Roasted Okinawan Purple Sweet Potatoes Two Ways
While I am ambivalent toward conventional potatoes, I enjoy a range of sweet potatoes (which, by the way, are not closely related to potatoes). I don’t particularly care for the conventional varieties commonly seen in supermarkers (e.g. Hannah, Garnet, or Jewel), but gravitate more towards various purple varieties. My local supermarket has two types. The Stokes Purple (with grey-purple skin and a purple interior); it looks impressive, but has a mild flavor and sweetness and requires a prolonged cooking time to bring out the best in it. I have had a it a few times, but generally find it not worth the effort. The Japanese Sweet Potato, in contrast, is delicious. It has a reddish-purple skin with a cream-colored flesh. I typically cut it into half-inch thick rounds, brush the cut ends with a bit of oil, and cook at 375 °F for about 45 minutes. They are sweet and nutty and can be enjoyed warm or even straight out of the refrigerator.
Sometimes, however, I’m in the mood for something a little less sweet that is still rich with flavor. This is where Okinawan sweet potatoes come in. Their color pattern is the inverse of the Japanese sweet potato, with a creamy exterior and a purple interior. They are also generally quite a bit smaller. They do well with a similar roasting technique to the Japanese variety, but recently I started experimenting with the use of convection to change the texture. While I typically a light oil coating for all my sweet potato baking, I about half unoiled for my latest experiment.
After 45 minutes of convection baking at 375° F, the unoiled specimen were dry and pale compared their glistening purple ovenmates (unoiled to the left and oiled to the right in the image above). Despite the lackluster appearance, they were still enjoyable, albeit with a drier chip-like texture and tempered sweetness reminiscent of plantains. Most people will probably prefer oil-coated potatoes, but there may be times when the drier version is preferable (e.g. with a sauce or paired with a moist dish).
