Steamed sweet potatoes

Last week in my nutrition class we completed a three-day dietary analysis and I discovered I’m deficient in a few areas, including potassium and vitamin A. To help remedy this, I decided to start eating more bananas (potassium*) and carrots (vitamin A**), two foods that I had let drop out of my diet (bananas because I read they contribute to mucous formation and carrots just because I’ve never been a huge carrot fan).

Another food that is high in both vitamin A and potassium is the sweet potato. I keep hearing about how sweet potatoes are one the healthiest foods you can eat, but since I never liked them as a kid (even when they were covered in marshmallows and brown sugar), I have avoided them as an adult. But, since I’m always preaching about how your tastes change when you give up the processed foods and eat a healthier diet, I decided it was time to give them another try.

The World’s Healthiest Foods web site says that steaming is one of the best ways to prepare sweet potatoes in order to preserve the anthocyanins, compounds that help slow the aging process, protect against tumors and heart disease, and fight inflammation and allergies. I’m a big fan of steaming anything — it’s one of the healthiest food preparation methods there is, plus it’s super easy. So I threw some sweet potatoes in the steamer last night (see below for instructions) . Since consuming some healthy fat in your meal can help increase the absorption of the vitamin A precursor beta-carotene, I served them with some asparagus sautéed in olive oil.

When I took my first cautious bite of that steamed sweet potato, I barely recognized the despised tubers of my youth. The flavor was vaguely recognizable, but this time, it was covered in awesome sauce. I think I have a new favorite food.

A lot of sweet potato recipes call for frying or mixing them up in a casserole or a pie, but simply steaming them lets their own mild flavor and almost souffle-like texture take center stage.

Steamed sweet potatoes
Peel sweet potatoes and cut into quarters. Place in top basket of steamer and steam for 25-30 minutes. Fork will pass through easily when done. Sprinkle with sea salt or some anti-inflammatory cinnamon.

*Other food sources of potassium include beet greens, white beans, yogurt, tomatoes, peaches, prunes, halibut, cod, and tuna.

**For more food sources of vitamin A, think orange foods like pumpkin, apricots, winter squash, and cantaloupe, as well as greens like spinach, kale, and beet greens.