Posted Jan 26, 2010
Jan. 21–SWEET POTATOES ARE MANY THINGS — nutritious, delicious, gorgeous — but they’re not yams.
The name confusion began because there are two types of sweet potato — hard and pale, and soft and orange. The hard, pale guys came along first, and when their more appealing brethen became available, they were sold as yams. We’ve been mixing them up ever since.
Belonging to the morning glory family, sweet potatoes offer fiber, potassium, manganese, iron, vitamin C plus phenomenal amounts of vitamin A (beta-carotene). They may be called sweet potatoes in your market, or they may be called yams, which is just wrong, but in any case, they’re roughly 200 calories per cup, cooked.
One of the benefits of living in South Florida is that we get true yams from the Caribbean. They’re in your market’s local produce section and resemble blocks of wood. They may be sold in chunks, not as the whole yammy deal, which can grow upwards of seven feet long.
Some say they get their name from the African word nyam, which means to taste. They’re beloved by Latins, who call them name. Call then what you will, yams don’t have the A-appeal of sweet potatoes but do contain diosgenin, a phytosteroid providing some hormonal support for women while not making a guy go all girly. They’re also rich in fiber, vitamin C and B6 and potassium, averaging about 150 calories per cup.
While the sweet potato is tawny and smooth-skinned, the yam is bumpy and dark on the outside. Ah, but on the inside, yams are moister and sweeter, with lighter-colored flesh.
Both are in season now and neither needs — nor deserves — to be buried beneath a lava flow of marshmallow. Roasting enhances their natural sweetness. Spread slices on a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and roast for 30 minutes at 425 degrees, giving them the occasional stir. Easy and awesome.
Ellen Kanner writes about vegetarian concerns. She blogs at www.edgyveggie1.blogspot.com.
Date: Jan 22, 2010
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