New Zealand yams look like ugly, gnarled big toes, but taste sweet and slightly tangy. They aren’t the same yams mentioned in American recipes; those are a sweet potato, similar to the orange beauregard kumara.
What is a yam called in New Zealand?
oca
Oxalis tuberosa is a perennial herbaceous plant that overwinters as underground stem tubers. These tubers are known as uqa in Quechua, oca in Spanish, yam in New Zealand and a number of other alternative names.
What do yams taste like?
What Do Yams Taste Like? Compared to sweet potatoes, yams have an earthy, neutral taste. They can be mildly sweet but mostly take on the flavor of the seasonings used in the dish. Yams must be cooked before eating because they are toxic when eaten raw.
Can you eat raw yams NZ?
NZ yams can be eaten raw, and the entire plant is edible- tuber, shoots, and clover-like leaves. (Never eat the leafy green of a potato, as they are toxic.) Oca has a lemony hint akin to sorrel when raw. The lemon flavour diminishes when cooked, whereupon they become slightly more floury than a potato.
What do they call sweet potato in NZ?
Kūmara
Kūmara (sweet potato) has a long history of cultivation in New Zealand. Kūmara was brought here over one thousand years ago from the Pacific islands by early Maori settlers.
Are you supposed to peel yams?
You can peel them, or leave the skins on. Use a sharp thin-blade knife to cut the yams into ¼- to ½-inch-thick strips. Our Test Kitchen Pros recommend cutting each fry to an even thickness as best you can.
How do you eat yams?
Try yam mash; it’s nice with grilled meat like lamb cutlets. A yam cooked for 40-50 seconds in the microwave makes a good snack for toddlers. Sliced yams are great in stir-fries, especially if still slightly crisp. Lightly cooked and sliced with a lemon or lime vinaigrette, yams make a great salad base.
Is there a difference between sweet potatoes and yams?
Sweet potatoes have rosy brown skin and bright orange flesh while yams have a dark brown, bark-like skin and white flesh, and grow to be much larger than sweet potatoes.
Are yams the same as sweet potato?
Yes, all so-called “yams” are in fact sweetpotatoes. Most people think that long, red-skinned sweetpotatoes are yams, but they really are just one of many varieties of sweetpotatoes.
What is the difference between yams & sweet potatoes?
Yams are starchy and have a rough, brown exterior. They can grow up to 45 feet long and are eaten in parts of Latin America, West Africa, the Caribbean, and Asia. Sweet potatoes are a New World root vegetable and have a softer, reddish skin and a creamier, often darker interior.
How do yams grow in New Zealand?
When it comes to planting dig in generous quantities of compost to the soil, space them out at 30-40cm spacings and keep them moist through out the growing season, yams don’t do well in really intense heat so mulch and water consistently throughout summer or provide some shade over the bed to protect them.
Can NZ yams be frozen?
Heat things up: Cook yams as desired, then mash or slice them to prepare for freezing. Seal the deal: Place in a freezer safe bag such as Glad® Flex’n Seal® Freezer Gallon Bags, leaving 1/2-inch headroom. Chill out: Seal, removing excess air then place in deepest part of the freezer.
How do you store NZ yams?
Save the smallest tubers for seed stock in a cool, dark area until planting time. For those that are to be consumed, also store in a cool, dry area out of sunlight. There is no need to keep oca in a root cellar or refrigerator and they can be stored for months as above.
Are yams and kumara the same?
Kumara is often referred to as a sweet potato, but it belongs to the morning glory (convolvulaceae) family, and not, like potato, to the nightshade one (solanaceae). And it is not a yam! (Yams belong to the lily or dioscoreaceae family.) The modern kumara plant is a climbing vine, with tubers.
Are sweet potato and kumara the same?
Kumara (also known as sweet potato) comes in a range of varieties, colours and shapes. Red kumara is the most popular variety in New Zealand, with its distinctive red skin and firm white flesh.
Is kumara different to sweet potato?
Sweet potatoLower classifications
Can you mash yams NZ?
Ways to eat
Yams are eaten cooked and in this form the carotenoids are more available. Boiling or steaming minimises their oxalate levels. Serve whole or mashed. Use sliced in stir fries.
Can you cook yams like sweet potatoes?
Despite their flavor differences, you can cook yams similarly to sweet potatoes: boiled, roasted, fried, and baked. They can be used in stews and soups or anytime you’re braising meat.
How long does it take to bake a yam?
The folks at Cooks Illustrated write in their ever-so-modestly titled tome The Best Vegetable Recipes that the best way to make baked yams and sweet potatoes is to lightly coat them in vegetable oil, pierce ’em multiple times with a knife, and stick them in a 400°F oven for 45 minutes to an hour.
Should I peel yams before boiling?
Peeling is optional: leave the skin on for added nutrients. Just make sure to cut off any dark or black spots! Add to a pot and cover with 1 inch water. Bring the water to a boil.
Which is healthier sweet potato or yam?
Sweet potatoes tend to have slightly fewer calories per serving than yams. They also contain a bit more vitamin C and more than triple the amount of beta-carotene, which converts to vitamin A in the body.