Getting To The Root Of Things. The Sweet Potato: Its History, Uses, and Culture

By Melody Rose (melody) January 11, 2008

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It’s the time of year that most cooks roll out the obligatory sweet potato dish, disguised with a sweet syrup, pecans and marshmallow topping. The seasonal menu requires that sweet potatoes be on the table, regardless of how family members feel about them, and after the holidays, the sweet potato is banished into Culinary Purgatory, only to appear again the next winter. This ancient and healthful vegetable gets no respect, and it’s time to set the record straight.

The sweet potato is native to the Americas. It has been cultivated by the indigenous peoples of Central and South America for thousands of years. Columbus found it growing all around the Caribbean during his voyages and brought it back to Spain, where it was then distributed throughout the world by the exploring fleets.

Readers may be surprised to learn that the sweet potato is actually a form of Morning Glory. It’s Latin name is Ipomoea batatas. The Native peoples of the Americas called them Batatas . It’s easy enough to see how the name could be worked through several translations and ba-ta-tas became po-ta-toes. Since both vegetables were from the Americas, looked somewhat similar, and grew underground, the Spanish explorers who were not trained in plant taxonomy assumed that they were related, and the name stuck.

The sweet potato was embraced and cultivated in all warm or tropical climates. It was a tasty source of nutrition that was easy to grow. Popular in Asia, and the warmer parts of the Americas, it has failed to catch on in cooler Europe, and the Mediterranean Basin. Experimental plantings are now being done in the warmer parts of eastern Europe and Australia to introduce those people to the nutritious sweet potato.

This odd looking tuber is full of nutrition. Four ounces of cooked sweet potato have an amazing 21822 IU of Vitamin A, and 348 mg of potassium. It is also a significant source of protein, fiber, Vitamin C, calcium, folic acid, and magnesium. That’s serious nutrition for something so simple and inexpensive. Sweet potatoes were 25 cents per pound here in west Kentucky last week, and as cheap as 10 cents per pound further south in Mississippi and Alabama. It’s one of the few fresh foods that people from all economic walks of life can afford, as we in the South know well.

We love our sweet potatoes here in the South. The long hot summers are great for their culture, and they produce well for the amount of labor involved. We feed them to our families and to our livestock. One of the easiest vegetable dishes in the world is to throw a couple of sweet potatoes in the oven on a cookie sheet, bake at 350 for an hour, peel, butter, and serve. They’re a great way of extending the meal when a couple of unexpected mouths show up for supper. I much prefer it over the other time-honored Southern tradition of adding a cup of water to the pot for every extra mouth!

Baked sweet potatoes are becoming a popular alternative to regular potatoes in restaurants. Most often served with butter and cinnamon sugar, they make for an unusual side dish. They are just as tasty, and in this author’s opinion, more so, with simply butter, salt and pepper.

Those living in warmer climates can grow their own sweet potatoes. They need between 80 and 120 days to mature, depending on the variety. Long, hot, dry summers are preferred, and they need to be harvested before first frost.

Sweet potatoes are not grown from seeds, or from chunks with ‘eyes’ like the white potato. One must encourage the potato to sprout, and the resulting slips are then pulled from the sweet potato and planted. Simply cover with an inch of damp potting mix, and or, sand, and keep in a warm area until sprouts start to form. Add another inch of the mix and let the slips grow until they are 6 to 8 inches tall. They are then pulled from the parent tuber and planted in wide, loose hills. Space the slips about at least a foot apart, and allow 3 or 4 feet between rows. The vines can get quite long and wild, so leave sweet potatoes plenty of room to spread.

Light cultivation is only necessary until the vines choke out the weeds, and although there are several fungal diseases that affect sweet potatoes, by purchasing the parent tubers or slips from a reputable source, those can usually be avoided.

Harvest sweet potatoes in the early Fall before the first frost. Carefully dig the hills and lay the harvest in the sun for a few hours to dry. This helps cure the skins so they will not be as fragile. Continue curing in a warm place with high humidity for about 10 days. This helps the storage properties of the sweet potato to improve. After that, simply store in a cool, dark area between 50 and 60 degrees. Any cooler than that, and they tend to rot.

Give sweet potatoes a chance the next time you find them for sale. They’re cheap and easy to prepare. Packed with nutrition, they make an excellent choice for a side dish, or as a light supper by themselves. Sweet potatoes have a history that goes back before written records. They have stood the test of time and are gaining in popularity throughout the world. Show your family that the sweet potato is more than just a obligatory addition to the holiday menu. They can be enjoyed throughout the year, and deserve culinary respect from young and old, rich and poor. body { background: #FFF; }

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Subject: Beauregard vs Vardeman

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Posted by dirtytoes (from Shelbyville, KY) on January 20, 2008 at 12:22 PM:

We live in Shelby County, Kentucky.

This last year we grew both Vardeman, which we bought, and a few Beauregard from some slips I grew from a Beauregard which we grew in 2006. The Vardeman were all fairy thin, badly kinked, deformed and scabed. The Beauregard were very large, and the skin was smooth. No scabbing. They were grown together in the same area, but they sure don't look or taste the same. We did irrigate because of the drought. Our main problem in both of the last two years was voles eating the potatoes before we got them dug.

We love baked sweet potatoes all year long, and I think the flavor is better when baked rather than microwaved or boiled, which is the way I used to cook them. The flavor of the Beauregard flesh is tops and it seems to cook faster than the Vardeman, plus I think it is more moist, so moist that we eat them without any additions.

Thanks for the great article. Enjoyed the feedback, and would love to know how others fare with growing Vardeman this year.

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Posted by Fangionz (from Woodville
(New Zealand)) on January 14, 2008 at 5:45 PM:

In New Zealand the kumera is much loved, comes in a variety of colours, was mainly roasted but now I'm sure there are a variety of cooking methods used. Grown commercially for many years as well.

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Posted by cathy4 (from St. Louis County, MO) on January 11, 2008 at 11:12 AM:

Great information. We, too, eat them year round. I poke a few holes in the skins and put them in the microwave for a few minutes until they begin to get soft. I like mine plain, DH uses butter and sugar. Great with pork or poultry and so much more interesting to eat than a plain potato.

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Posted by Dutchlady1 (from Naples, FL) on January 11, 2008 at 11:49 AM:

Thanks for the wonderful article. I LOVE LOVE LOVE sweet potatoes and have a wonderful recipe with cardamom and ginger that I make for holiday side dish (or whenever I feel like it). A local fish restaurant has sweet potato french fries which I am always sure to order when we go there.

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Posted by frostweed (from Arlington, TX) on January 11, 2008 at 12:10 PM:

I can make a great meal out of a nice baked sweet potato all by itself, I love them.

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Posted by carrielamont (from Milton, MA) on January 11, 2008 at 12:37 PM:

And it's probably a very healthy meal, too! My husband was amazed to find that he likes sweet potato french fries, since he doesn't like any 'winter' vegetables.

I was wondering if there's a difference between sweet potato and yam, and if there is, what is it?

Oh, and feed babies sweet potatoes (along with winter squash and pumpkins)! Easy to mash or mush (or buy a can ready-mashed, just make sure it doesn't have anything in it but the sweet potato), and start feeding with high chair and baby spoon. Easier than mashed potatoes and zillions of times better for them!

xx, Carrie

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Posted by AYankeeCat (from Bridgeport, CT) on January 11, 2008 at 12:46 PM:

I love sweet potatoes! I had no idea they were so high in potassium. Good information - thank you!

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Posted by melody (from Benton, KY) on January 11, 2008 at 1:54 PM:

Sweet potatoes and yams are two totally unrelated plants. Yams are African in origin and can weigh 10 pounds or more. They are mainly used for livestock food. The names have become synonymous in popular usage, but as a rule, everything we actually eat are sweet potatoes.

Thanks for the response to the article. I love sweet potatoes and take every available opportunity to show folks they don't have to melt marshmallows on them to be a proper dish.

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Posted by AYankeeCat (from Bridgeport, CT) on January 11, 2008 at 2:01 PM:

My girlfriend and I cook ourselves a big, homemade Thanksgiving each year and we have only one rule - NO marshmellows on the sweet potatoes!

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Posted by carrielamont (from Milton, MA) on January 11, 2008 at 2:16 PM:

Wait - so if we go to the grocery store, and there are two different piles of brown lumpy things, one labeled sweet potatoes and the other labeled yams????????
x, Carrie

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Posted by Indy (from Alexandria, IN) on January 11, 2008 at 2:27 PM:

I have raised sweetpotatoes for many years. Contrary to some opinion, they grow very well here north of the Ohio River.

I remember the folks carrying out the tub of sweetpotato starts back in the '40s. We raise Nancy Hall then. Today I raise Nancy Hall [yellow], O'Henry [yellow], and Beauregard [orange]...love those yellows.

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Posted by frostweed (from Arlington, TX) on January 11, 2008 at 2:32 PM:

I have never eaten the yellow ones, do they taste different?

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Posted by Indy (from Alexandria, IN) on January 11, 2008 at 4:49 PM:

"do they taste different?"

Somewhat, but texture is probably the main difference....less soft and mushy.

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Posted by stellamarina (from Laie, HI) on January 11, 2008 at 5:14 PM:

Here in Hawaii we can get the Southern "yams" ( really the orange flesh sweet potato) then we also get the Polynesian type which have pale yellow flesh and then the most popular one seems to be the Okinawan sweet potato which is very purple inside with a white skin. Also we stir fry the new leaf tips which are very tasty and nutritional. One of my favorite foods. Usually we just boil it like potatos to go with our meat and veges. Great article, thank you. Aloha

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Posted by adinamiti (from Bucuresti
(Romania)) on January 11, 2008 at 5:15 PM:

Congratulations for the article, Melody!
Adina

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Posted by melody (from Benton, KY) on January 11, 2008 at 5:25 PM:

[HYPERLINK@en.wikipedia.org]

Here's what Wikipedia says about yams.

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Posted by carrielamont (from Milton, MA) on January 11, 2008 at 6:01 PM:

Thank you Melody, I always assumed there WAS a difference and I was the only one who didn't know it. It sounds like there IS a difference, but not between the two piles at my grocery store. xxx, Carrie

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Posted by randbponder (from Hornick, IA) on January 11, 2008 at 7:30 PM:

You aren't pulling anything over this Northern boy. I usually have at least a couple dozen hills of S/Ps, so we have enough to carry through untill the new crop is ready. We have been starting our own slips from the centennial S/P. But usually run short by that time. This year I plan to add Vardaman, Beauregard and Georgia Jet to the Garden.
That will more than double the usual crop. The reason for trying a few others, I want to see if the Vardaman will actually save space. My brother likes the Georgia Jet and also has good luck with them. He also is also in zone 4. I thought I would see if one will out do the other and which will have the most uniform roots (commonly called tubers)
This last fall I had a quite a few that were twisted around themselves. This will help me decide which to go with.
Russ

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Posted by doccat5 (from Fredericksburg, VA) on January 11, 2008 at 7:49 PM:

Love both sweet taters and yams..........good eatin. And I'll get some slips off one of the local growers. Have no idea what variety they are, but he's grown them for years and they are wonderful.

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Posted by Islandshari (from Kwajalein
(Marshall Islands)) on January 11, 2008 at 8:44 PM:

Melody, that was a great article. I too get frustrated at the Holidays Only attitude about this delicious food. One of our favorite ways to eat them is as chips. If we are planning a movie night, I will fry some up and we much on them all movie. Soooooo Yummy! Thanks for spreading the word about the nutrition and easy flavor of this most humble taste treat.

Yokwe,
Shari

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Posted by KyWoods (from Melbourne, KY) on January 12, 2008 at 1:00 AM:

Wow, I never knew they could be eaten with butter and salt--I thought the whole idea behind "sweet" potatoes was drowning them in sweet stuff...LOL. Thanks for a very educational article, and a new idea to try!

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Posted by leliaforeman (from butare
(Rwanda)) on January 14, 2008 at 1:04 PM:

I love firm, tasty sweet potatoes and dislike watery, less flavorful yams.
While I was in Rwanda I kept asking for sweet potatoes which seem to be held in some contempt there as everyone wants to eat what they call Irish potatoes. I was finally given some, but they were white sweet potatoes with a somewhat diminished sweet potato taste.
I told the people we were staying with that in America the sweet potatoes were deep orange which surprised them.
I would like to try the Okinawan sweet potato.
I wish I knew a way to get virus-free orange-fleshed sweet potato seeds. I'm just back from a two week trip to Rwanda I hope to repeat every year. I gave Pastor David Nahayo of Butare Christian Mission some virus free 'Irish' potato seeds I bought from ECHO, but I don't know where to get clean seeds of sweet potatoes.
I had so much fun in Rwanda. I got a kick out of pulling purslane out of the gardens and eating it in front of the Rwandese while exclaiming that it was more than a weed, it was good food! No, try it, you'll see. One of the university researchers had an epiphany there. "We have people starving that don't need to because they are surrounded by food. They just don't know it's food!" She later screamed with fear when I ate a nasturtium, but after I insisted she eat a leaf too (I had to chase her down) she agreed it wasn't too bad. By the time we got to the daylily with a different researcher she was quite willing to try the sweet blossom. I had to shame the man into trying the petal I gave him. And she taught me the leaves of a flower I grow in my Washington state garden were good for tea. When they come up this spring I will try it.
I wish there were a database somewhere I could tap into that said which crops have been tried in Rwanda that were complete failures so that I wouldn't be reinventing the wheel by bringing in different seeds to experiment to see what will grow and what will be acceptable to the Rwandan palate. David Nahayo had been stunned to find out you can eat amaranth seeds. He said his people eat leaves, not seeds. So I'm trying to have him grow a variety of seeds that can be thrown into their daily potage without changing anything else they do. I know first hand how hard it can be to change what you eat, let alone changing cooking techniques.
So.... anybody here know where I can get virus free sweet potato seeds?
Oh, and if any of you would like to join in the fun, look up [HYPERLINK@www.comeandseeafrica.org.]

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Posted by KyWoods (from Melbourne, KY) on January 14, 2008 at 1:13 PM:

How wonderful, Lelia, that you taught them about more food options! I hope you can find many new plants that can be grown there successfully. I'm sure those people will be very grateful.

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Posted by Indy (from Alexandria, IN) on January 14, 2008 at 3:18 PM:

Quoted:

I wish I knew a way to get virus-free orange-fleshed sweet potato seeds.

I don't think you will find any seeds. They will need to be started from tubers.....over there if you want to get them started there.....don't know about air and import regulations.

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Posted by Fitsy (from Hayesville, NC) on January 14, 2008 at 3:19 PM:

I wish they were cheap here! More like 99 cents per
pound. But I grow my own.

Oregon friends have a favorite white sweet potato, but
it must be different from the one mentioned above.

Getting my son to sample a daylily petal went like this:
I hand him a petal, and he says, "A bug bit it!"
So I hand him a flawless petal, and he says "Bug won't
eat it, I ain't eating it!"
Fitsy

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Posted by Indy (from Alexandria, IN) on January 14, 2008 at 3:54 PM:

fitsy,
I have a white sweetpotato that is an excellent grower of such smooth tubers [Ivis I think] , but it tastes almost exactly like a white Irish potato....not enough flavor for sweets.

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Posted by KyWoods (from Melbourne, KY) on January 14, 2008 at 5:05 PM:

ROFL, Fitsy! Kid logic is funny stuff!

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Posted by stellamarina (from Laie, HI) on January 14, 2008 at 6:43 PM:

Lelia, you are a woman after my own heart. I am always preaching the enjoyment of free wild food and there in Rewanda it is a matter of life and death. Good on you. May I suggest a possibly new plant for you to check into that may help in Rewanda. It is the edible hibiscus plant.. ( called Pele in the Pacific) ..looks rather like an okra plant but you eat the leaves rather than the seed pods. It is grown a lot in Fiji, Tonga and Melanisian islands. It is easy to grow from stem cuttings or seed. Once established it is just a matter of cutting off some of the big leaves from the shrub and throwing them in the cooking pot. Like okra, the leaves are a little slimmy but you do not notice it when cooked. It is super nutritional with even some protein.
100 gms. has 5.7 g of protein, 580mg calcium, 3mg iron, 13,000 I.U. Vitamin A and 118mg of Vitamin C.
As you can see....a super nutrional plant. The plant needs to be regrown every few years ....gets too woody and lanky. Watch out for snails on it too. I put crushed egg shells around the stems of my new plants to keep them away. Otherwise it is the lazy gardeners dream. There are several different varieties.....leaf a little different shape or more purple coloring in leaf veins. I hope you will check it out and best wishes. Aloha

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Posted by leliaforeman (from butare
(Rwanda)) on January 15, 2008 at 3:42 AM:

Dear Stellamarina,
Thank you. I think I have that covered as I have given Pastor David a package of hibiscus seeds called Roselle (if I remember correctly). You can eat the flower too. You mentioned different varieties. ECHO offers only the one. Where can I buy seeds of the other varieties so we can run some tests?

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Posted by roybird (from Santa Fe, NM) on January 15, 2008 at 4:08 PM:

ooh, I love sweet potatoes! Nice, informative article.

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Posted by chickenrancher (from Nova, OH) on January 15, 2008 at 6:41 PM:

I grew Georgia Jet and Beauregard last year. I am planning on getting slips from
[HYPERLINK@www.sandhillpreservation.com]
They have the largest variety I've ever seen, and I'm looking forward to trying some new varieties this year!!!
I had no problem growing them here in OH.
I LOVE sweet potatoes but my DH caould take or leave them. More for me!!!
Megan

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Posted by stellamarina (from Laie, HI) on January 15, 2008 at 9:47 PM:

Hi again to Lelia: Pele....the edible hibiscus... is something other than Roselle. ( Roselle flowers make beautiful jam, by the way.) This edibel hibiscus is Abelmoschus manihot, also called Hibiscus manihot. I have seen a few online companies selling the seed. Sorry I can not supply any as no flowers on plants right now.....I try to keep them trimmed to promote leaf growth. A few years ago was having a conversation with a FAO regional leader. We talked about Pele.....the "Polynesian spinach" and he mentioned that there were some plants in Africa refered to as "African spinach" ......I think wild plants. Mmmmm...just looking through my travel note books and found my notes on the conversation...... He talked about a plant in the Chenopodium family....maybe it something you will come across. Wishing you well in your project. Aloha

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