The market · Roots and tubers · West Africa
Yams
West African yam: a huge, bark-skinned tuber with dense white flesh, boiled, fried, or pounded into iyan — not the American 'yam', which is a sweet potato.
mealy · earthy
last weeksWhat to do with it
GujaratiUndhiyuA winter medley of flat beans, purple yam, sweet potato, baby aubergine and plantain, slow-cooked with fenugreek dumplings and a green masala of coconut and coriander.No one here has made it yetGoanKhatkhateA thick stew of many vegetables and toor dal in coconut, soured with tamarind and sharpened with tirphal — the dish of Goan Hindu festivals.No one here has made it yetNigerianBoleRipe plantain, and often yam, roasted over coals until charred, served with grilled fish and a hot palm-oil pepper sauce.No one here has made it yet
Goes with
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- African grocers, often by the piece. Firm, with no soft spots or mould at the cut end.
- A little history
- The New Yam Festival, when the first of the harvest is eaten, is held around August among the Igbo and others.
- Worth knowing
- Peel with gloves or under running water — the skin can make hands itch.
