Are Sweet Potatoes Healthier Than Regular Potatoes? A study published in Food & Nutrition Research in June 2015 examined the association between purple sweet potato anthocyanins and growth of human retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells. The flesh is either creamy white or bright yellow, and the potato has a sweet taste that you can enjoy just from steaming it. Timest. Home Blog Paleo Diet Paleo Diet 101 Types of Sweet Potatoes (With Images) and Why You Should Be Eating Them. For these reasons, Garnet is best used for baking recipes, such as sweet potato pie or a casserole. Lets answer, is Spanish mackerel the same as Atlantic mackerel? He's a contributor to the Washington Post, New York Magazine, Vice, and more. These tuberous starchy roots belong to the family Convolvulaceae (morning glory) in the order Solanales. Most people may think they are a member of the potato family 1. Adirondack Blue Potato Skin Color: Dark purple skin. I've long believed that the sweet potato is a perfect foodit's filling, flavorful, easy to make, and, according to the internet, relatively nutritious. Cutting up potatoes and sweet potatoes helps preserve their starchiness, while cooking them whole results in more sugariness. This is the most common sweet potato variety in American grocery stores, and the one you'll find at pretty much every market. This is simply a buildup of betacarotene. Coho Salmon vs King: Whats The Difference? Purple sweet potato is not considered to be high in sugar. Hannah sweet potatoes are perfect mashed as a side. Thats bad news given the amount of French fries and potato chips in many diets. The two most common white-fleshed sweet potatoes are Boniato, also called batata, or Cuban sweet potato, and the Japanese sweet potato, also called the satsuma-imo. Their starchy flesh takes on a sweet and malty flavor when cooked. Unlike most other sweet potatoes, this Japanese variety has drier flesh. For reference: An average 5-inch long medium sweet potato is about 130 grams. Lets look at some of the many types of sweet potato, starting with some of the most popular and widely consumed varieties. Golden Sweet. Sweet potato has 86 kcal per 100g and oatmeal 68 kcal per 100g so it is pretty easy to calculate that the difference is about 26%. However, this changes to an intense violet-purple, almost deep blue color when cooked. Although some people think sweet potatoes and yams are the same thing, yams come from a completely different plant related to grasses and lilies. Sugar: A 100-gram serving of baked sweet potato contains 6.5 grams of sugar and a 100-gram serving of baked white potato contains 1.4 grams of sugar, making white potato the winner by a small margin. The following are the amounts and nutrients per one cup: Lets now talk about a couple of nutrient differences between an orange sweet potato and a purple sweet potato. This is why sweet potatoes are known to ward off certain diseases such as colon cancer . Instead, you'll find plenty of sweet potato varieties mislabeled as yams. They have a slight nuttiness, and take well to steaming or roasting in cubes alongside other root vegetables. The calories, fat, protein, and carbohydrates that both provide are basically the same," says Manaker. They are native to Polynesia and the Central and South America region, domesticated more than 5,000 years ago, and grown worldwide today. ), wed resort to laborious descriptions of what the skin looked like, what color the flesh was, how it tasted, etc. To settle the debate at least in regard to which potato is the healthier option we turn to registered dietitian Beth Czerwony, RD. While most sweet potato varieties are delicious and incredibly versatile, knowing what type you're dealing with can help you choose a cooking method and sweet potato recipe that may be better suited for that spud. Sweet potato covers your daily need of Vitamin A RAE 107% more than Red potato. Yes, sweet potatoes tend to have a lower GI, slightly more fibre and beneficial beta-carotene, but white potatoes are richer in potassium and are one of the few sources of gut-loving resistant starch. From sweet potato fries to baby food, there are hundreds of entries containing the orange type, but nothing for the white, yellow, and purple varieties. Unlike orange sweet potatoes, you don't have to worry about satsuma-imo getting soggy or waterlogged as they cook. Purple are starchier than the orange. They have a slightly sweet taste and are fairly firm inside. Both contain soluble and insoluble fiber. Cleveland Clinic 1995-2023. Covingtons pair well with savory herbs like cilantro, parsley or rosemary, warming spices such as cinnamon, cumin and curry powder, and staples like garlic, ginger and onions. There is the Texan Cordner variety with copper-colored skin and medium orange flesh. Traditionally, your sweet potatoes have copper-color, brown, or purplish-red skin, and the flesh is a vibrant orange. The following table is a side-by-side comparison of the nutrients: Sweet Potato Cooked (100 g) Russet Potato Cooked (100 g) Calories: 90: 95: Protein: 2.01 g: 2.63 g: Carbohydrates: 20.7 g: 21.4 g: Fiber: 3.3 g: 2.3 g: Fat: 0.15 g . Purple sweet potatoes have a firm, meaty texture. Many types of sweet potato from Asia have dark-colored skin and white flesh. Potato Nutrition Facts According to the USDA, one medium baked sweet potato with skin contains 103 calories, 2.29 grams of protein, 0.27 grams of fat, 23.6 grams of carbohydrates, 3.8 grams of fiber and 7.39 grams of sugar. The main reason? Find out if Russet potatoes and Idaho potatoes are the same in my article, Idaho vs Russet Potatoes Are They The Same? Color: Purplish-red skins, deep orange flesh.Flavor: Sweet.Texture: Slightly stringy, juicy when cooked.Best uses: Mashing and in baked goods and desserts (candied yams, biscuits). Use them both. 17. Thats the main reason why sweet potatoes come across as a little bit of a better option, says Czerwony. In some countries, purple sweet potatoes are used to color toppings on baked goods. One medium cooked sweet potato with skin has about 105 calories and 4 grams of dietary fiber. The Japanese sweet potato is perfect for braising, boiling or stir-frying. You can also slice and cook these tasty tubers on the grill, topping them with a simple herb dressing like minced cilantro, lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Japanese sweet potatoes, or satsumaimo in Japanese, are a sweet, starchy root vegetable with reddish-purple skin and pale yellow to white flesh. The fresh purple yam flesh is pale purple with white specks through it. These sweet spuds account for nearly 85 percent of sweet potato production in North Carolina and are continuing to become more popular, according to North Carolina Sweet Potatoes. Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) are not a 'true' potato from the nightshade Solanum tuberosum variety.Types of sweet potatoes such as the Japanese sweet potato and Hannah sweet potato are starchy tubers from the Ipomoea batatas plant. These cells have the responsibility of keeping the immune system as healthy as possible to fight viruses and illnesses effectively. These antioxidants protect our skin from free radicals. Keeping them in the refrigerator produces a hard center and an unpleasant taste. Incidentally, yams and sweet potatoes are different. Sometimes, potatoes are called white potatoes or Irish potatoes to distinguish them from batatas, or sweet potatoes. They are your grocery store potatoes, she says. It may surprise you to learn that the tubers many refer to as yams are actually varieties of sweet potato. Sweet potatoes with orange flesh are rich in carotenoids. (Youre on your own for taste.). These are what you typically find in the grocery store, even if the label says yam. Japanese sweet potatoes are also great for gnocchi because they are low in moisture. The big difference between the two is the skin color: Japanese sweet potatoes have a pinkish brown skin and the outer skin of a boniato is light tan. It is in the percentage or quantity of antioxidants that sweet potatoes are much ahead of potatoes. These varieties have light purple or reddish skins and sweet white flesh. Everyone loves the sweet, caramelized flavor of a sweet potato, and its health benefits make this spud a spectacular addition to your diet. Like other sweet potatoes, purple sweet potatoes are root vegetables and are members of the Ipomoea genus. If you're looking to show off that beautiful purple hue, she suggests steaming them and pureeing them into a smoothie or soup. Other differencesbetween sweet potatoes and purple sweet potatoes: This article will compare in complete detail including their nutrients, tastes, costs and whether one can substitute for the other in recipes. Researchers administered 400 milligrams of magnesium to a group of 100 participants for a period of 90 days. Theyre considered distantly related at best in the world of botanic genealogy, with some pretty big differences. But orange sweet potatoes live up to their namethey have a robust, sweet flavor that will probably never mimic the taste of classic French fries. Sweet potatoes are easier to find in supermarkets. Sweet potatoes contain Potato Vs Sweet Potato - Carbs Content When comparing strictly on carb content, both potatoes and sweet potatoes both have the exact same amount of carbs at 21g. When comparing both potatoes, its difficult to say if one is healthier than the other. FLESH Deep orange. In addition to coaching clients about them, Ive purchased, researched and consumed both prior to, during and after writing this article. Although most types of sweet potatoes have a similar vitamin and mineral content, an outstanding difference is their phytonutrient profile. Nutritional value for 100 grams of sweet potato versus 100 grams of rice (brown rice and white rice). If you see a bin simply labeled "sweet potatoes" it's likely you're either buying Beauregards or jewels (we'll get to those in a moment). To call them sloppy would be an understatement. Purple sweet contain more of the antioxidant anthocyanin. Melatonin is known to promote relaxation and sleep and is helpful as a sleep-aid medication. A typical question asked, is soybean oil better than olive oil? Popular varieties of soft sweet potatoes are the Jewel Yam and Garnet Yam. The dark-red skinned tubers have a long oblong shape similar to yams. Another of the most popular varieties of sweet potato is the delicious Covington cultivar. Traditional potatoes the kinds used to make fries, potato mash, and roast potatoes are from the nightshade family Solanaceae. Therefore, you may be changing the recipe slightly to make the dish a bit sweeter. Another type of sweet potato not to be confused with regular potatoes is the OHenry cultivar. The dense flesh holds up well during cooking and its sweet orange flesh makes delicious sweet potato wedges. Sweet potatoes are a lower-calorie, high-fiber alternative to starchy potatoes, making them a favorite healthier alternative.