Sunday 9 April 2006

identify this vegetable challenge

I bought two of these yam-things from the grocer's, not really paying attention. I thought they were sweet potatoes. But no. They are purple-skinned, when peeled they exude some kind of weird sticky yamjuice, and the flesh is creamy white veined with mimeograph purple.



I sliced it up anyway, intending to steam and mash it with butter and harissa, but I had a nasty, appetite-killing flashback to Mrs. Marsh dipping a piece of chalk into a jar of ink and snapping it open to show all the kids how well Colgate Fluorigard penetrates into tooth enamel.

I chucked the pieces in the bin and we had mashed potato instead, but there's another one in the cupboard. What is it? How should it be cooked? Does it taste nice? Or should I just save the other one for blocking up drainpipes in emergencies (now that bananas are five bucks a kilo.)

8 comments:

Ray Davis said...

You were right the first time -- I've seen both purple potatoes and purple sweet potatoes, and yours looks sweet.

Anonymous said...

it looks like a sweet potato, they come in a few colours, and it will taste nice. the mashing idea would be good.

cfsmtb said...

Reminds me, must nip out and see how our sweet potatoes are going, since the vine is now dying back. Hrrrrmmm, yummy sweet tatie pie!

Anonymous said...

could be darlo (dunno spelling) - that's a fijian root vegie we used to eat a lot as a kid in fiji. If it is, it's heavier and less sweet than sweet potatoe. kind of floury and soft, but...i can't describe it. we used to eat it as chips, roasted, boiled, or - at lovos (fijian 'bbq') where everything was buried with hot rocks in the ground. it's very starchy and heavy - you don't need as much as with normal sweet potatoes or potatoes.

be brave: test it out!

Anonymous said...

Tsk. You don't get any pudding when you don't eat your purples.

GS said...

A smaller version is a potato called purple congo. Not a lot to write home about, tastes like a spud. Looks purple. Good food to perplex children.

Wayne Davidson said...

I had these for the first time in Japan last year; they taste somewhat chestnutty. I don't mind telling you, I'm smitten.

JahTeh said...

Go to shewhoeats.blogspot and ask. Ms Chika is in Melbourne at the moment and don't miss her recipe for ginger rhubarb.