You say (Sweet) Potato, I say Yams! Easy Baked Yams Recipe (Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Nightshade free!)

Seriously, This recipe only require yams/sweet potatoes, salt and olive oil!!!


Okay, before we get into the recipe, I have to clear something up. Is it a yam or a sweet potato?
I googled it before posting this recipe and the Huffington Post has this to say about the subject:

"Before you reach for the candied yams this Thanksgiving, there's something you need to know. They're not actually yams! All this time, many Americans have been making the mistake of calling sweet potatoes "yams." But there's actually a difference. It turns out sweet potatoes and yams are not even related. They are two different species of root vegetable with very different backgrounds and uses.

So why the confusion? The U.S. government has perpetuated the error of labeling sweet potatoes "yams." In most cases sweet potatoes are labeled with both terms, which just adds to the confusion. Since there are two types of sweet potatoes, one with creamy white flesh and one with orange, the USDA labels the orange-fleshed ones "yams" to distinguish them from the paler variety. Ok, so that sort of makes sense. But why call the orange-fleshed ones "yams" in the first place? So to understand the difference between yams and sweet potatoes, we have to dig a little deeper (tuber pun intended).

Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) come in two main varieties here in the States. One has a golden skin with creamy white flesh and a crumbly texture. The other has a copper skin with an orange flesh that is sweet and soft. All sweet potato varieties generally have the same shape and size -- they are tapered at the ends and much smaller than the aforementioned yams.

Americans have been calling the orange-fleshed variety of sweet potatoes "yams" since colonial times when Africans saw familiarities in them to the tuberous variety. The USDA decided to label them as "yams" to differentiate the two varieties. Both varieties of sweet potato, including "yams" can be widely found in supermarket.

Yams (family Dioscoreaceae) are native to Africa and Asia and other tropical regions. Yams are starchy tubers that have an almost black bark-like skin and white, purple or reddish flesh and come in many varieties. The tubers can be as small as regular potatoes or grow upwards of five feet long.

The word yam comes from an African word, which means "to eat." The yam holds great importance as a foodstuff because it keeps for a long time in storage and is very valuable during the wet season, when food is scarce. For eating, yams are typically peeled, boiled and mashed or dried and ground into a powder that can be cooked into a porridge. Yams can be found in international markets, such as those that specialize in Caribbean foods."

 

Baked Sweet Potatoes/YAMS!!!

(Adapted from America's Test Kitchen - The New Best Recipe)

Note: This recipe is for the moist, orange-fleshed varieties of sweet potatoes that generally show up in supermarkets. You can cook up to 6 potatoes at one time without altering the cooking time. Buying potatoes of the same size is a good idea because it standarizes cooking time. As with regular baked potatoes, we find it best to open the baked sweet potatoes as wide as possible so that steam can quickly escape; this ensures that the flesh is fluffy rather than dense.

4 small sweet potatoes (about 2 lbs), scrubbed and lightly pricked with a fork

2 Tablespoons vegetable or olive oil

Salt

1. Adjust an oven rack to the center position and heat the oven to  400 degrees. Rub the potatoes with the oil, then arrange them on a baking sheet as far apart as possible.

2. Bake until a knife tip slips easily into the center of a potato, 40 to 50 minutes. Remove the sweet potatoes from the oven and pierce them with a fork to create a dotted X on the top of each potato. Press in at the ends of each sweet potato to push the flesh up and out. Season with salt and serve immediately.