Abstract:
Sweet potato originated from tropical Central America. Botanically, the underground part is classified as a storage root, rather than a tuber, as is the
white (“Irish”) potato (Solanum tuberosum). The most common type of sweet
potato found in US markets is the “moist-fl eshed” type, red-skinned with darkorange fl esh. Dry-fl eshed types of I. batatas (yellow, ivory, or white fl esh) are popular among both Caribbean and Asian shoppers—especially in the US.