Steak Bites with Sweet Potatoes and Peppers are one-skillet wonder you’ll return to again and again! Easy, fast, filling and nutritious, this is really good real food at it’s most delicious.
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Oh, hey there Whole30 friends! And non-Whole30 friends! How about, hey there friends who love real food that’s fast, easy, healthy and loaded with flavor?? Yep – that works, because that’s exactly what we’re serving up today.
These Whole30 steak bites are flavor-filled, nutrient dense, and finger-licking delicious. With sweet potatoes, bell peppers, and a big pop of cilantro, this is a fast and filling weeknight dinner recipe that everyone will love.
Whole30 steak bites with sweet potatoes and peppers require one pan and are ready in under 45 minutes. Whole30 or not, this is a family friendly recipe you’ll return to again and again!
How to Make Healthy Steak Bites
This recipe for Whole30 steak bites is packed with tons of flavor and huge pops of vitamins thanks to colorful sweet potatoes and bell peppers. It’s an easy, approachable weeknight dinner recipe that’s ready in under 45 minutes. Flat iron steak pan sears well, and retains a tender texture and meaty flavor. If you have a few extra bucks, sirloin is also an excellent cut for this recipe.
First prepare the sweet potatoes. You’ll pre-cook them in the microwave so that they pan-sear quickly later in the recipe. Dice a large sweet potato into 1″ chunks, place into a microwave-safe bowl, sprinkle with sea salt, then cover and microwave until tender, but not soft – anywhere from 4-6 minutes. They’re ready when you can insert the tip of a knife into a piece and meet just a bit of resistance. Be mindful not to overcook or you’ll end up with mush. No bueno.
Pat your steak dry with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel, then trim of any excessive fat and sinew; dice into 1″ pieces. Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the diced steak to the pan in a single layer and allow the pieces to sear for about 2 minutes. Turn the pieces and sear for another 2 minutes per side, about 10 minutes total.
At around the 10-minute mark, the steak should be seared and slightly charred on the outside and medium on the inside. AKA, perfect. Remove the steak from the skillet using a slotted spoon and set aside onto a plate.
Reduce the heat to medium low, add another tablespoon of oil to the pan, and then add the sweet potatoes. Toss ’em in the fat and saute until slightly charred, about 4 minutes. Give them a good stir halfway through. If they start to stick, add a bit more oil.
Make a well in the center of the potatoes and add some minced garlic. Stir and saute the garlic until it’s fragrant, about a minute, then add the diced bell peppers and sliced green onions to the pan. Saute the vegetables, stirring frequently, until the onions wilt and the peppers just start to soften – another 3 or 4 minutes.
Add the steak back to the pan, along with any juices accumulated on the plate, and pour in 2 tablespoons coconut aminos. Saute and stir continuously until the liquid evaporates and the ingredients are thoroughly tossed – about a minute. Sprinkle the everything with a healthy dusting of cracked black pepper. Plate it up, and sprinkle generously with fresh cilantro.
So easy. So good. So delicious! These steak bites are the perfect Whole30 dinner recipe to keep you fueled and feelin’ fine.
Dietary Accommodations, Variations, and Storage
- Naturally Whole30 and paleo
- Gluten free, dairy free, nut free
- Low carb, with 19 grams net carbs per serving
- I like using flat iron steak for this recipe. Sirloin works well too.
- Add a diced jalapeno along with the garlic in step 4 for a kick of spice, or top with Whole30 sriracha
- This recipe works great for meal prep! Divide into meal prep containers and store in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, pan sear in a hot skillet for 3-4 minutes; or, microwave for one minute, stir, then microwave in additional 30 second intervals until desired temperature is reached.
More Flavor-Packed Whole30 Dinner Recipes
- Juicy Thick Cut Pork Chops with Apple Jicama Slaw
- Paleo Turkey Burgers with Guacamole
- Italian Sausage Zucchini Boats
- Steak Fajita Salad with Cilantro Vinaigrette
- Chili Con Carne with Roasted Peppers
- Slow Cooker Apple Cider Pulled Pork
Did you make these Whole30 Steak Bites? I’d love to know how they turned out! Leave a comment and a rating below.
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Whole30 Steak Bites with Sweet Potatoes and Peppers
Description
Ingredients
- 1 large sweet potato (about 12 ounces), diced into 1″ pieces
- 1 teaspoon sea or kosher salt
- 1 lb flat iron steak, diced into 1″ pieces
- 3 tablespoon olive oil, divided
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 bell peppers, seeded and diced into 1″ pieces
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoon coconut aminos
- 2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 tablespoon fresh chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Place the diced sweet potatoes into a microwave safe bowl, then sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Cover with a plate and microwave on high until just barely tender, 4-6 minutes. Stir once halfway through. The potatoes are ready when you can piece one with the tip of a knife and meet just a bit of resistance. Take care not to overcook at this stage or they’ll turn out mushy later.
- Heat a 12” skillet over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and heat until shimmering. Add the steak in a single layer. Cook, turning every two minutes, until the pieces are browned and the center is medium, about 10 minutes. Remove the steak from the skillet using a slotted spoon and set aside onto a plate.
- Add the third tablespoon olive oil to the skillet. Add the sweet potatoes, toss to coat in the fat and cook until browned, stirring occasionally, until browned, 3-4 minutes.
- Make a well in the center of the pan and add the garlic. Sautee, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add the bell pepper and scallions and toss with the potatoes. Sautee, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are bite tender, 3-4 minutes.
- Add the steak and juices back to the pan along with the coconut aminos. Toss all ingredients and cook an additional 1- 2 minutes until the liquid has evaporated.
- Add the pepper and cilantro, toss, and remove from heat. Portion onto plates, top with additional fresh cilantro if desired, and serve immediately.
Jacqueline
I found the food was delicious, but I found that if I microwaved the sweet potatoes beforehand, the end result came out as mashed instead of maintaining their original form.
Danielle
Hi Jacqueline – I’m sorry the potatoes didn’t work out for you! I may have cut them larger than you did, or your microwave might simply be more powerful (mine’s kind of ancient!). If you try it again, you might try microwaving them for just 3 or 4 minutes and see if that helps. You want them to be tender, but definitely not mushy.
Christa
I had this happen as well. I microwaved for 2-3 minutes instead, and they came out better. No two microwaves are alike!
Monique
Delicious! I used more coconut aminos than the recipe called for and I wish I had seasoned the meat. My sweet potatoes ended up getting mashed but it was still amazing. This is going on the regular rotation!
Tami
How many servings in the recipe, or did I miss that?
Jess
The recipe card is saying 4 servings. 🙂
Rebecc
What if I don’t want to add the coconut aminos? What can I substitute?
Danielle
It depends on your diet…if you’re not on a Whole30, you can use soy sauce or worcestershire for an umani-type flavor. On a Whole30 or to avoid soy or gluten, you could also use balsamic vinegar (I’d reduce to just a tablespoon) or skip it entirely and just top with hot sauce. There’s already a lot of flavor in the dish, so it would still be great if you simply eliminated it.
Debbie
Oh wow! It was delicious! I also love how pretty it was was. It hit all the spots! I almost cooked my potatoes too long but caught them just in time. I did mine in the microwave as suggested and they were just right. I think where I almost overcooked them happened when I left them in the microwave after the 6 minutes. I was multitasking! Lol, anyway, I remembered I needed to get them out just in time though. To clarify , the microwave was done and had beeped but I left them in there and of course they continued to cook. But they really were still fine. Another minute and I may have had them too soft. But they still held their shape and were delicious! Thank you!
Danielle
I’m so glad you loved it Debbie! And you’ve pointed out an excellent note, which is that they will continue to steam if left in the microwave – very useful for others, and I will update the recipe card with this note. Thank you!!
Kristin
This was amazing! I will definitely making this again!
Grace
Tried this tonight for dinner! What a hit! I don’t like mushy potatoes so I cut them up into bite size peices and roasted them at 425 for an hour or until they got crispy. I folded them back in (gently! even when crispy it’s easy to mush them when you mix) after I cooked the onions and peppers. It turned out perfectly with a nice paired side salad.
Nicole
Thanks for this! I actually don’t have a microwave so I was wondering how to do this.
Jennifer
I have never commented on a recipe until now, but I couldn’t believe how great this turned out and how easy it was to make. I pretty much followed the recipe exactly, just subbed sirloin for flat iron steak and used soy sauce in place of the coconut aminos. Outstanding!
Heather
Can I use t-bone steak cut up instead of flat iron?
Christa
I bet any kind of steak would work. Heck, I made it with pork loin and it came out great!
Anne
Hi. This sounds delicious! My family isn’t a huge cilantro loving group, is there a different herb that you would recommend? Thanks for the recipe.
Paula
I used fresh parslet Andy it was great!
Christa
I dislike cilantro, so I used oregano instead. Tasted very good 🙂
Jill-B
Made tonight with a few changes. Didn’t have fresh cilantro, so I used dry. I also made with one sweet potatoes and 3 small russet potatoes. Also used Tamari instead of coconut aminos. The family loved it! Even my picky teenage daughter went back for seconds. This was so quick, easy and scrumptious. I’ll be keeping this one in my monthly rotations for sure. Thank you for sharing!
Suzi
I really enjoyed the steak bites. Healthy and delicious! I shared this with my college aged daughter who is just experimenting with new r chipset and she loved it too! Thank you for sharing with all of us!
Brenda
I love this recipe! It is awesome!
Crissy
I thought this was pretty good but I would rather cook a whole steak and serve the sweet potatoes and peppers on the side. I barely cooked the steak but it still ended up overcooked in the end. Great flavor and pretty colors!
Denise Deitchman
I had the same issue. The overall dish was good (i subbed broccoli for peppers and cooked the broccoli separately) but there is no way my steak would have lasted 10 minutes! I barely cooked it for 6-7 minutes and it ended unto chewy. Sweet potatoes came out great though!
Teri
I just made this and Wow! Delicious and flavorful. I chopped all the veggies and meat yesterday to save time, and cooked it tonight. I will certainly make this again.
Molly
Absolutely delicious! It turned out looking just like the photo. I actually Roasted my sweet potatoes for 20 minutes at 450 and then just added them to the peppers and mixed it all together. It turned out perfectly.
Jen
Has anyone cooked this in an Instant Pot? I’m always happy with how tender meat is when I use it and don’t want to ruin this yummy looking dish by overcooking & having tough (pricey!) meat, so I’m thinking about it…
Thanks!
Christa
I don’t have an instant pot, but I would be worried about overcooking the sweet potatoes maybe. Not sure?
Jinjer
This was delicious!
I have a super powerful microwave so 3 minutes TOTAL was perfect.
I must have a super powerful electric stovetop, too because my oil was burning on high. The steak pieces were done after like 4 minutes.
Luckily I was watching everything like a hawk so in the end all was well and it was beyond yummy.
Erika
Has anyone tried modifying this recipe for the Instant Pot?
Stephanie
This was so yummy and everyone loved it!!
Danielle
So happy to hear this Stephanie, thanks for sharing!
Lauren
Amazing dish! So flavorful and easy to make! I did half of the cilantro and it tasted great. We will absolutely make again.
Danielle
I’m so glad you loved it Lauren!!
Kasia
Amazing!
OMAR AHMED
This is an awesome recipe. Super easy and delicious! Thank you for sharing!
Amber
Hi! Trying this tonight- I’m watching calories. I see that a serving is 460 calories, but how much makes up a serving? A cup?
Danielle
I don’t know the exact measurements, but as written, the recipe serves four, so a quarter of the final dish should be (roughly) 460 calories.
Christa
I love this recipe. It’s so easy to include as part of a healthy meal prep for weekday lunches.
This weekend I tried it with pork loin instead of beef and it turned out every bit as good!
I switched it up a bit by cutting the meat into cubes and marinading overnight in the non-veg ingredients (coconut aminos, herbs, salt, pepper, minced garlic, a little oil – and I added a little onion powder for fun.)
I cooked the veg first, then removed and cooked the meat (to avoid accidentally burning the sauce somehow), but it probably would have been fine anyway. I added a little beef broth at the end to help the sauce become saucier. 🙂
Sharon
Made this as written, minus green pepper cause it wasn’t in the frig, and it was delicious comfort type food. I will make it often!
Lauren
Can I use chicken instead of steak for this recipe ?
Donna
Excellent! Fast, easy and delicious. This one’s a keeper.
Maria Agee
It’s mouth-watering I am gonna try it this weekend for sure.
Deasha
This is amazing!!! Have been making almost every week on my “whole 60” journey.
Meghan
Delicious! Whole family loved it!
Rhonda
I made this tonight for dinner & it was awesome! My husband & I both loved it! Very flavorful!
Dee
This recipe is fantastic! It has become a weekly staple during my “whole 60” journey. Will continue to make this after my whole30 journey as well.
Anita
We tried this tonight. I took out the peppers and pepper to avoid nightshades and added in chopped asparagus instead. I just put them In when you put the sweet potato in. It was great! Definitely will make again
Megan
This is sooooo good!!! I added rice for my kiddos
Didn’t have coconut aminos so I just used regular aminos.
Alexis Butler
Quick and easy full of flavor.
Tammie
This recipe is super easy and very tasty! The whole family loved it!
Paula Lear
Delicious, my husband really liked it too. He loved the jalapeños
Tiziana
Absolutely fantastic! I switched it up a little because I only had one bell pepper. I added a whole Vidalia onion, large chop. Also, I moved the sweet potato to the back end to keep it from getting mushy. Absolutely going into regular rotation. Thank you!
Jazzie
this was a winner!
Darcey
Do u peel the potatoes?
Alexandra Raderstorf
Delicious! This is a recipe I keep going back to:)
Tiffany
This meal came out pretty sweet. We added hot sauce in ours’ to balance the flavors. Then it was pretty delicious.
Cynthia Ferrufino
This is one my my favorite recipes. Absolutely delicious and always part of my dinner rotation whether or not I’m doing Whole30.
Zuelekha Mance
I love this recipe! I just added yellow onions! It was delicious! Thank you
Mark A Winkler
Easy to make, delicious mix of flavors, yum!!!
Sharon
I added 1 tsp. of pepper instead of 2 and it was plenty.. I also added some stir-fried mushrooms at the end. I didn’t have the coconut amino so I substituted soy sauce.
Bryanna
Are we supposed to season the steak at all? I’m worried it wont have much flavor without seasoning.
Vickey
I’m making this recipe tonight. I made it last week and quickly decided that I needed to have it again soon! Thank you for creating wonderful recipes.
Julie
Delicious, quick and easy!
Keri
I never leave ratings/reviews, but I had to on this one. Absolutely delicious! Will definitely be going into the regular rotation!
Melissa
I’m not doing Whole 30 – just trying to make healthier choices, but my husband and I LOVE this recipe.
Gail
This was so easy and very tasty! The only thing I added was a squeeze of lime. The whole family loved it. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes !
Lacie
I wish it wouldn’t have taken me so long to find this recipe. We keep wanting to try to add stuff to and try different things, but this recipe is perfection so we just leave it as is.
Kelli O’Harrow
This looks delicious! Any recs for preparing sweet potatoes without a microwave? Roast briefly or boil?
Thanks!
Danielle Esposti
You can definitely roast the potatoes first and add them in at the end (step 6). Parboiling on the stove works too – place the potatoes in a pot, cover with water and season with a bit of salt. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, allow them to boil for 1 minute, then strain and shake and allow to air dry for a minute or two.
Megan
Could not stop eating this. So easy and good!
Lauren
Fantastic! I’ve made this recipe already 5 times since finding it a few weeks ago and find it full of flavor, not super fatty, and very filling. My question is actually in the Nutrition facts; I understand the recipe is for 4 servings but are the nutrition facts for one serving or for the total of 4 servings?
Danielle Esposti
The nutrition facts are per serving; they’re calculated using My Fitness Pal, but only an estimate as I am not a dietician.