This creamy, savory, tangy curry-infused sweet potato and cashew dip is so addictive that you’ll suddenly find yourself craving raw vegetables.
The best sweet potato dip on the planet
If eating raw vegetables feels like a chore, you’re just missing the right dip. This creamy, savory, tangy, curry-infused sweet potato dip is so ridiculously good that my non-Paleo friends and even my mom became instant fans.
Thanks to soaked cashews, it’s luxuriously creamy without any dairy, and it’s naturally vegan and Whole30. Pair it with crunchy crudités, and don’t be surprised if you find yourself reaching for “just one more” carrot stick or cucumber slice until the platter is empty.
My friend Tess Masters, who just happens to be a smart, sassy vegan (yes, I’m friends with vegans!) created this genius recipe in The Perfect Blend and it’s a winner!
How to make this sweet potato dip quicker
Unfortunately, there are two rate-limiting steps in this recipe:
- Roasting the sweet potato (which takes 45 minutes to an hour) and
- Soaking the cashews (Tess recommends soaking the cup of raw cashews in 2 cups of warm water mixed with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice for 2 to 4 hours).
Luckily, I have two tips on how to speed things up!
Two steps to speed things up
- Roast your sweet potato ahead of time and mash it straight out of the fridge and/or
- Soak your cashews in 2 cups of boiling water for 10 minutes. I’ve tried both the slow method and the fast method, and the dip tastes fantastic either way. Choose the method that fits how fast you need it to get this dip in your belly!
Ready to blitz your way to happiness?
Ingredients
- Orange-flesh sweet potato (e.g., garnet or jewel): The standard orange flesh sweet potato works the best in this recipe because of the sweetness and soft, mashable texture
- Raw unsalted cashews, soaked and drained: Adds creaminess and body to the dip. I haven’t tried a substitute, but I bet tahini would work!
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Yellow onion: Sautéing diced onions and garlic until tender is crucial to the creaminess and depth of flavor. I have subbed shallots and it works great!
- Minced garlic
- Fresh lemon juice: The combo of the lemon juice and apple cider vinegar gives this dip a delightful and addictive tang!
- Apple cider vinegar
- Mild yellow curry powder: Use your favorite mild Indian yellow curry. The spices perfectly pair with the sweet potato!
- Ground coriander
- Ground cumin
- Sweet paprika
- Ground turmeric (optional)
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
How to make curried sweet potato dip
Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C) with the rack in the middle
Prick the sweet potato all over with a paring knife or fork and lightly brush with olive or avocado oil. Place it on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until soft. (If you need more deets on how to roast a sweet potato, you can click here. You might as well throw on a few extra sweet potatoes so you can have leftovers!) Allow the tater to cool, peel off the skin, and mash the flesh with a fork. Set aside 1 cup (250 g) of the mashed sweet potato.
In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onions with a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes or until soft and translucent.
Add the minced garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Allow the alliums to cool slightly.
Grab your high speed blender or food processor and pour the remaining ¼ cup (60 mL) olive oil with the ¼ cup lemon juice and 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar. Add the onion mixture…
…cup of mashed sweet potato, cup of soaked and drained cashews…
…spices (1 teaspoon curry powder, 1½ teaspoons ground coriander, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ¾ teaspoon sweet paprika, and ⅛ teaspoon ground turmeric), and 1 teaspoon kosher salt.
Blast on high for a minute until the resulting dip is smooth and creamy.
If you don’t have a powerful blender, you may need to periodically stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the container.
Serve with your favorite raw and blanched veggies.
How to store the sweet potato dip
The dip will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for about 4 days, but I bet it will be gone sooner than that. Good thing you baked extra sweet potatoes so you can make more dip!
Slightly adapted, with permission, from The Perfect Blend, copyright 2016 Tess Masters. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2022).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Curried Sweet Potato and Cashew Dip
Ingredients
- 1 large orange-flesh sweet potato e.g., garnet or jewel
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided
- 1 cup diced yellow onion
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic about 2 cloves
- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt plus more to taste
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup raw unsalted cashews, soaked and drained
- 1 teaspoon mild yellow curry powder plus more to taste
- 1½ teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¾ teaspoon sweet paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon ground turmeric optional
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Prick the sweet potato all over with a paring knife or fork and lightly brush with olive or avocado oil. Place it on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until soft.
- Allow the tater to cool, peel off the skin, and mash the flesh with a fork. Set aside 1 cup (250 g) of the mashed sweet potato.
- In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onions with a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes or until soft and translucent.
- Add the minced garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Allow the alliums to cool slightly.
- Grab your high speed blender or food processor and pour the remaining ¼ cup (60 mL) olive oil with the ¼ cup lemon juice and 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar.
- Add the onion mixture, cup of mashed sweet potato, cup of soaked and drained cashews, spices (1 teaspoon curry powder, 1½ teaspoons ground coriander, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ¾ teaspoon sweet paprika, and ⅛ teaspoon ground turmeric), and 1 teaspoon kosher salt.
- Blast on high for a minute until the resulting dip is smooth and creamy. If you don’t have a powerful blender, you may need to periodically stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the container.
- Serve with your favorite raw veggies!
Notes
- Roast your sweet potato ahead of time and mash it straight out of the fridge and/or
- Soak your cashews in 2 cups of boiling water for 10 minutes. I’ve tried both the slow method and the fast method, and the dip tastes fantastic either way. Choose the method that fits how fast you need it to get this dip in your belly!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Sounds good! Have you ever tried using roasted salted cashews instead? I have a ton of those!
I haven’t used it in this recipe, but I bet it would work if you soaked them.
I love this recipe- it is divine but it makes a lot. Do you think it would freeze ok?
I haven’t frozen it before! You may need to blend it again after you thaw it to keep it smooth.
This looks wonderful. Just one question. Other than when a recipe calls for a little sprinkle of seasoning or paprika I usually cook spices somewhere in the process especially turmeric or cumin. Why not saute the spices briefly with the alliums.
BTW, I have and just love both your cookbooks…..
You can sautés the spices! This is my friend Tess Master’s recipe, so I just followed her directions.
This was my first time with this recipe and it was so yummy. I use it for a healthy snack during the day and night as I lift alot of weights
I love this recipe! I’ve been making it for the past several years. It’s always a crowd pleaser and is perfect for when I am unsure of dietary preferences and restrictions as it appeals to all (except those with cashew allergies). I’m making it again for a summer get together and wanted to show love for it.
My inlaws are low oil is there a way to adjust the oil and just use water?
I haven’t tried it but I think it wouldn’t taste as good with just water.
This recipe is an absolutely winner for me – a perfect blend of flavours. Thanks for sharing
I’ve made this quite a few times and think it’s divine. I just made it for a 4th of July potluck and used the quick soak method for the cashews for the first time. The longer soak method works better. I do usually cook the spices for a couple minutes after the onions are softened. Everyone I’ve served this to loves it as long as I don’t tell them what it is. Mostly, I hang out with middle aged/senior citizen midwesterners these days and many of them seem afraid of the words curry, cashew, sweet potato, etc. If I tell them the name of it, they won’t try it. If I don’t tell them the name or ingredients, they devour it. Younger people and those in my prior west coast location loved it even better when they knew what it was.
I can’t count the times I make this for parties! Everyone loves it! I rarely even measure anymore! I saute onions and garlic and throw in the spices then. I use the boiling water and roasted cashews cuz I always have them around. Sometimes I add a lot tahini instead of olive oil. It incredible with celery and also adding a little chili crisp on top before serving.