#Murasaki sweet potato recipe how to#
#Murasaki sweet potato recipe skin#

Has a slightly more intense sweetness because the moisture has evaporated.Įveryone has their own preference, and it’s good to find out what you like.

#Murasaki sweet potato recipe skin#

The skin is crisp and dry so it’s less pleasant to eat it.

It’s more fluffy and flaky compared to foil-wrapped.

It’s a bit too hard to break in half with two hands because the skin is loose and fragile.

It’s stuck to the flesh so it’s not easy to peel.

The skin is also moist and soft so it’s pleasant to eat it.

Very moist and tender because the moisture didn’t escape from the foil.

It’s easy to break in half with two hands.

It’s obvious how different they look, but let’s check out the texture and taste. The image above shows the cross-section of the two baked sweet potatoes: wrapped in foil and bare.

The baked sweet potato wrapped in foil (left) vs. My recommendation is to make them both ways at once first and decide what you like for the future. Both methods will give you delicious yaki imo, but when the sweet potatoes are cooked, they are slightly different in texture and flavors. Let’s talk about these two choices – foil-wrapped vs. The thickness of each sweet potato is different, so make sure it’s cooked through using a skewer.

Check the doneness with the bamboo skewer.Slow and steady will bring out the best texture and flavor, so let it bake for 90 minutes.Bake at low temperature ( 325✯ or 160✬).Foil-wrapped or bare (naked) – your choice, but I’ll show you the differences below.Poke a few holes on the sweet potatoes with a wooden skewer or fork to avoid the explosion. Let the sweet potatoes ripen for 2 weeks after purchase (highly recommend read above).Not many of us have a hot stone oven at home, so the easiest way is to cook satsumaimo in the oven (or toaster oven).

#Murasaki sweet potato recipe how to#

How to Bake Japanese Sweet Potatoes in the Oven Let them ripen for at least 1 to 2 weeks after you bring them home. They will keep up to a month when stored in a cool, dry, and dark place. They are good and sweet, so grab them! How to Store (and Ripen) Sweet Potatoes You might find some sweet potatoes that have sticky liquid coming out of the cut end or got solidified on the skin. How to Choose the Best Japanese Sweet PotatoesĬhoose the ones with smooth skin and feel heavy when you hold them. If they are elongated and have a lot of roots, they have too much fiber and are not delicious. I usually buy satsumaimo from my local Japanese grocery store or farmers’ market, but you can certainly find them at local Asian grocery stores and major grocery stores in the US such as Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, or local co-ops. You can learn more about Japanese sweet potatoes on my pantry page. When cooked right, they are incredibly tender and fluffy. They are also a lot sweeter with a chestnut-like flavor. When compared to the orange sweet potatoes or purple sweet potatoes/ purple yams, satsumaimo variety tends to be smaller and slender in size. They have a distinct red-toned purple skin and off-white interior that turns yellow after cooking. This sounds obvious - we only use Japanese sweet potatoes called satsumaimo (さつまいも, サツマイモ) for yaki imo. However, I still have fond memories of the delicious sweet potatoes I had growing up. Unfortunately, the old-school yaki imo trucks are getting fewer and fewer these days. The skin is cooked until crisp and light browned on the edges and the inside is creamy with a slightly caramelized deliciousness. There’s no added salt or butter - only its best natural taste. The first thing I’d do was to open the newspaper parcel and let the wisp of steam and sweet warm aroma of the sweet potatoes envelope my face before I took the first bite. Slow-roasted to perfection over a hot stone, these sweet potatoes are in its purest form. The vendors would drive through neighborhoods, with speakers blasting out their calls, “ Ishiyaaaakiimo… Oimo! (Stone-roasted potatoes…potatoes!)” Traditionally, yaki imo were sold by small trucks equipped with a stone roasting pot called Ishiyaki Imo (石焼き芋), literally stone-roasted-potato. So today, I’m here to share my best tips on making yaki imo at home.

While making yaki imo at home is as easy as popping them into the oven, there are a few methods to bake the sweet potatoes to the ideal texture and flavor. Yaki Imo (焼き芋) or Baked Japanese Sweet Potatoes is the classic Japanese autumn and winter street snack that evokes nostalgic memories, one that always takes me back to my childhood. With this foolproof recipe, you can make Baked Japanese Sweet Potatoes (Yaki Imo) that are perfectly tender, fluffy, and sweet!