Comments on: Thanksgiving Dinner Conversation: Yams & Sweet Potatoes

By: Paige

Paige — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 13:30:57 +0000

cogito ergo spud.

I think therefore I yam.

By: Julian K

Julian K — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 06:30:39 +0000

Anyone tried a type of deep fried Yam dim sum called Wu Kok before? Sweet potatoes from Japan are the sweetest. When you boil Yam, the skin tends to peel off by itself slowly, revealing its purple body – delicious!
Sweet potatoes can be boiled, steamed, mashed, baked, grilled, deep fried, served in a savoury soup/broth or coconut milk, hot or cold. List goes on…

By: Jill

Jill — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 04:18:26 +0000

I’ll add to the chorus – sweet potato fries are even better than regular french fries. Especially when they are thin and crispy.

I first had sweet potatoes about 6 years ago. I made them at Thankgiving for my grandmother. Turns out I love them as well. Now I make them every Thanksgiving. I bake them, then mix with oj, top with brown sugar and butter, and bake again. Muy delicioso!

By: Jan

Jan — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 01:00:14 +0000

Sweet Potato Fries! Yum!
First had these at The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, TN.

By: Cynthia

Cynthia — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 22:19:27 +0000

I grew up thinking I hated sweet potatoes because THE ONLY way they were ever served to me was with marshmallows and raisins and tons of brown sugar, baked until it was this pulpy sweet goo……I still cringe thinking about it. As an adult I was served a plain baked sweet potato with just a little dab of butter on it and realized just how wonderful and delicious a food it was. I have served plain sweet potatoes to my son since he was a baby. The first time he encountered the dreaded thanksgiving casserole at a friends house he was horrified.

By: M

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 21:35:13 +0000

Sweet potato fries are delicious!

For Thanksgiving, the way we fix sweet potatoes is to slice them up, layer them with orange slices, with this relish-like mixture of minced cranberries, hazelnuts, and ginger on top, and then bake it. So tasty, and not sickeningly sweet like all the candied/marshmallow type recipes.

By: Coeli

Coeli — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 20:29:12 +0000

The reason some sweet potatoes are called yams is one part nostalgia and one part marketing. The true yam is a common food in West Africa, the region from which people were taken as slaves to North America. Unable to get their preferred root veggie in their new circumstances, they considered sweet potatoes a sort of substitute and used the familiar name “yam.” It became a common term in some parts of the South.

Then, in the 20th century, a new variety of sweet potato with a darker orange color was developed. (Earlier varieties were yellow.) The developers wanted to sell them under a distinctive name, so they called them “yams.” Thus the term spread much more widely.

By: David

David — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 20:01:46 +0000

Hmmm…I have to disagree, Erin. I found a recipe a few years ago for sweet potatoes in brown sugar and bourbon sauce that is one of the top five reasons I’m glad I have taste buds. It’s sweet, but not TOO sweet. And the bourbon gives the flavor a nice kick.

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 19:24:09 +0000

“I yam what I yam” Popeye, who preferred spinach.

By: Erin

Erin — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 18:24:40 +0000

yamyamyamyamyamyam… (giggle)

Sweet potato fries are AMAZING!

And the way we eat sweet potatoes on Thanksgiving? With marshmellows. That is the ONLY way to eat them.