**This post was developed and written by Nancy Gammack, RD when she was a dietetic intern and volunteer for Ignite Nutrition.
Sweet potatoes are a type of root vegetable that are incredibly versatile and nutritious. They have lots of vitamin A, vitamin C, and fibre. What’s not to love? Of course, as a digestive health dietitian, I tend to get questions about whether sweet potatoes are gut-friendly. Let’s chat about the benefits of sweet potato, the FODMAP content of sweet potato, and whether it’s good for those with IBS. Plus, I’m sharing a hearty roasted sweet potato salad recipe that you’ll love!
In this recipe roasted sweet potato is mixed with fresh red pepper and parsley and drizzled with a lemon-dill dressing. All the ingredients accompanying the sweet potato are low in FODMAPs and therefore, calculating a portion size is simple. If you stick to ½ cup or less of this salad you will keep the sweet potato portion to a low FODMAP serving! Therefore, serve on the side of some of your favourite dishes. Perhaps try it on the side of our Low FODMAP Lemon Herb Chicken, or our Low FODMAP Grilled Shrimp!
Have you been trying to do the low FODMAP diet on your own? Feeling overwhelmed? Here at Ignite Nutrition we offer one-on-one nutrition counselling to help you start on the low FODMAP diet with guidance.
Are sweet potatoes low FODMAP?
Yes and no. They are not only nutritious, but low FODMAP, at ½ cup portions, and moderate at 2/3 cup portions! This just means it’s important to keep portions moderate if you follow a low FODMAP diet.
There are a few types of sweet potatoes. One kind has a white interior that is slightly less sweet. The other type has a bright orange interior that has a sweeter taste1. There are also purple sweet potatoes now too! Perhaps, you have tried the sweet orange kind, for example if you’ve ever ordered sweet potato fries. In fact, I thought sweet potatoes were only orange coloured for a long time! I was quite surprised when I peeled the sweet potatoes for this recipe, and they were white.
Are sweet potatoes good for you?
Sweet potatoes are a good source of fibre, magnesium, as well as a high source of Vitamin A.1 Sweet potatoes do contain FODMAPs but are considered low FODMAP if consumed below the low FODMAP portion size of ½ cup.2 Therefore, serving this nutritious vegetable on the side of a meal is a great way to still enjoy the flavour and nutrients from this vegetable without exceeding the low FODMAP serving size.
How to Use Sweet Potato
What I love most about sweet potatoes is how versatile they are. They can be pureed for use in creamy soups, grated on top of salads, made into fries, mashed like potatoes, or even served as a sweeter dish with cinnamon and roasted walnuts. However, my favourite method to cook sweet potato is simply to roast them in the oven. It looks fancy, yet it is a simple method that leaves you with very little dishes to clean at the end. I also find that roasting, and slightly browning vegetables helps bring out their flavours!
Love this low FODMAP recipe as much as we do? We have an entire collection of low FODMAP recipes on our blog to help you through the low FODMAP diet.
Sweet Potato Side Salad (Low FODMAP)
Ingredients
- 1 medium, 3 cups cubed sweet potato (white, orange or purple, your choice!)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup finely chopped red pepper
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1.5 tsp lemon juice
- 1/8 tsp salt
- ½ tsp dill dried
- Black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400-degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- Peel then chop sweet potato into medium-sized cubes and place in a large bowl.
- Toss sweet potato in oil to coat.
- Spread sweet potato evenly on baking sheet and roast in the oven for 20 minutes, stirring at 10 minutes.
- While sweet potato is cooking, chop red pepper and fresh parsley and add to the large bowl.
- When sweet potato is roasted, remove from oven and mix back in the large bowl with the red pepper and parsley.
- Add 1 TBSP olive oil, lemon juice, salt, dill and black pepper. Mix well.
- Cool in fridge and then serve.
Notes
- For low FODMAP, keep serving size to ½ cup, or up to 2/3 cup for moderate FODMAP!
- For dinner, try this salad on the side of roasted salmon, Low FODMAP Herb Chicken or Low FODMAP grilled shrimp
- For lunch, try serving with a grilled cheese or tuna sandwich.
**Last reviewed May 2022 for Monash FODMAP portions
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