Let’s talk about CANDIED YAMS!
Candied yams or, more appropriately, candied sweet potatoes are a delicious, sugary, side dish at holidays or tremendous family dinners at my late grandmother's house. If you're familiar with this dinner table option, you might know why I looked for this food while fixing my plate at Sunday dinners as a kid. Candied sweet potatoes are chunks of sweet potato doused in a thick syrup made of brown sugar, butter, and spices like cinnamon.
Growing up, I liked eating this side dish because the cooking syrup is sweet liquid gold. But as a child, I couldn't understand why this food started as a sweet potato in the grocery store. To be later transformed into "candied yams" at the dinner table. The candied part was simple enough to figure out (see previous statements about liquified gold), but I couldn't understand the "yam" part. How did the oven transfigure these root vegetables? Sweet potatoes to yams? Over time, I accepted this shorthand communication and lost my desire to understand.
Basically, they are sugar potatoes and the closest thing to an "in-meal" dessert that young Rachel could get.
Last year, while watching Netflix's High on the Hog, a docuseries about how African Americans transformed the United States' culinary culture, I finally stumbled into understanding. The short answer is advertising. But the long answer is far more satisfying to me.
The sweet potato has been cultivated in the Americas by indigenous civilizations for centuries. During the Atlantic slave trade, people tried to force other people to forget their native culture and assimilate a new way of existing. But that is not how humans work. Culture is hard-wired and runs deep. Many enslaved Africans called this New World crop of sweet potatoes "yams" or, more specifically, a word of their original language that sounded like Yam because it's similar to the root vegetable found in West Africa. Fast forward centuries. During the early 1900s, sweet potato manufacturers in Louisiana wanted to distinguish their orange sweet potatoes from the other types of sweet potatoes. So, a branding campaign took place. They used the term Yam as a proper noun in this rebranding effort. It worked. I'm sure you've seen these brands at the grocery store.
Netflix | High on the Hog
In season one of High on the Hog, the show's host, Stephan Satterfield, travels to Benin to visit and learn from Dr. Jessica B. Harris, the American culinary historian. While in Benin, the pair walked around a local food market.
I was shocked when Dr. J presented Stephan with a Yam.
I was shocked at how large this root vegetable is on the coast of West Africa. It's very distinct from the American Sweet Potato, and once you know what an actual Yam is, you will never confuse the two potatoes again.
African Americans have contributed indelibly to food culture in the United States. I marveled at the perseverance of our communities. The Atlantic slave trade is a gross reality of humanity, but humanity and culture of the descendant of Africa prevail. A human being’s connection with food runs deep, and I marvel at how enslaved people keep some traditions alive here in the States. High on the Hog helps me feel connected to the great continent in a new way.
Sweet potato manufacturers used this term to develop a commercial advantage, and it helped popularize the term for many families. But there is something mystical about the term, Yam. It's a story in a word, handed down, through the centuries, shaping African American experiences. Now, when I see candied Yam - I think about the village markets in West Africa from centuries ago and how this term links me to a rich history of hardship, tradition, and triumph.
Sweet Potato Rankings:
the best | Sweet Potato Pie - my stepdad makes the best!
my second favorite | Smashed sweet potato topped with brown sugar, cinnamon, and chopped nuts.
my favorite way to cook them | Cubed and roasted with coarse salt and pepper.
childhood favorite | Chopped Sweet Potato with a spiced brown sugar syrup.
eh, pass | Smashed sweet potato topped marshmallows.
eh, pass again | Sweet Potato Fries.
