Have you ever wondered the difference between sweet potatoes and yams? I know I have. There is a lot of confusion between these two. It can be confusing when holiday recipes list one of them in recipes and you might not be sure which it is. Let’s take a look at each one and discover why there is so much confusion.
Sweet Potato
The sweet potato is an edible root tuber that originated from Central America. They can be white, yellow, orange, and purple. We are most accustomed to the orange variety. Sweet potatoes are more closely related to carrots than to potatoes. There are two categories of sweet potatoes – firm, dry, and mealy or soft and moist. Orange is the most common type, but they can be white, yellow, or purple. Each one can have a slightly different texture and taste. Sweet potatoes can actually be eaten raw and their leaves can be cooked like carrot or beet tops.
Sweet Potato Recipes to try:
Yams
Yams are tubers also but are actually a stem tuber native to tropical regions of Africa and Asia and have a dry starchy flesh. They are definitely different from sweet potatoes that are labelled “yams” in the United States. So where did the confusion begin?
When the orange-colored sweet potato was introduced in the US in the mid-twentieth century, the producers wanted to distinguish this variety from the white-fleshed sweet potato. The word “yam” was adopted from an African word, nyami, and it stuck. The USDA has tried to distinguish the two by requiring if something is labeled yam it must also have sweet potato listed. This really doesn’t clear things up, does it? If you have eaten a true yam you will definitely recognize the difference.
True yams will have a rough textured brown skin and a very starchy, slippery texture with an earthy taste and little sweetness. They cannot be eaten raw like a sweet potato.
Yam Recipes to try:
Difference between Sweet Potatoes and Yams
Sweet Potato
- Thin reddish-brown skin
- Orange, white, yellow, or purple flesh
- Sweet flavor
- Can be labeled yams
- Originated in Central America
Yam
- Rough, texture brown skin
- Pale, starchy flesh
- Earthy, neutral flavor
- Sold in specialty stores
- Originated in Africa and Asia
Now you know the true difference of yams and sweet potatoes, and how the labeling in the US can be confusing. Personally, I have never seen a true yam in the grocery store, have you? Have you eaten a true yam before?
Be blessed and be a blessing,
Heather
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