This homemade vegan sweet potato flatbread recipe can be baked or fried with 4 ingredients, including your favorite whole wheat or gluten-free flour.
Light and fluffy, they are perfect for dipping into a big pot of creamy dal makhani or mung bean curry. And, doubly, they are delicious for creating mini pizzas with quick artichoke pesto or your other favorite spreads.
Have extra mashed sweet potatoes? Here's your solution!
Table of Contents
⭐ Recipe Highlights
Baked or fried. After you roll the dough into your desired shapes, you can bake them for a thicker, chewier texture. You can also roll them a little thinner and fry them.
Moist and chewy. Sweet potatoes create a moister texture than regular potatoes used in potato tortillas.
Regular, gluten-free, or flour-free. I usually use whole wheat flour for making flatbread; however, you can use different flours, including gluten-free fours or blends. If you want no flour, consider chickpea flour or quinoa flour.
📋 Ingredients and Notes
Sweet potatoes – Use sweet potatoes, yams, or purple sweet potatoes. Use 2 medium potatoes as a guide. Enough to make 2 cups mashed. Of course, if you end up with more (or less), it just means a difference in the number or size of the flatbread.
Flour – Lighter or more refined flours, such as almond flour, may require more. I tested this recipe with chickpea flour and had to add a lot because it is very sticky. You could also mix blended oats for oat flour and use all-purpose flour.
Baking powder – A little baking powder acts as a leavening agent to lift the flour, making the flatbread airier. Using it, you'll notice air pockets form when you cook them. They will flatten as they cool. Baking powder is optional for this recipe.
Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the complete list of ingredients, measurements, and instructions.
♨️ How to Cook Sweet Potatoes
There are five ways you can prepare sweet potatoes for mashing:
- Simmer – Peel and cube the sweet potatoes. Place them in a large pot covered with cold water. Bring the water to a boil, then turn down the heat. Cover and simmer the potatoes until they are fork-tender.
- Steam – Add peeled and cubed sweet potatoes to a steamer basket. Fill a pot with water not covering the basket. Bring the water to a boil, cover, and steam the sweet potatoes for about 15 minutes.
- Bake whole – Scrub the sweet potatoes and pierce them with a fork. Place them on a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Sweet potatoes are notoriously messy when baking. You can also use a glass baking dish. Bake them at 425 degrees (220 C) for 45 to 50 minutes (depending on size) until they are soft and easily pierced with a fork.
- Baked halved – I used this method to make twice-baked sweet potatoes and am sold on it. Scrub and cut the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise. Lay them flat on a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Bake at 425 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
- Microwave – This is the quickest and easiest method. Scrub the potatoes, pierce them a few times with a fork, then place them on a microwave-safe plate. Cook them for 5 minutes. Turn them over and cook for another minute if they are not super-soft.
Pro Tips
- Transfer sweet potato cubes to a large bowl or use a spoon to clean out the skins if you've baked them. Use a potato masher to mash the potatoes until they are smooth. You can also use a hand beater or food processor to accomplish this task.
- Measuring the amount of mashed sweet potatoes you end up with is a good idea. This will guide the amount of flour you'll need. If you end up with more than 2 cups, adjust the baking powder and salt accordingly.
- Add 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and salt to another medium bowl. Mix the dry ingredients and then add the sweet potatoes. Measure out another cup of flour and keep it handy because you're about to get your hands messy.
- Use your hands and mix the sweet potatoes and flour. It's gonna be sticky and messy. Remember that extra cup of flour? Add it as you mix until you have a dough that doesn't stick to your hands and can form a ball. I used nearly another full cup of whole wheat flour for 2 cups of sweet potatoes.
- It’s easiest to separate the dough into equal pieces if you roll it into a cylinder with your hands. Then cut it and form little balls.
- Use a rolling pin just your hands to form flat, round flatbread. Try to keep them about ¼ inch thick.
- To use a tortilla press: If you are making wraps, you may want to use a tortilla press. In my experience, a stiff dough is easier to get off the press and into your frying pan. Use parchment paper or plastic wrap to cover the bottom of the press.
Baking Flatbread
Baking is a great way to cook flatbread because it can all be done in one go, and the flatbread tends to brown evenly. It’s a preferred method for thicker flatbread.
You may need to use more than one baking sheet. Line them so they are easy to flip. Bake at 425 degrees for 8 minutes. Then, flip them over and bake for another 4-5 minutes.
Frying Flatbread
Heat your pan over medium heat. Then add a flatbread right in the middle and let it cook for about 2 minutes. Then flip it and cook for another minute. The flatbread should be brown and firm.
Watch the heat of the pan. Once it starts to get hot, you can quickly burn flatbread. Try to coordinate the process so that while you cook one flatbread, roll or press another.
🍴 Serving Suggestions
Sweet potato flatbread makes a delicious side dish with curry, soup, or stew. Perhaps our favorite is using them as a base for individual flatbread pizzas. We like making them with hummus, artichoke pesto, Pesto Rosso, black bean dip. Then add chopped veggies and garnish with cilantro or parsley. It's on!
🌡️ Storage
Store flatbread in an airtight container for 4-5 days on the counter and 7 days in the refrigerator.
If you freeze flatbread, wrap each individually in plastic wrap or keep them in a freezer bag. Separate each flatbread with a small piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap.
⏲️ Reheating
Baked flatbread can quickly be reheated in the oven. If you are making mini-pizzas and are cooking the veggies, you don't need to preheat cooked flatbread. They'll heat as the toppings cook. Wrap them in foil to keep them from getting too brown.
If they are small enough, sprinkle them with a little water and pop them in the toaster.
💭 Frequently Asked Questions
If you use the pasty blade in your food processor to mash the sweet potatoes and make the dough. After pureeing the sweet potatoes, start by adding 2 cups of flour plus the salt and baking powder. Add more flour until it forms a dough ball.
You can use sweet potatoes and yams interchangeably for making flatbread. Because sweet potatoes are softer, they may cook quicker and have more moisture after mashing. For this reason, you may need to adjust the flour as you make the dough.
If your perfect sweet potato dough is simply too sticky to manage to get off the tortilla press or roll, the best thing to do is knead in more flour. Separate the dough and have a do-over.
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👩🏻🍳 Recipe
Homemade Vegan Sweet Potato Flatbread
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Ingredients
- 2 cups sweet potatoes - mashed, 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 2-3 cups whole wheat flour - see notes for substitutions
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Peel and cube the sweet potatoes. Use a basket steamer for cooking the sweet potatoes. Likewise, boil them in plenty of water. Alternatively, you can bake them. The potatoes should be very tender when pierced with a fork.
- Add the cooked sweet potatoes to a medium bowl. Use a potato masher or electric beater to mash the sweet potatoes.
- In a different mixing bowl, combine 2 cups of flour with the baking powder and salt. Then add 2 cups of mashed sweet potato. Measure out another cup of flour to have handy. Use your hand to mix the flour and potatoes. Add more flour until you have a soft but pliable dough that can form a ball. The dough should be stiff enough that you can handle it.
- Lightly coat a large, flat surface with flour. Roll the dough into a cylinder shape can cut it into 6 even pieces. Roll each into a ball. Use a rolling pin or your hands to form flatbreads about ¼ of an inch thick. Don't stack the unbaked flatbread.
How to bake flatbread
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat when baking the flatbread. Use 2 trays if you have them. Preheat the oven to 425 F. (220 C.). If you are frying them, just ready the pan.
- To bake, place each flatbread separated on the baking trays. Place them in the oven and bake for 8 minutes. Flip them and bake for another 4-5 minutes until they are brown and firm.
How to fry flatbread
- To fry, heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add a flatbread and cook for 2 minutes until brown on the bottom. Flip and cook the second side. Repeat for each flatbread.
Video
Notes
- The cook time is based on 15 minutes for steaming the sweet potatoes. You may need more time depending on how you cook them.
- The nutritional information is based on 3 cups of whole wheat flour.
- Use any type of flour, including gluten-free. Depending on the type you use, the flatbread may require more or less.
- You may need to add more than 3 cups of flour depending on the moisture in your mashed sweet potatoes and the type of flour used. Boiling or steaming sweet potatoes makes them moister than baking or microwaving, which will also impact the amount of flour you'll need.
- If you want to make thinner sweet potato tortillas using a tortilla press, be sure the dough is not too sticky. If the dough becomes unmanageable, add more flour and start over.
- Store flatbread in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 7 days.
- To freeze flatbread, separate them with a piece of parchment paper and place them in a freezer bag. Freeze for 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.
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