Sweet Potatoes with Sticky Onions and Feta

Sweet Potatoes with Sticky Onions and Feta

This one genuinely comes up in conversation all the time when we're talking about easy meals that feel a bit special. There's something about a properly roasted sweet potato, split open and loaded with sticky caramelised onions, creamy butterbeans and crumbled salty feta that just hits every note. The textures are incredible, soft and fluffy inside, jammy onions on top, and that feta adds this sharp, salty kick that pulls everything together. It's Mediterranean comfort food at its best and it takes about 45 minutes with minimal effort. Honestly, make this tonight and you won't regret it.

Cook: 45 min
Serves 2

Before You Start

  • Preheat oven to 200°C
  • Large baking tray
  • Frying pan
  • Fork for mashing

Ingredients

  • 4 sweet potatoes
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • salt
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp plant-based butter
  • 2 red onions
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 2 tbsp caster sugar
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 1 x 400g can of butter beans
  • 1 red chilli
  • 100g spinach
  • 100g plant-based feta
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 tsp sumac
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Method

1

Roast the potatoes

  • Use a fork to pierce the sweet potatoes and place on the baking tray
  • Drizzle the olive oil over the sweet potatoes and season with salt
  • Rub it into the skins then roast for 40-45 minutes until soft and tender
2

Prep the ingredients

  • Peel and slice the onions
  • Drain the butterbeans
  • Thinly slice the chilli
  • Crumble the feta
3

Cook the base

  • Heat a frying pan over a low-medium heat and add the olive oil and butter
  • Add the onions and fry for 10 minutes until slightly softened
  • Turn up the heat and add the vinegar, sugar and thyme
  • Cook for another 5 minutes until the liquid has reduced and the onions are sticky and caramelised
  • Take off the heat and stir through the butterbeans, red chilli and spinach to wilt
4

Assemble and Serve

  • Slice down the centre of the sweet potatoes to open them up and mash up the flesh with a fork
  • Spoon over the onion butterbean mix and top with the crumbled feta
  • Zest over the lemon and squeeze the lemon juice
  • Sprinkle over the sumac and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil

Tips & Variations

  • Get the onions right: Don't rush them. We know it's tempting to turn the heat up but keep it low and give them a good 15 to 20 minutes. That's where all the flavour lives.
  • Swap the feta: If you want to keep it fully plant-based, a good vegan feta works brilliantly here. There are some really decent ones around now and they crumble just as nicely.
  • Bulk it out: If you're cooking for hungry people, stir a tin of butterbeans into the onion base. It makes the whole thing way more filling and adds a lovely creaminess to the topping.

Why This Works

The trick is giving those onions enough time in the pan to go properly sticky and golden. Rush them and you lose the whole point. That low and slow cook is what turns them sweet and jammy, and that contrast with the salty feta is what makes this recipe something you'll keep coming back to.