Starting With The Root | Sweet Potatoes (शकर गंदी)

Hello friends! Welcome to my first blog and thank you for visiting. Here I’ll post a short description about our star, the humble Sweet Potato (ft. my dad's hands).

A Brief History

Even though the sweet potato is native to the tropical regions of South America in what is present-day Ecuador, China Produces the most sweet potatoes globally, with an annual output of 70,963,630 metric tons.

Sweet potatoes are also sometimes called yams in North America, however enslaved Africans had already been calling the 'soft' sweet potatoes 'yams' because they resembled the unrelated yams in Africa and the name just caught on. Sweet potatoes are starkly different from true yams.

The plant does not tolerate frost. It grows best at an average temperature of 24 °C (75 °F), with abundant sunshine and warm nights making it the perfect crop to grow in places like Ecuador, Tanzania, Ethiopia, India and of course, China.

Sweet potatoes in India are called Shakargandi (शकर गंदी), and are known for their nutritional value. They are rich in vitamins A and C, fiber, and antioxidants, making them beneficial for overall health.

How is it prepared?

Shakargandi ((शकर गंदी) is a very popular street food in India. The recipe can be customized with many toppings but the most traditional recipe consists of just lemon and chaat masala. This one has another special ingredient that even I didn’t know vendors sold called kamarakh (कमरख) or Starfruit. Other vendors will sometimes top the dish with pomegranate for some added sweetness to contrast the kick of the chaat masala and lemon. It’s a perfect balance of savoriness, acidity, sweetness and umami.