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If you're like many of us here in the Americas, you may be wondering what exactly IS the difference between a yam & a sweet potato.. is it just another word for the same thing? Like honeydew vs. rock melon?
Not truly! Though often used that way, they are not related. While yams and sweet potatoes may look alike, a true yam is a tuber vegetable (like a regular potato) related to grasses & lilies, whereas a sweet potato is actually a root, in the morning glory family. However, red sweet potatoes are often mislabeled as yams in North American grocery stores.
There are hundreds of types of sweet potatoes with flesh that is white, cream, yellow, orange, red, or purple. The "Covington" is the variety you're most likely to find at the store, which has pink skin and bright orange insides.
Sweet potatoes tend to have a tapered shape with thinner skin, and may be firm or soft. Yams are typically more cylindrical and have scaly, bark-like skin.
Yams are starchier, drier, less sweet, and can grow much larger than sweet potatoes. Their flesh can be white, yellow, red, or purple. There are west African yams, Chinese Yams, Cushcush yams (Caribbean), and Ube (purple yams, from Africa/Asia).
Both yams and sweet potatoes can be roasted, steamed, boiled or fried. Substituting real yams in a sweet potato dish would be like using potatoes instead of sweet potatoes though — it would work, but would taste very different (i.e. don't do it for something requiring sweetness like candied sweet potatoes).
Okay so both are delicious in their own ways, but are they healthy? Yes! Both yams and sweet potatoes are jam packed with Vitamin A, and each boast a host of other nutrients such as calcium, iron, and vitamin C. Sweet potatoes are also high in carotenoids (antioxidant). Eat up!
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