A Brief Guide To Cooking Yams- By: Musarrat Sheikh

Description : Most people in the US refer to sweet potatoes as yams. This is regardless of the fact that the sweet potato and the yam are very diverse tubers. Although these two are diverse, they are prepared in much the same way. Yams pack minerals like potassium, beta carotene, iron as well as fiber and vitamins An and C. You can decide to bake the yams, use the microwave or mash them up. Eating yams will enhance the typical American diet which is always lacking in yellow vegetables. Christopher Columbus is the guy who introduced yams to Europe as these tubers are natives of Africa, Asia, Central and South America. In southern Asia, Africa and south pacific, yams are widely grown as these areas have warm climates. If you want to get to know how to cook yams, there are several things that you will require to cook them successfully. These include: Knife, Butter, Cinnamon, Casserole dish, Nutmeg, Low fat milk, Potato masher, Nonstick spray, Olive oil.

One simple way of cooking yams is to have them baked. This is how to bake yams. Using a vegetable brush, wash the yams meticulously. Using a sharp fork or knife, jab them a little bit. Most tubers which include yams have a propensity to explode when the steam that builds within them fails to find a vent to let off. Fire up your oven up to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and then place the yams into the oven compartment for approximately 40 minutes. A wrinkly skin is a sure indication that the yams have indeed cooked through and that they are ready for serving. Some cinnamon and a little butter go a long way in ensuring you have some great baked yams.

The following recipe is another interesting way to come up with baked yams. Get several yams maybe 4 or 5 and peel them. The size of the yams should be perfect for casserole cooking. Slice them thinly. Spray your casserole dish with some non stick spray. Into the casserole dish, place several slices of yam till you come up with a layer. Using butter or some other good spread, dot the yam layer. Get some walnuts that have been broken and sprinkle on top of the yams together with some cinnamons. Add some more yam layers and then take some honey and drizzle it on the top layer. Cover up the dish that you want to bake with and get the oven going at 375 degrees Fahrenheit and then bake your prepared yams for a period of 40 minutes. When the 40 minutes elapse, the yams will most certainly be tender after which you are advised to get rid of the lid of the casserole dish and take it to the broiler for some 5 minutes or so till the yams turn brown. After the yams brown up, they are ready for serving. You can have them with your favorite stew. Quite a simple recipe to prepare don't you think.

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Author Resource : This article touched the basics of the topic. I have 2 more resources related to the above. They are how to cook a yam and how to bake yams. Do consider reading them.