15 September 2011

Purple Yam Scam


You already know how much I love Japanese Sweet Potatoes "Japanese
 Purple Yams", so it shouldn't come as a shock to you that when the Grocery 
Store I usually go to ran out, I made a frantic effort to scour the city 
for other Purple Yam retailers. Boy do I need a drug yam dealer on speed dial!


Turns out, The Root Cellar just brought in a new shipment of
 "Purple Yams"...but when I got there, I noticed a few things were 
different about these; They're thinner, longer, and more dense


"Small crop", I thought to myself..."But I'm sure when I cut inside, 
there'll be the same soft and pillowy whitish-yellow flesh I remember"


WRONG! What a Yam Scam! 


The flesh is purple, like BRIGHT purple... like Barney
 had a baby with Tinky Winky Teletubby kind of purple!


I'd like to think I adapt pretty well to change, but eating purple 
starch doesn't sound like the most appealing thing in the world


But, I gave it the benefit of the doubt and crossed my fingers


2 Purple Yams paired with 1 Yellow Sweet Potato


Baked in the oven, like usual. I decided to add the Yellow
 Sweet Potato just in case the Purple Yam proved disappointing


Before topping with Stir-Fried Vegetables, I tasted my new Purple Yams...


Well damn you little Purple Alien Yam, 
you're tasty! Looks can be so deceiving...


Question: Have you ever bought, ordered, 
or cooked the wrong food by mistake only
to discover it's now a new favourite of yours?

28 comments:

Anonymous said... [reply]

I once bought some of those and made mashed potatoes but had NO idea they were purple till I'd mashed them. Surprise!

Kristina @ spabettie said... [reply]

LUCKY! :) I have had a specific recipe in mind for these exact purple yams... and I cannot find them anywhere (I've even been to my Asian grocers!). perhaps it was the wrong time of year and I am about to get lucky?

glad you ended up liking them!

Anonymous said... [reply]

Holyy! Those are PURPLE. the whole aversion to eating purple reminds me of those purple and green ketchups they used to make...so unappealing! Luckily these ones tasted good and were good for you :) maybe there are antoxidants in it!

Jen @ Light Enough to Travel said... [reply]

LOL I nearly choked on my breakfast muffin when you said "like Barney had a baby with Tinky Winky."

Purple yams are gorgeous. I love them too. You should also try purple potatoes and purple carrots. I like to make a dish around thanksgiving with white, orange and purple baked carrots mixed together with butter, pepper and herbs. Freaking delicious.

Missy said... [reply]

I have been trying to google this and figure out what each varietal is called. However that purple looks delish! I was not off-put by it at all for some reason.

Anywhoo...I once bought the wrong kind of clementine and ate it well before it was ripe. There is a type you can eat when firm and type that you have to wait or else....I can't even describe what happens to your mouth.

Tessa @ Amazing Asset said... [reply]

Ha wow I have never seen these before... I mean the color on them, I love it! I agree with Jen, I just about died with that quote "like Barney had a baby with Tinky Winky"

Tip Top Shape said... [reply]

I had purple cauliflower before and believe it or not, I was literally amazed that it still tasted like cauliflower, lol. So I can understand the purple aversion!

Kacy said... [reply]

I think purple yams are so gorgeous! I'm like a child and like eating anything that's a fun color :)

Unknown said... [reply]

I had japanese sweet potatoes that were purple with white flesh and are soooo delicious. especially after refrigeration, they sweeten and mush up and are too tasty.

Anonymous said... [reply]

Those are purple...like barney had a baby with Tinky Winky haha. Glad to hear they're delicious-I love yams.

Alexa @ SimpleEats said... [reply]

That would have definitely freaked me out! I bet they're delicious, though. I've had purple baby russets and loved 'em!

Anonymous said... [reply]

I love purple sweet potato, and the colour of them is insane!
You must have got such a surprise when you cut that baby open!

N said... [reply]

I just saw your comments on my blog, and I just want to say thank you for the kind words <3 It meant a lot to me. I wouldn't say the summer has been better on me (mostly because I can't tolerate heat), but now that fall (my favourite season) is here, I'm starting to come around. I rediscovered yoga, started seeing a therapist and have appointments in November to see a psychiatrist. I want to know what it is wrong so that I can at least try and find ways to cope when I start going mental, rather than just feeling like I am crazy all the time. But I am learning more relaxation techniques and just trying to take it one day at a time. It's really the only thing you can do.

I hope that things are working well for you on your end. I see you are still showing off all those delicious recipes and foods you collect. Your blog makes me so hungry, and makes me wish I had more organic/vegan places nearby. I'd probably go poor though xD Haha! <3 Take care

Anonymous said... [reply]

I make mistakes while shopping pretty often but they rarely turn out to be better than what I initially wanted. Sometimes the result is a real disaster like when I bought a bag of the Japanese ume thinking that it was apricot. Fail! At least the purple yam is something I am already familiar with :) .

Chelsea said... [reply]

"like Barney had a baby with Tinky Winky" --> LOL!

I love purple mini potatoes but I've never seen a big one like that! Was it sweet?

Sara Grambusch said... [reply]

Those purple yams are my favorite! They are hard to find here and pretty expensive. Once I bought one of the white sweet potatoes and I was so irritated because I like the orange ones. Sweet potatoes really are the most perfect food.

Ashley {hudson's happenings} said... [reply]

haha! I was so afraid this story was going to take a turn for the worse! Happy your little purple Barney yams passed the taste test! What a surprise!! :)

Marianne (frenchfriestoflaxseeds) said... [reply]

Those are awesome! And think of all the anthocyanidins (anitoxidants/flavinoids responsible for the purple colour) you are getting! Great to mix it up and "taste the rainbow" :D

PS - can you send me some?

Grace said... [reply]

Too funny! The other day I thought I was buying sweet potatoes and I think it was the yams you're talking about. I cut it open and was like wtf? They weren't bad just disappointing because I wanted sweet potatoes!

jaclyn said... [reply]

I've tried purple yams and I actually really liked 'em! the orange will prob still be my faves, but this post makes me really want to go buy some purple ones and 'play ' in the kitchen!

Anonymous said... [reply]

WOAH where can I find one of those beauties?!?!? I am so jealous right now.
Have a good weekend!

Whitney

Anonymous said... [reply]

wow! that color is crazy, can't believe it isnt artificial. I am glad that they tasted good though!

Katie said... [reply]

Looks like your yam scam turned out with little ram...ifications. Haha.

LauraJayne said... [reply]

I think these purple yams look SO delicious - but it's kind of against my autumn food color scheme, so I don't know if I could try them... =)

tiffany @ texan on the run said... [reply]

omg i love those, so good!
asians i think typically eat the purple yams sweet actually

Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen said... [reply]

I love Japanese Yams! I find all food, especially fresh food, to be an adventure. You never know if it will be just like last time, but hopefully it will be good!

Jolene - EverydayFoodie said... [reply]

A purple yam is totally cool!!! I love adding colour to dishes, so I will be on the lookout for those.

Anonymous said... [reply]

Ohhh. I love purple yams too haha

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