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SMART SHOPPING: Sweet Potato Or Yam?

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You often hear “yam” and “sweet potato” used interchangeably, but they actually belong to completely different botanical families. Yams, generally sold in Latin and Asian markets, are often sold in chunks (they can grow to be several feet long) and can be found in dozens of varieties, with flesh ranging from white to light yellow to pink, and skin from off-white to brown. They all have very starchy flesh. Sweet potatoes are also found in several varieties and can have firm or soft flesh, but it’s the soft varieties that have in the past been mislabeled as “yams,” and the confusion continues to this day. In an attempt to remedy this, the USDA now requires labels with the term “yam” to be accompanied by the term “sweet potato” when appropriate. We typically buy the conventional sweet potato, a longish, knobby tuber with dark, orangey-brown skin and vivid flesh that cooks up moist and sweet. The buttery-sweet Beauregard is our favorite variety.