# Sweet Potatoes - how do you love them best? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 12, 2011, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304 "2011-01-12T03:58:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/41 "2011-01-12T22:47:08Z")
Candied. I don’t eat anything until I’ve cooked all the nutrition out of it. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/42 "2011-01-12T22:51:17Z")
> [@KinkiNipponTourist](#): > > We can’t get real sweet potatoes in Japan. There is a wonderful Japanese version, which is delivered [by men, at night, in trucks](http://gakuranman.com/the-yaki-imo-man-of-japan) trolling the neighborhood. OMG, that’s so cool! And…the purple ones _stay purple_ when you cook them?! I’ve seen them at the fruit market, but since most purple veggies lose their color when they’re cooked, I haven’t bothered. Do you know if the purple ones are sweet like sweet potatoes or more like white potatoes? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/43 "2011-01-13T00:02:21Z")
Cut into chunks, rubbed with lime juice and allspice, then roasted in the oven. Sweet potato french fries are nice too. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/44 "2011-01-13T00:13:19Z")
I don’t think I’ve ever had any form of sweet potato I didn’t like! I prick and nuke a bunch of them sometimes, let cool, peel, and put in a tupperware bowl in the refrigerator. They last a long time, they’re good for you, and reheat so easy. Butter, salt, pepper, and a drizzle (just a touch) of honey or maple syrup is the way to go. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/45 "2011-01-13T01:10:09Z")
Mashed, with ginger and garlic and butter and salt and pepper. Baked Fries, with mayo/tabasco dipping sauce. Pan Sauteed, in olive oil, until caramelized, and served with greens. ---
**Author:** ![tarragon918](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@tarragon918](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tarragon918)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/46 "2011-01-13T05:34:05Z")
I prefer them simply baked with butter/margarine, a little pepper, and a touch of nutmeg. Seriously, try it next time instead of cinnamon. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/47 "2011-01-13T05:40:42Z")
I like mine just about any way you want to make them, but sweet potato pie tops them all. Not to mention that it’s a gazillion times better than pumpkin pie… mmm…pie ---
**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/48 "2011-01-13T12:11:42Z")
Being the inherently lazy and wanting for instant gratification, I just microwave them for 5 minutes and eat them like an apple. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/49 "2011-01-13T13:09:09Z")
Other: Curried, with lentils and butterbeans(Lima beans) ---
**Author:** ![carlb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carlb/32/5930_2.png) [@carlb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlb)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/50 "2011-01-13T13:25:03Z")
Roasted with earthy spices; chili powder and cumin, ras al hanout, garam masala, anything like that. ---
**Author:** ![shiftless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@shiftless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shiftless)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/51 "2011-01-13T14:42:15Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > I got an awesome sweet potato recipe from Cook’s Illustrated magazine a couple of years ago and still make it all the time. Basically you cut the sweet potatoes into rounds. You toss them with a little olive oil and salt. Line a baking sheet with foil, and place the rounds onto the foil in a single layer. Then cover the pan tightly with foil. > > It goes into a cold oven (that part is important, for some arcane cooking reason I can’t remember at the moment) at… I think 400 degrees? For half an hour. Then you remove the foil, bake for another half hour or so, then flip and give them another 20ish minutes. They come out browned and tasty and zomg, so good. I can try to locate the actual recipe tomorrow to check the temperature and timing details if anyone is interested. I’ve never seen this recipe but they (CI magazine) had a similar recipe for oven “french fries” that I’ve started using for sweet potatoes. Works great except that I have been cutting into wedges. The foil and cold oven steam the fries first, then the heat (450 degrees for potato recipe) makes the crisp. The next time I’ll try rounds. I have cut them into cubes and stir-fried them with garlic black bean sauce (from a squash recipe.) Very good except it can be difficult to get them done enough. It helps to microwave them for a few minutes first if you don’t like them al dente. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/52 "2011-01-13T16:05:39Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > _ **Don’t let Paula Dean get anywhere near your sweet potatoes!** _ > > This [video](http://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/stuffed-sweet-potato-balls/28568.html) is evidence of a crime against food! Don’t support her cruel and recklessly destructive acts! > > I like mine peeled, coarsely chopped into two inch pieces and baked with butter, a _little_ brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice and a handful of pecans. Oh dear gods. When you said Paula Dean, I was ready to heartily disagree with you. Ms. Dean gets a lot of flak from health nuts, so I was expecting your objection to be along the lines of “too much butter,” or “fried unnecessarily,” but that… I… I just can’t get behind that recipe. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/53 "2011-01-13T16:10:28Z")
Boil equal amounts of sweet potatoes and red skinned potatoes until done. Thin whole berry cranberry sauce with orange juice, heat and use as a sauce for potatoes. It is great. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/54 "2011-01-13T16:51:52Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > … I… I just can’t get behind that recipe. > [@Paula Dean from the linked video](#): > > Hard to believe that’s a vegetable idinit, ya’ll? **It used to be vegetable - but not anymore!** ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/55 "2011-01-13T16:54:49Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Boil equal amounts of sweet potatoes and red skinned potatoes until done. Thin whole berry cranberry sauce with orange juice, heat and use as a sauce for potatoes. > > It is great. Ooh, that does sound great. Thanks for the idea! ---
**Author:** ![BomTek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bomtek/32/21364_2.png) [@BomTek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BomTek)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/56 "2011-01-13T17:27:01Z")
Fries. No ketchup or sauce of any kind for me, thank you. Best with barbecue of some kind. ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/57 "2011-01-13T17:53:26Z")
ok - stupid question - when I think of fries - I think of 'deep fried" potatoes - How are Sweet Potatoe Fries made? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304/58 "2011-01-13T17:57:41Z")
> [@simster](#): > > ok - stupid question - > > when I think of fries - I think of 'deep fried" potatoes - > > How are Sweet Potatoe Fries made? They can be deep fried like regular french fries (this is how they’re done at restaurants) or oiled and baked in the oven. I’m totally trying the CI/ATK version mentioned in this thread, though. Starting with a cold oven to steam them before the heat intensifies enough to “fry” them in their coated oil sounds like a fantastic idea! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-potatoes-how-do-you-love-them-best/567304.md?page=2)