Best way to cook red potatoes and sweet potatoes

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Jennifer Murphy

Senior Cook
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May 18, 2014
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Silicon Valley, CA
All my life I have eaten russet potaotes. For the past severtal months, I've been using a temperature probe in the oven to get them to exactly 212°. Yesterday, my diabetes nurse asked me to switch to red potatoes and sweet potatoes bevaus ehtey have more fiber. I have a couple of questions.

  1. Can I cook them the same way as I have the russets?
  2. Is there a better way?
  3. Is there a difference between a sweet potatao and a yam? The grocery store had at least 2 bins labeled sweet potatoes and 2 more labeled yams. Which should I try?
Thanks
 
In most markets, yellow sweet potatoes are labeled sweet potatoes and orange sweet potatoes are labeled yams (they are not real yams).

That's an orange sweet potato on the left and a yam on the right.
images.jpeg

I like orange sweet potatoes baked. They cook faster than russets. Then I mash them with butter and a little cinnamon. Delicious!

Red potatoes have a different texture than russets. You can bake them but they are also really good roasted or as home fries.
 
In most markets, yellow sweet potatoes are labeled sweet potatoes and orange sweet potatoes are labeled yams (they are not real yams).

That's an orange sweet potato on the left and a yam on the right.
View attachment 61761

I like orange sweet potatoes baked. They cook faster than russets. Then I mash them with butter and a little cinnamon. Delicious!

Red potatoes have a different texture than russets. You can bake them but they are also really good roasted or as home fries.
If I bake them (red potatoes and sweet potatoes), should I also set the probe to 212°?
 
Though when canned, they are called yams, this is a misnomer, from two distinct botanical families; sweet potatoes from the same group as morning glories, and yams from the lily group. Yams are native to Africa, and Asia, while sweet potatoes originated in South America.
Sweet potatoes can be deep orange, almost white, or even purple. The thin skinned white sweet potatoes are drier, and not as sweet. Deep orange ones are the most common in the U.S,, and have a sweeter, more moist flesh. They can be baked in the skin, peeled and simmered, then mashed with butter, even made into sweet potato fries. They do cook faster than regular potatoes, like russets. Unknown to most people, the skins are edible and can be tasty. The normal method for baking is to line a baking sheet with foul As they bake, they will ooze some liquid onto the pan, It's a challenge to get off of a baking sheet. Foil makes cleanup easier. Lightly scrub the potatoes under running water to remove ant grit. Cooking time will very with the sweet potato size, and how many are baked. Do not wrap in foil. This will result in flabby skins. Typically, in a 425' F. oven, you're looking at about 45 minutes baking time. To test, stick a fork in it, The flesh should be soft in the thickest part of the potato. For a yummy, and crispy skin, rub the skin with oil, and lightly salt before baking. sweet potatoes are usually mashed with butter, salt, and pepper. They also pair well with maple syrup, or a bit of orange juice.

Note" Sweet potatoes are considered one of the superfoods, high in vitamins A and C, and a good source of potassium, as well as some B vitamins, They are low sugar, high fiber, and fat

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North free.
 
If I bake them (red potatoes and sweet potatoes), should I also set the probe to 212°?
That's fine. I never use temperature for red or sweet potatoes. I use 210ºF for baked. You will find that sweet potatoes (I prefer the orange ones) will get to the soft stage faster than a russet. Baking to temperature will also work if that's easier for you.

Do you only eat them baked? You can make mashed with either type.
 
Though when canned, they are called yams, this is a misnomer, from two distinct botanical families; sweet potatoes from the same group as morning glories, and yams from the lily group. Yams are native to Africa, and Asia, while sweet potatoes originated in South America.
Sweet potatoes can be deep orange, almost white, or even purple. The thin skinned white sweet potatoes are drier, and not as sweet.
Thanks, very informative.

Deep orange ones are the most common in the U.S,, and have a sweeter, more moist flesh. They can be baked in the skin, peeled and simmered, then mashed with butter, even made into sweet potato fries. They do cook faster than regular potatoes, like russets. Unknown to most people, the skins are edible and can be tasty.
I'll try that.

The normal method for baking is to line a baking sheet with foul As they bake, they will ooze some liquid onto the pan, It's a challenge to get off of a baking sheet. Foil makes cleanup easier. Lightly scrub the potatoes under running water to remove ant grit. Cooking time will very with the sweet potato size, and how many are baked. Do not wrap in foil. This will result in flabby skins.
I like the foil (or foul ?) suggestion. I've been baking them just on the oven rack. This will keep the bottom of the oven cleaner. Thanks

Typically, in a 425' F. oven, you're looking at about 45 minutes baking time. To test, stick a fork in it, The flesh should be soft in the thickest part of the potato.
I've been baking the russets at between 300° and 400°. With the probe set to 212°, it takes about 2:30 (hh:mm) at 300°, 1:45 at 350°, and about 1:10 at 400°. They seem a bit better tasting when cooked at lower temperatures, but I really can't tell much difference

For a yummy, and crispy skin, rub the skin with oil, and lightly salt before baking.
I've never been able to get that to work. It doesn't seem to matter whether I rub them before starting or part way through, they taste the same with or without. I've tried butter, olive oil, and canola oil.

Sweet potatoes are usually mashed with butter, salt, and pepper. They also pair well with maple syrup, or a bit of orange juice.
Are you putting the maple syrup or OJ on the potato?

Note" Sweet potatoes are considered one of the superfoods, high in vitamins A and C, and a good source of potassium, as well as some B vitamins, They are low sugar, high fiber, and fat.
Is that high fat?

Thanks for all the good info.
 
That's fine. I never use temperature for red or sweet potatoes. I use 210ºF for baked. You will find that sweet potatoes (I prefer the orange ones) will get to the soft stage faster than a russet. Baking to temperature will also work if that's easier for you.
Do you have a suggested probe temp setting for sweet potatoes?

I just baked a large red potato at an over temp of 325º with the probe set to 212º. They didn't seem quite done. The middle felt undercooked (hard).

Do you only eat them baked? You can make mashed with either type.
I usually bake them, scoop out the flesh (center), mash that with butter and pepper. I'll try a sweet potato tomorrow.
 
In most markets, yellow sweet potatoes are labeled sweet potatoes and orange sweet potatoes are labeled yams (they are not real yams).

That's an orange sweet potato on the left and a yam on the right.
View attachment 61761
Now I'm not sure which I bought. I think they look more like the ones on the left.

I like orange sweet potatoes baked. They cook faster than russets. Then I mash them with butter and a little cinnamon. Delicious!
I'll be using a probe, so I don't have to do any timing. Any suggestions for an internal (probe) temp?

Red potatoes have a different texture than russets. You can bake them but they are also really good roasted or as home fries.
I'll try baked first.
 
I cook sweet potatoes at a much lower temperature, for a longer time. I set the oven at 250F, and bake for about 2 hours, or until a probe thermometer slides in easily. Works great.
 
Charlie, that's what I was saying. Real yams are rare in the US except in some ethnic markets. What many supermarkets call yams are really yellow sweet potatoes.
 
Charlie, that's what I was saying. Real yams are rare in the US except in some ethnic markets. What many supermarkets call yams are really yellow sweet potatoes.
I'm sorry, I was not clear. They do not call sweet potatoes Yams in Minnesota. As the matter of fact some times they call Yams sweet potatoes.
 
I went to our local market. It has really good produce. I found bins with 5 different products labeled either yams or sweet potatoes. I bought a few of each. Here's a photo of each with the end cut off and the labels I found on the bins.

20220923 235002 My purchase, 5 varieties, commented.jpg

I've cooked 3 of them. They are all similar in taste and texture.

Does anyone know which of these are higher in fiber?
 
Yes, you can cook red potatoes and sweet potatoes in the same way that you have been cooking the russets. The best way to cook them is to bake them in the oven at 375°F for about 40 minutes.

Yes, there is a difference between a sweet potato and a yam. Yams are a bit drier and starchier than sweet potatoes. They have a slightly more intense flavor than sweet potatoes, but they are still very sweet. Sweet potatoes typically have a lighter color than yams and have a reddish-orange hue when cooked. Yams have a dark brownish-purple hue when cooked.
 
Try sweet potato French fries. Fry them the same way you would fry russets and salt them as well.
 
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