Vegetables · Root vegetables
Yam (ñame)
True yam (ñame): a large, rough-skinned, starchy tuber with white flesh, boiled, fried or pounded.
Also called: ñame, name, white yam, true yam, dioscorea
Around the world: ñame (es)
Photo: Dorcas Atule, via Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY-SA-4.0)
What it is
True yams have thick, bark-like brown skin and dense, white to yellow (sometimes purple) flesh. They are drier and starchier than sweet potatoes, which are often wrongly called yams in North America. West African white yam is pounded into iyan; Caribbean ñame is boiled in sancocho.
Dioscorea species
How it’s used
- Pounded yam (iyan) with soups
- Boiled and served with stews
- Fried as yam chips
- Simmered in sancocho and soups
- Yam porridge (asaro)
Characteristics
- Taste
- Mild, earthy and starchy.
- Texture
- Dry and firm; fluffy or stretchy when pounded.
- When cooked
- Holds shape when boiled; becomes elastic when pounded hot.
- Sold as
- fresh, frozen, powder
- Cooking uses
- Commonly cooked, Suitable for boiling, Suitable for frying
- Common in
- Nigerian, Ghanaian, West African, Caribbean, Dominican, Puerto Rican, Jamaican
Storage
Cool, dry and dark. Store whole yams in a cool, dry, dark, airy place. Wrap cut ends and use soon.
Diet, allergens and safety
No major allergens in typical versions.
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Dairy-free
- Egg-free
- Gluten-free
- Nut-free
- Soy-free
- Caffeine-free
- Raw yam can irritate skin and should always be cooked.
Nutrition per 100 g
- Energy
- 118 kcal
- Protein
- 1.53 g
- Carbohydrate
- 27.88 g
- Fat
- 0.17 g
- Fibre
- 4.1 g
- Sugars
- 0.5 g
USDA FoodData Central: Yam, raw.
Substitutes
Optional — what works if you don’t have it, and how it changes the dish.
Related ingredients
Recipes with yam (ñame)
Azi dessi with fufu
Togolese · 1 h 30 min · 749 kcalPounded yam
Nigerian · 40 min · 295 kcal · VeganSancocho panameño
Panamanian · 1 h 50 min · 699 kcal
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