Don’t you love the different ways you can only prepare sweet potatoes? I know all the rabies is about the orange flesh sweet potatoes (aka like carrot sweet potatoes), but my favorite is the white fleshy sweet potato which is widely available in these parts. The texture and taste are suited to different styles of preparation, and among them is baked whole, think jacket (baked) potatoes.
Packed with nutrients, sweet potatoes take less time to cook than English potatoes and provide fuel / energy that can keep you going for a long time. Last week at the market I found some of the yellow fleshy sweet potatoes and knew straight away that I wanted to bake them whole. It’s not a commonly seen variety but whenever it’s available, I always get some. The skin is pale cream in color, and can easily be mistaken for the carrot sweet potatoes that have the same outer skin color. When cooked, these sweet potatoes turn deep yellow. It is interesting that the carrot sweet potatoes come in two types with the outer skin being purple in one case and pale cream in another. I’ve used both variants. The flesh of the purple skin potatoes is sweeter, softer and more creamy when cooked. The flesh of the creamier one is less sweet, and drier with more starch. Yellow flesh sweet potatoes have the same texture and sweetness level as their orange flesh (carrot) counterpart of the same skin color.
Anyway, although you may have had sweet potatoes in soups, served boiled and sliced or as a boil, fry, breakfast style, in bread, or scallop – all I’ve shared with you in previous columns, today, I encourage you to try them baked whole, just as you would English potatoes. The whole cooked potatoes can be served as a main dish with a variety of toppings, but in fact, they are so delicious on their own that all you need is a little butter and maybe a pepper grind fresh black. Or bake the potatoes and serve as a side dish; either way, it’s a win-win.
Here’s how to prepare and bake whole sweet potatoes.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with foil.
Wash and scrub the dirt from the outer skin and wipe it dry.
Price the sweet potatoes in several places, around with a fork – this is important because as the sweet potatoes cook, the skin acts as a seal, holding moisture that expands the potatoes and builds up steam, if that steam can’t escape then the potatoes explode, and you’ll have a lot of scrubbing and stuck on potatoes to remove from your oven.
Add the sweet potatoes to the lined baking sheet tray. Wash oil and rub it all over the sweet potatoes. Sprinkle and rub salt over the sweet potatoes as well. Transfer the pan to the oven and allow to bake for 45 – 55 minutes.
The cooking time will vary depending on the size of the sweet potato. To check for a gift, put on an oven mitt and give the potatoes a bit of a squeeze, if there is a give and it feels tender, it is done, if it feels solid, then continue cooking for another 15 minutes and check again. Otherwise, insert a sharp knife or fork in the thick middle, there should be no resistance.
Remove the sweet potatoes, cut and serve immediately or allow to cool to room temperature for later serving.
To serve, simply cut across the center of the potato, pry open and fluff the flesh with a fork and top with whatever is on top. I read an online tip that said to drop the baked sweet potatoes about 10 inches above a cutting board, pan or work surface, once or twice, and it will loosen the flesh of the sweet potato making it light and fluffy (doesn’t I haven’t tried it but I’ll do that next time I bake sweet potatoes).
Try baking sweet potatoes this weekend and let me know what you think.
I have a friend in Trinidad who plants the purple flesh sweet potatoes; if only I could get my hands on some of those.
Cynthia
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