Guacajacks
Guacajacks are one of those recipes we come back to again and again because they just hit differently. Crispy baked sweet potato skins loaded with smoky fillings and finished with the most indulgent homemade guacamole, it's Mexican comfort food at its absolute best. You get that gorgeous contrast of soft, sweet potato flesh against cool, creamy avo and a proper kick from the chilli oil if you go for it. We love making these on a Friday night when we want something that feels a bit special but without spending hours in the kitchen. Trust us, once you've had one of these you'll be adding them to the regular rotation.
Before You Start
- Preheat oven to 200°C
- Large baking tray
- Mixing bowl
- Fork for mashing
- Microplane or fine grater for garlic
- Small pan (for chilli oil, if making)
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp chilli oil - shop-bought or make our Home-Made Chilli Oil
- salt to taste
- 2 large sweet potatoes
- 1 tbsp olive oil - optional
- 2 small ripe avocados
- 1 banana shallot small
- ½ garlic clove
- 1 small red chilli
- 6 cherry tomatoes
- 1 lime
- ½ x 400g can of black beans
- 15g coriander leaves
- 250ml light olive oil - plus 2tbsp
- 3 tsp chilli flakes
- 4 dried Ancho Chillies
Method
Prepare the home-made chilli oil (optional)
- Pour the 2 tablespoons oil into the pan and heat
- Add the chillies and flakes and stir for 1 minute
- Pour in the rest of the oil, turn the heat right down and warm through for about 5 minutes, being careful not to let the oil bubble
- Take off the heat and cool to room temperature
- Pour into the bottle or jar and screw on the lid, and use within 1 month
Prepare the sweet potatoes
- Put the sweet potatoes on the baking tray and pierce them a few times with a fork
- Rub the potatoes with the chilli oil and a generous pinch of salt
- Put the tray in the oven and bake for 50–55 minutes, until the skin has begun to crisp up and the flesh is tender
When the potatoes are nearly cooked, make your guac
- Halve and carefully stone the avocados by tapping the stone firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the stone, then twist and remove
- Spoon the flesh into a mixing bowl and mash with a fork
- Peel and finely chop the shallot
- Peel and grate the garlic
- Rip the stem from the chilli, cut it in half lengthways and remove the seeds, then finely chop
- Finely chop the cherry tomatoes
- Add the shallots, garlic, chilli and tomatoes to the bowl
- Halve the lime and squeeze in the juice
- Fold everything together to combine
- Taste and season with salt
- Pick the leaves from the coriander and discard the stems
- Set aside a third of the leaves for garnish then finely chop the rest and add to the bowl
- Drain and rinse the black beans and stir them into the guacamole
- If the consistency is a little stiff, add a little olive oil to soften it
Finish and serve
- Take the tray out of the oven and leave the potatoes to cool for 5 minutes
- Carefully slice open the sweet potatoes and gently fluff the flesh with a fork
- Spoon half the guacamole into each potato
- Garnish with the reserved coriander leaves and serve immediately
Tips & Variations
- Make the chilli oil ahead: We always make a big batch of the chilli oil at the start of the week and keep it in a jar. It keeps for a month and makes everything taste better, drizzle it on pasta, toast, soups, you name it.
- Don't skip the resting time: Once the sweet potatoes come out of the oven, give them a few minutes before you scoop them. They hold their shape better and you won't burn your hands, which we've both done more than once.
- Guac tip: Ian always adds a tiny bit of extra lime right at the end after tasting. It brightens everything up and stops the avocado from going brown as quickly if you're making it slightly ahead.
Why This Works
The trick here is getting those sweet potato skins really crispy before you load them up, because that contrast of textures is what makes the whole thing. The homemade chilli oil is optional but honestly we'd really encourage you to try it, it takes five minutes and adds this warm, glossy heat that shop-bought stuff just can't match. Get that right and everything else falls into place.