The potato
Sweet potato is a perennial herb grown as an annual.
DENOMINATION
It is known as Batata, Sweet Potato, yams, sweet potato, sweet Papa, sugared Batata, sweet potato, sweet potato Malaga, Malaga potato. Although scientific or Latin name is Ipomoea batatas sweet potato = Convolvulus . It belongs to the family of Convolvuláceas.
ORIGIN
It is native to the American tropics and since ancient cultivation was spread through the Antilles. It seems that Spanish sailors brought the potato to the Philippines and the Moluccas, where the Portuguese would take her to India, China and Japan. And is currently recultiva in all tropical and subtropical regions of the planet.
VARIETIES
Potato thick or Californian branch
It from California, is characterized by the thickness of the stem. Tubers are medium sized, globose, elongated and very pale reddish skin and tenser for meat.
Sweetpotato Centenal
Is a very strong American variety of very good yields and high quality fruit. It’s very early, requiring somewhat higher temperatures.
Batata Jasper
Shape, size and color of tubers, with good performance, making it highly recommended.
Sweetpotato Eland
African variety that is well adapted to the climatic conditions and with high yield. It is sensitive to conservation and the bumps in the handling and transport cause major damage.
Other varieties of sweet potatoes that we can find
Malaga, Malaga rose, the Iname, minimum, violet, Mexican, Brazilian, Argentina, etc.
HOW DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
Color
It depends on the variety to which reference is made.
Form
Like the color depends on the variety of that talk.
Size
The sizes of sweet potatoes also vary depending on the variety, can find copies of 5-40cm in length.
Weight
Depending on various factors can weigh from 0.5 to 6 kg.
Taste
The flavor is one of the distinguishing characteristics of the most important potato. It is a sweet taste due to the presence of a significant amount simple sugars in their composition, especially sucrose.
WHEN WE FIND IT, AND UNDER WHAT CONDITIONS?
Sweet potato is a tropical plant and can not tolerate cold temperatures well. The conditions for development are a mean temperature of more than 21C growth, a moist environment and good brightness. The minimum growth temperature is 12º C.
Yams, therefore, not be a vegetable of choice for cultivation in Spain, so when we found is usually imported.
THE BEST SPECIMEN AND CONSERVATION
The ideal storage temperature are 11-15ºC and humidity of 80-85% in ventilated areas.
A copy of potato quality will be the one to save their hygienic and organoleptic properties (taste, smell, color …) in the correct state.
NUTRITIONAL CHARACTERISTICS
Sweet potato is a vegetable with considerable energy, which is around 105 kcal / 100g. It has a rather peculiar nutritional characteristics. The water content is relatively low considering that it is a vegetable, is barely 72% of the total weight. Just contains fat (0.3%) and protein (1.65%), but instead its carbohydrate content is much higher than other vegetables, even exceeded 21%. In yams are both starch and sugars (on which depends the sweet taste of sweet potato), and depending on the variety and there will be more than one other
Minerals
Its mineral content highlight potassium being located in the greater proportion. But we can also cite other minerals found in very large quantities, such as calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, potassium and zinc.
Vitamins
Regarding the supply of vitamins, we will find ourselves with different amounts of all except vitamin B12, which is found only in foods of animal origin. We include vitamin A such as is found in higher proportions followed by vitamin C, although there were significant amounts of B vitamins, particularly vitamins B1, B2, niacin, B6 and folate and vitamin E.
WHAT CAN HELP?
Sweet potato is not a food that has a long tradition of food or medicinal plant. Still, we can cite certain health claims attributed to him, such as:
Cardiosaludable
As noted, the sweet potato is my rich in vitamin A, protective against the development of atherosclerosis. Besides the saturated fatty acids and partner practically zero. Therefore its use is recommended in case of arteriosclerosis and hypertension.
Obesity
Often sweet potato is used in slimming diets for its satiating effect especially if its fat content is very low.
Energy
The sweet potato is a vegetable with an important energy component, so it will be one of the vegetables of choice for those who need significant energy contribution as athletes.
AND IF WE SPEND?
Like all foods, sweet potatoes should be taken with knowledge and perspective, but have not found toxic effects from high consumption. Yes, because of its peculiar composition, they should moderate their consumption of sweet potatoes:
- Individuals who suffer from intestinal disorders such as bloating, because if you do not chew well sweet potatoes can aggravate this situation.
- Diabetics, as the sweet potato has a significant content in carbohydrates, particularly sugars (absorption and quick release) which determine the blood sugar (blood glucose).
AND WHAT ELSE?
Foods with more fat are those that produce greater satiety, but instead, the sweet potato is a starchy food that produces a quick feeling of satiety, prolonging it even several hours. Therefore, although the energy value is considerable (105 kcal / 100g) must take into account its satiating capacity.
MODE PREPARATION AND USE
Pureed
Usually do mashed with milk: first roasted or boiled sweet potato and mixed well with milk to form a homogeneous paste. To this there is no need to add anything as sweet potato is pretty sweet and does not need sugar.
Oven roasted
Roast potato is the most common way to eat this vegetable. Either baked or grilled, always roasted with skin.
In pastry
When a vegetable with high sugar content (primarily sucrose) is delicious in jams, marmalades and bakery products.
