I’ll be the first to admit, I didn’t know the difference between a sweet potato and a yam. I just thought orange meant yam. It wasn’t until my dear friend sat me down to tell me that sweet potatoes are white…..and orange.

Shock & awe folks.

Shock & awe.

Now that you’re here reading this, I think it’s best I explain it all to you. Just in case you have thought the same thing.

A sweet potato is white and looks like a potato (wha….) It can also be orange. In America, we tend to call orang sweet potatoes yams. Just for funzies, I suppose.

A yam is actually a white tuber found in  Africa,  Asia, Latin America and even the Carribean. There are a few varieties of yams such as the elephant foot yam and the wild yam. There are also many varieties of sweet potatoes.

Nutritionally, a sweet potato that is orange has more Vitamin A (beta carotene). They are very similar in carb count and both very low in fat. Sweet potatoes also are high in amino acids.

So the next time you’re at the store, know that you are most likely going to see signs for yams that are actually orange sweet potatoes. Don’t freak, just choose the kind you like best and get cooking!

Here is a basic sweet potato fries recipe. I’ve used it on white and orange sweet potatoes. I like them both! The white sweet potatoes go over better for my kids. I think that’s simply because the color reminds them of what they know as normal fries.

Tip: These pair well with my homemade bbq sauce. I like to make them on the nights I’m grilling up my turkey burgers too. Yumm!