes so mine wasn’t as colorful as the photos but it was a huge hit at our house. Also I didn’t have corn and used frozen Lima beans instead.
Julia
Wednesday 19th of October 2022
What is the serving size?
Andi
Thursday 20th of October 2022
It's 4-6 servings