Sweet Potato Vine Potato edible?

17 years ago

My wife planted several Sweet Potato Vines as ornamental covering on our property this year. This was our first year planting these. We had an early frost this year and when we went to pull the dead vines away we noticed it produced a HUGE potato. We were wondering if this variety is edible? It has the shape of a regular Sweet Potato (only huge) but the skin color is more towards a regular potato which is reddish/purple and the inside has a whitish flesh. Any info on edibility or how it tastes would be helpful!!!

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miramirror

17 years ago

Hello. I'm new here. Sweet potato vine is edible in my country. We eat the young leaves and they're good. Sorry, I can't compare it in another vegetable. We add them in dishes-Filipino dishes but I can't recommend to substitute it in place of spinach. However, we substitute it but depends on the dish. As for the other poster, maybe the purple flesh you ate before is called purple yam (Dioscorea alata). Here's the link that it might help: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ube

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Comments (12)

izzybelle
17 years ago
Hi. Just a couple of questions. How big is the potato? I've seen some over here in Hawaii that are about 11 inches long and about 4 inches wide at its widest point. Anyway, if it is indeed a sweet potato then all parts are edible. As for skin color and flesh color--these factors are quite variable. I grow one that has a red-brown skin and a dark purple flesh. I am looking for one that I ate a few years ago that had a purple and white "swirled" flesh. I have eaten ones that have a white flesh, a yellow flesh, and of course the ones I have mentioned. Last mention--sweet potatoes taste sweeter after being cured for a few days to a week. Hope this helps.
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Sweet potato leaves are very popular in Asian & Pacific Island cultures. The shoots are sometimes sold in bundles in Asian markets. The good thing about that is, you can pinch off the tip & tender leaves, throw the stems into a glass half full of water, and cook the leaves. If you like the flavor, the stems will root quickly, and you can plant them. Not all sweet potato leaves taste the same. I've tried some that were horrible, with almost a chemical aftertaste. The ornamental varieties with colored leaves fall in that category, among others. Filipinos have an edible-leaf variety called 'kamote', which is the one I usually grow. In hot weather, the leaf production can be astounding. But for a hot weather green, I much prefer the closely related water spinach. It too is often sold in bunches in Asian markets, and the shoots root even more readily than sweet potatoes. Water spinach can also be grown from seed, but unfortunately, it has been declared a noxious weed in the U.S., so seed is hard to find. You can find a lot more info on both vegetables in the Asian Vegetable Forum.
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It's true that all sweet potato leaves are "edible"... which only means they won't kill you if you eat them. ;-) Whether they are palatable is another matter. I've tried several varieties of sweet potato leaves as boiled greens, and there were considerable differences in taste. An orange-rooted variety (from the supermarket) had tough leaves. Two ornamental varieties I tried had very unpleasant flavor, almost chemical... about as appetizing as eating pine needles. The shoots sold in Asian stores are the best varieties for leaves. There seem to be several different varieties grown for their leaves. The heavily-cut leaves of "kamote" that I grew in San Diego (from a Filipino store) were different from the more rounded leaves of the variety that I purchased from an Asian market where I live now. I don't know the variety name of either one, but both have white tubers. As for the tubers: I've mentioned previously on this forum that the variety I grow now for leaves - while very good for that purpose - is unsuitable for tubers. When I first dug up the plants at the end of one season, I wondered why there were so few tubers under the plants. Then I noticed that there were several thick roots leading horizontally away from each plant, and dug carefully to follow one. I found a tuber over two feet away, and almost a foot deep!!! The tubers were dry & tasty, but the massive amount of excavation required to find them all made harvest of more than a few impractical. This question has come up quite a few times on this forum, without a definitive answer... but there is a possible solution. You might want to contact Glen Drowns of Sandhill Preservation Center. He is a collector of sweet potato varieties, and offers a huge number of them, both heirloom & commercial. He might be able to steer you to one that suits your needs.
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linda_t_ak
17 years ago
The actual sweet potato (as opposed to yams) depending on variety can grow quite large. I did not know you could eat the leaves of sweet potato, but I work with lots of filipino's and a very good friend told me that yes, they eat the leaves and they are very good.

I live up here in alaska, and as far as I know we can't grow these up here. I'm wondering if you can also eat the leaves from Yams too?
Linda T.
Audrey
16 years ago
I've checked out the ornamental sweet potatoes such as the lime-green one and the one called "Blackie," and the plant tags say they are "Batata edulis." "Edulis" means edible. That is the same name as the sweet potatoes offered for growing to produce a root crop. I plan to try them at the earliest opportunity. By the way, save some for spring, check out propagation(it's easy,)and you can replant next year for free!
karinforhom
14 years ago
hi muddy2shoes.. this link doesn't seem to work:
http://brevard.ifas.ufl.edu/Horticulture/sweet_potatoes.htm
I am confused bc wiki says not edible but does not say why or provide source.. looking for a reliable source that would show one way or another...
KathleenNY
9 years ago
Ok, after reading all this I am going to cook up the little sweet potatoes that formed this year and re pot the huge ones that were in my neighbors potted patio arrangement. !!
Kevin Tkachuck
8 years ago
My wife and I grew the sweet potatoe vines for several years and I have seen some large potatoes. This year my company planted some vines around the building , I mentioned to coworkers about the potatoes and that I've ate them and they were best served with brown sugar and butter, and look at me " I'm fine" ( wrong choice of words ) a NB d I've ate them raw --a little woody and a little sweet . I did read they're very high in fiber.
Kevin Tkachuck
8 years ago
An additional thought with all the sweet potatoes I'll get this year. Halloween is coming up------they are sweet after all hmmm just a thought
Zaratsay Sian
8 years ago
leaves and tubers are edible! stir fry, steam and add to salad with tomatoes or add to soups....real good for you America! http://www.naturalnews.com/048466_sweet_potato_leaves_nutrition.html
Zaratsay Sian
8 years ago
I've been wondering why it's not commonly done.
rredbbeard
8 years ago
I just set up a halved sweet potato standing in a bowl of water, to grow slips to plant in a couple of months. If I let the vines sprawl on the ground, will they root to increase the production of tubers? I was considering training them to a trellis, but maybe I'm a little over confident in my first attempt at growing these? I suspect that if I try to keep them off the ground, the potential yield will be less.

Do the tubers tend to be superficial? Should they be allowed to 'see the sun'?

Comments?

Thanks!

Rick in CT
sharon's florida
7 years ago
Mr. Brown Thumb says that the ornamental ones have been bred for their lovely foliage so that's why the potato is pithy and woody, whereas the sweet potatoes bred for their potato production are tastier ... in the tuber portion. http://mrbrownthumb.blogspot.com/2010/10/ornamental-sweet-potato-vine.html.

Sooo if they're both Ipomoeas then one should grow them for what they intend to harvest and use for their tables ... either leaves or tubers?

I have Puerto Rico sweet potatoes growing and will have to try eating the young leaves and shoots. This is a very interesting discussion because I have been curious about eating the foliage for a while.

Does anyone know if all Ipomoeas (morning glories) have edible leaves?

Thanks to you all for the information in this thread.

Sweet Potato Vine Potato edible?

miramirror

Comments (12)

izzybelle

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