Popeye was famous for saying “I yam what I yam and that’s what I yam.”
The sometimes combative fictional sailor was also known to say: “I’m strong to the finish cause I eats me spinach.”
He might have been even stronger if he ate yams, which contain vitamin A, C, D and B and many minerals.
In North America, though, that root vegetable — unlike Popeye — has a bit of an identity crisis. As I’ve noted before, the yams sold in many North American grocery stores are actually the orange-fleshed variety of sweet potato.
Lore suggests that eons ago, an American produce seller called the orange sweet potatoes yams to help distinguish them from the pale-yellow-fleshed type, still called a sweet potato.
“True” yams are from a different plant species, and are a staple ingredient in places such as South America and Central America, as well as some Asian and African countries.
Most North American recipes using orange-flesh sweet potatoes still call them yams, however, as I did in my recipe for curried yam soup with quick apple chutney.
To make the soup, peeled, cubed yams — orange-fleshed sweet potatoes — are cooked with such things as onion, ginger, garlic and curry powder. Flour is added to help thicken the soup, and then stock, chicken or vegetable, is poured in.
The soup is simmered until the yams are tender and then pureed until silky smooth. The final touch is to top servings of soup with some of the chutney and chopped cilantro (or sliced green onion).
I call it quick apple chutney, because this sweet-and-sour mixture, which nicely complements the flavour of the curry-spiced soup, only takes a few minutes to cook, much less than many other cooked chutneys.
Curried Yam Soup with Quick Apple Chutney
This curry-spiced yam soup is enhanced with a quick sweet-and-sour apple chutney. Make a meal of the soup by serving it with warm wedges of naan or pita.
Preparation time: 35 minutes
Cooking time: about 35 minutes
Makes: four servings
3 Tbsp + 2 tsp vegetable oil (divided)
1 medium, unpeeled, red apple, cut into small 1/2-inch cubes
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp cider vinegar
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 cups yams, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes (see Note)
1 small to medium onion, halved and sliced
1 large garlic clove, chopped
1 Tbsp chopped fresh ginger, or 1/2 tsp dried ground ginger
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
2 to 3 tsp Madras or other mild to medium curry powder
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock, plus more, if needed
1/2 cup water
• coarsely chopped cilantro or sliced green onion, to taste
To make chutney, place 2 tsp oil in a small skillet set over medium, medium-high heat. Add the apples and cook four minutes. Add the sugar and vinegar, season apples with salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the vinegar/sugar mixture reduces and lightly glazes the apples, about three minutes. Remove this chutney from the heat, transfer to a small bowl and set aside until needed.
To make soup, place 3 Tbsp oil in a pot set over medium, medium-high heat (my pot was eight inches wide, and six inches tall). Add the yams and onion and cook and stir four to five minutes. Mix in the garlic, ginger, flour and curry powder and cook two minutes more. Now, while stirring, slowly mix in the stock.
Bring the soup to a gentle simmer, lowering the heat as needed to maintain that gentle simmer. Simmer soup until yams are very tender, about 15 minutes.
Puree the soup in a blender or food processor, or right in the pot with an immersion (hand) blender. Return soup to a simmer; thin with a bit more stock if you find it too thick. Season the soup with salt. Ladle the soup into bowls, top each portion with some of the chutney, sprinkle with cilantro (or green onion), and serve.
Note: Three medium yams, or about 600 grams of yams of any size, should yield the four cups of cubed yams needed here
Eric Akis is the author of eight cookbooks. His columns appear in the Life section Wednesday and Sunday.
