Wondering about the difference between yams and sweet potatoes?
Find out the real answer from sweet potato expert April McGreger.
I was born in Vardaman, Mississippi, the self-proclaimed “Sweet Potato Capital of the World.”
Credit: Roel David Smart/Getty Images
They maintain, however, that what they lack in quantity, they make up for in quality.
The two are used interchangeably in the United States, but they are not the same.
Learn how these two vegetables differ.
Credit: Corinne Mucha
History
That confusion is two-fold and centuries old, beginning with the slave trade.
Slaves took to calling them by the West African wordnyami,which was Anglicized to “yam.”
Sweet potatoes are in the morning glory family, while yams belong to the lily family.
Yams aren’t as sweet as sweet potatoes, and they are starchier and drier.
Their texture and flavor are more similar to potatoes or yuca.
Sweet potatoes can have orange, purple, red, orwhite skin and flesh.
They usually weigh around 5 to 7 ounces.
Like sweet potatoes, they prefercool, dark storage.
They can be substituted for sweet potatoes in more savory dishes.
Treat them like potatoes to make mashed yams or yam fries.
While orange sweet potatoes live up to their name, other varieties arent as sweet.
White sweet potatoes are milder in flavor with a more crumbly texture than regular sweet potatoes.
Theyre more similar to russet potatoes and are a good choice for roasting or to use in a hash.
If you see purple potatoes labeled Ube, those are actually true yams.
North Carolina State Extension.Sweet potatoes.
