yams or sweet potatoes

is there a difference? i always forget which is which.


from the interwebs:
" The sweet, orange-colored root vegetable that is often thought of as a yam in the United States is actually a sweet potato. Yams purchased in the United States are almost always sweet potatoes, no matter what color and shape they are.

A true yam is a starchy edible tuber that is generally imported from the Caribbean. It differs greatly from the sweet potato in taste, texture, appearance and family.

Depending on the variety, sweet potato flesh can vary from white to orange and even purple. The orange-fleshed variety was introduced to the United States several decades ago. In order to distinguish it from the white variety everyone was accustomed to, producers and shippers chose the English form of the African word "nyami" and labeled them "yams."

Even though the USDA requires that orange-colored sweet potatoes always be labeled "sweet potato," most people still think of sweet potatoes as yams regardless of their true identity. "

now we all know. either way they are both yummy in my book!

Cheers,
L