A Brief Introduction to Sweet Potato

Sweet potato is a kind of dicotyledonous plant, which fits into the family named ‘Convolvulaceae’. Its starchy, large, tuberous and sweet-tasting roots are a popular root vegetable. The shoots & young leaves may be eaten as greens. Sweet potato is indistinctly related to potato (i.e. Solanum tuberrosum). The orange and softer variety of sweet potato is known as yam in N. America, but botanically sweet potato is very distinct from yam (a vegetable that is native to Asia and Africa and fits into the family Dioscoreaceae).

The sweet potato plant is a perennial herbaceous vine, bearing palmately lobed or heart-shaped leaves & medium-size sympetalous flowers. The tuberous root (edible part) is tapered and long, having smooth skin. The color of the skin ranges between red, purple, beige and brown and the color of the flesh ranges between orange, purple, yellow and beige.

Nutrition

Nutritional value of Sweet Potato

Besides simple starch, sweet potato is high in dietary fiber, complex carbohydrates, beta carotene, vitamin A equiv nutrient, vitamin B6 and vitamin C. Yellow, green and pink varieties are rich in carotene, a pre-cursor of vitamin A. In the year 1992, Center of Science in Public Interest compared the nutrition value of sweet potato to various other vegetables. It was found that sweet potatoes ranked highest as far as the amount of complex carbohydrates, vitamins C and A, calcium, iron and fiber content is concerned. On the basis of these criteria, sweet potato got 184 points. Talking of sweet potato calories, one gets 24 calories from a single serving of this vegetable weighing 28 g or 1 oz. (To know the amount of calories in sweet potato varieties, read further sections of this article).

A variety of sweet potato with dark orange-colored flesh has more amount of beta carotene as compared to light-colored flesh. Despite its name ‘sweet’, it can prove to be a beneficial vegetable for diabetic patients.

Nutritional value of Raw Sweet Potato (per 100 g)

Nutritional Analysis of Sweet Potato

Good points

• No cholesterol
• Very low in saturated fats
• Rich in manganese, potassium, dietary fiber and vitamin B6
• Low in sodium content
• Very high in vitamins A and C

Bad points

• High in sugar

 Uses

 Uses of Sweet Potato

Let us discuss the culinary and non-culinary uses of sweet potato:

Culinary uses

Although the shoots and leaves of sweet potato are also edible, the tuberous starchy roots are an important food product for human beings. In a few tropical regions, they are a staple food crop.

• In Africa, two dishes (named Inginyo and Amukeke) made up of sweet potatoes are very popular. The vine tips and young leaves are consumed as vegetable in several countries of West Africa. According to various researches, the leaves and shoots of sweet potato are high in vitamins C, A and B2, as well as lutein.

• In China, sweet potato (particularly yellow variety) is sold baked as street food during winter season. (Calories in baked sweet potato = 54 in 2 oz). In Japan, roasted sweet potato is popular. Sweet potato soup is also served in China during winters. In Taiwanese cuisine, the greens of sweet potato are used as a common side dish. In Korea, the starch of this vegetable is used to prepare a kind of cellophane noodles.
• In North America, candied sweet potato is a side dish that consists of sweet potatoes prepared with marsh mallows, molasses, brown sugar, orange juice or other sweet ingredients. Sweet potato pie is a favorite traditional dish in South US cuisine.

Sweet potatoes are used either as a main vegetable or as an ingredient in many countries around the world.

Non-culinary uses

• In South America, red sweet potato’s juice is mixed with lime juice to make cloth dye.
• All parts of sweet potato plant are utilized as animal fodder.
• Sweet potatoes are found in Moche ceramics.
• Some varieties of sweet potato, like Margarita, Ace of Spades and Blackie, are cultivated as ornamental plants.

Calories

Calories in a sweet potato

In this section, we will discuss the amount of calories in different varieties of sweet potato and various products made out of it.

Sweet potato is prepared in different ways. Here, the amount of calories is described according to the method of preparation.

• In raw sweet potato (28 g), there are 24 calories.
• Calories in a sweet potato with skin (baked) are 180.
• In frozen sweet potato weighing 100 g, there are 96 calories.
• In canned sweet potato (Vacuum Pack), there are 91 calories in serving size of 100 g.
• In leaves of sweet potato weighing 100 g, there are 35 calories.
• In mashed (either steamed or boiled) sweet potatoes, there are 249 calories in serving size of 11.6 oz.
• In edible portion of sweet potato without salt (baked in skin), there are 54 calories in serving size of 2.1 oz.
• There are 115 calories in a sweet potato without skin weighing 5.3 oz (boiled, without salt).

• Calories in yellow variety of sweet potato – There are 190 calories per potato, without counting any added ingredients.