Plain baked yam or sweet potato?

[AuntieV]

I have never fixed anything but canned yams in the traditional holiday dish. For Christmas I want to try just baking some to go with our pork roast. I would like some suggestions/help from the experts on which one to buy and cooking instructions.

 

[elaine l]

You could roast the yams/sweet potatoes. I do this all the time. Sometimes I use a little cumin and rosemary, sometimes just olive oil and s&p, or just butter.

 

[AuntieV]

Which one works better for plain baked though? I am looking for something with about the same texture as a regular white potato. I am a virgin when it comes to picking out the spuds. The only time I have purchased them was when I bought one to stick in a glass of water and sit on the window sill when I was a kid.

 

[Uncle Bob]

A plain baked sweet potato is hard to beat....I use a very thin coat of oil on the skin, and bake at 350* until soft to squeeze. Served with just butter, or sometimes with a drizzle of Cane Syrup.....

Have Fun!!

 

[elaine l]

What UB said. As a kid we used to enjoy a baked sweet potato as a snack. I think the wht sweet potatoes are really nice if you are looking for something with the texture of a white potato.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Which one works better for plain baked though? I am looking for something with about the same texture as a regular white potato. I am a virgin when it comes to picking out the spuds. The only time I have purchased them was when I bought one to stick in a glass of water and sit on the window sill when I was a kid.

Unless you go to a specialty market you will have a hard time finding a true Yam...They are not grown commercially in the US...Pick out ones ( Sweet Potatoes) that are medium size, free of blemishes with a nice shape.

Have Fun!

 

[AuntieV]

My regular store has loose ones that are labeled yams and another group that are labeled Sweet Potato. It is my understanding that the FDA requires anything that is not a real sweet potato to have "yam" on it somewhere on the label. Now I am really confused??????

 

[Uncle Bob]

Not sure what your store is doing...Maybe a display of orange colored flesh ones, and another of 'white' flesh ones --- Both are sweet Potatoes....Then again...maybe they have imported True Yams in...Ask questions of your produce personnel. Here is some information.
Knowing where in the World you live would be helpful -----

 

[Uncle Bob]

More information that may prove helpful.......

 

[gadzooks]

Both are tasty, and I bake 'em oiled, then split and butter. If pressed on the matter, my preference would be red garnet yams. If we're having them at your house...either one will be fine.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Both are tasty, and I bake 'em oiled, then split and butter. If pressed on the matter, my preference would be red garnet yams. If we're having them at your house...either one will be fine.

Red Garnet is a variety of Sweet Potato...Marketed as a "Yam" to distinguish it from other varieties...It is NOT a TRUE Yam!

 

[pdswife]

I bake them just like a regular potato and then top with butter and brown sugar.

 

[gadzooks]

Red Garnet is a variety of Sweet Potato...Marketed as a "Yam" to distinguish it from other varieties...It is NOT a TRUE Yam!

Thank you, I didn't know that. I still like 'em better.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Thank you, I didn't know that. I still like 'em better.

You're welcome!! Many years ago Louisiana Sweet Potato farmers came up with a marketing strategy to call their Potatoes -- Louisiana "Yams" in an attempt to sell more product -- It worked!!! In reality they are just sweet potatoes!

Enjoy!!

 

[Jeff G.]

Sweet potato, poke a couple of holes in them and microwave. Serve with butter and brown sugar. Fantastic!!! It has become one of my favorites.

 

[Constance]

A plain baked sweet potato is hard to beat....I use a very thin coat of oil on the skin, and bake at 350* until soft to squeeze. Served with just butter, or sometimes with a drizzle of Cane Syrup.....

Have Fun!!

I didn't learn to like sweet potatoes until I moved to Louisiana, and learned to eat them just as Uncle Bob suggested. I went for the butter.
I still like them that way, but ours are sure not as orange and sweet as the ones Grandpa Gonzales grew.

 

[Constance]

Red Garnet is a variety of Sweet Potato...Marketed as a "Yam" to distinguish it from other varieties...It is NOT a TRUE Yam!

You're right, Bob. True yams grow in South America, and are white, starchy, and not sweet at all.

 

[PieSusan]

Either are spectacular. I wash them, wrap them in tinfoil and bake at 350 degrees until they are soft when you squeeze them like a regular potato. I serve them with sweet butter. Or even eat them plain. I find them sweet enough not to add sugar, syrup, marshmallows and the like. They are good for you and good eats.

 

[kadesma]

I prefer the lighter coloerd sweet potato, washed rubbed with some oil and a hole poked in them, bake in a 350 oven slit, butter salt and pepper..enjoy
They seem to me to cook a little faster than the white russets and the taste is heaven
kadesma

 

[simplicity]

I prefer the lighter coloerd sweet potato, washed rubbed with some oil and a hole poked in them, bake in a 350 oven slit, butter salt and pepper..enjoy
They seem to me to cook a little faster than the white russets and the taste is heaven
kadesma

I like them this way too - baked and buttered with salt and pepper.