Caloric content and chemical composition of purple yam. Useful properties, harm and contraindications to ube. How it is eaten, recipes with root vegetables. Interesting facts about him.
Harm and contraindications to purple yam
Eaten in moderation and properly prepared, ube is completely safe for your health. It is low in calories and nutritious, it contains a lot of essential vitamins and minerals. However, there are some features that are worth keeping in mind in order to minimize the harm of purple yam.
Consequences of product abuse:
- Dyeing the skin … Purple yam contains a lot of vitamin A, which can be stored in the body. When the level is too high, the skin and nails become orange in color. A similar effect can occur if you follow a carrot-based diet for a long time. The color will disappear by itself if you reduce the amount of root vegetables, however, with constant use, ignoring the symptoms, liver disorders can develop.
- Feeling of heaviness in the stomach, bloating … Overeating yams, rich in plant fibers, is fraught with discomfort from the swelling of the latter. If it is bad to chew such food, excess gas formation, flatulence is possible.
Certain individual characteristics of the body or acquired diseases may prevent you from using ube on a regular basis. Among them:
- Stones in the kidneys … Medical research suggests that people with kidney stones and other urinary tract stones should not consume too much purple yam. The root vegetable contains calcium oxalate, which promotes the formation of solid foreign elements.
- Allergic reaction … The harm of purple yam is that it can cause rashes, itching and other symptoms of physiological intolerance in a small percentage of people. Usually this problem will await people with potato or starch allergies. In this case, you should refrain from ube, preferring other, healthier food.
How is purple yam eaten?
Ube, which has taken root in Europe and America, is not an exotic ingredient in the Philippines. Here it is part of the daily meal, the equivalent of regular potatoes. However, it is distinguished by a sweet taste and rich purple hue. Although yam is a root vegetable, its flavor is richer, combining vanilla notes with the nutty aroma of pistachios.
How is purple yam eaten? Yes, almost as you like! It is fried, boiled, baked, canned, used as a filling, dried and served with any side dishes. However, due to its sweet taste, ube is most often used in festive dishes and desserts.
It is used to make cakes, cheesecakes, sweets, flan, ice cream, dairy dishes. This does not exclude purple yams from side dishes for meat, fish and vegetables, curries, casseroles and soups, salads.
Do not confuse the root vegetable with the sweet potato, taro, and other varieties of sweet potatoes. It is easy to distinguish it visually, in particular due to its rich purple color.
To prepare a dish with ube, you can use it in three equivalent forms: dehydrated powder, flavor extract, and natural vegetable. You can also find jam or yam preserves on the shelves of supermarkets with a wide range of products, not to mention the numerous dietary supplements. To choose a tasty and healthy product, carefully examine the root vegetable - it must be firm, without cracks, spots, soft and sluggish parts. It is better not to take ube, which are located in the refrigerating sections, since low temperatures negatively affect the taste of the yam.
Store the vegetable in a dark, well-ventilated place, where it can keep freshness for up to ten days. Do not expose the crop to sunlight, as this will cause it to germinate or ferment. Also, do not wrap tubers in plastic bags or other airtight containers.
Purple Yam Recipes
Ube is an excellent ingredient for holiday and everyday meals. It can be fried, boiled, steamed or baked without difficulty, without requiring lengthy manipulations.
Purple Yam Recipes:
- Vegetable stew with ube … How to eat purple yam so that it fits harmoniously into any diet? Professional chefs recommend baking it to avoid consuming excess fat. To prepare such a bright dish, take 2 sweet potatoes (sweet potato, peeled and diced), 3-4 medium-sized purple yam root vegetables (also peeled and chopped), one large carrot (chopped or grated), 3 tbsp. tablespoons of coconut or vegetable oil. And don't forget about the spices: a quarter to a half teaspoon of cayenne pepper (depending on how hot you like it), a quarter teaspoon of cumin (powder), a teaspoon of cumin seeds (separately), 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, salt, black pepper to taste, a handful of fresh coriander, 1 red chili (minced, optional). Next, preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius, place all the vegetables in a flat dish, pour with oil and sprinkle with spices. Add 3 tablespoons of water, place the dish in the oven and bake until cooked. Sprinkle the finished dish with syrup, minced fresh pepper or herbs, taking it out of the mold and laying it out on a plate.
- Jam from ube … This purple yam recipe is widely used in the Philippines and is called "Halayang ube". This sweet dessert can be eaten with baked goods, waffles, cookies, or on its own. For 8 servings, you will need: 450 g of purple yam, a quarter cup of butter, 300 ml of condensed milk, a quarter teaspoon of vanilla extract, 250 ml of milk. In a separate bowl, boil the yams until soft, drain the water, and mash the root vegetable with a fork, grate or process in a blender until puree. Then in a deep saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat, add condensed milk, vanilla, yams, half of the milk. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring gently, for about 30 minutes (until dessert is “sticky” and firm enough). Pour in the second part of the milk and repeat the procedure. Cool to room temperature, place in refrigerator. Sweet yam jam is ready to eat.
- Oatmeal cookies with coconut and ube … The uplifting purple filled biscuits are a great treat for kids and can easily decorate an adult's festive table. It's hard to believe that there are no artificial colors here! To make 12 halves for 6 sandwich cookies, use 3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon (separately) flour, one teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, the same amount of salt, half a cup of instant oatmeal, as much unsweetened coconut flakes, a quarter cup sugar, a quarter cup maple syrup, a teaspoon of vanilla extract, a quarter cup canola oil, ube jam for holding cookies, purchased or made according to the previous recipe. We turn on the oven and let it heat up to 180 degrees Celsius. Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. Add flakes and coconut flakes, mix well. Combine sugar, maple syrup, vanilla and butter in a separate container. We combine all the mixtures in one container, knead with a fork. Separate small pieces and place them in a form lined with a sheet of parchment. Bake for about 10 minutes, until the dough is golden brown. We take it out of the oven, let it cool. Lubricate with jam and connect in halves.
- Ube pudding … Maja blanca is a traditional Filipino dessert made from coconut milk, purple yam, rice or corn starch. To prepare it, take an incomplete glass of corn flour, a quarter cup of rice flour, a quarter teaspoon of salt, 325 ml of water, 750 ml of coconut milk, 50 ml of condensed milk, 1 cup of sugar, one and a half cups of grated purple yam, 30 g of butter. In the original recipe, the baking dish is laid out with banana leaves, but this nuance can be easily replaced with ordinary parchment paper. In a medium bowl, combine corn and rice flour and salt. Pour in water and mix well with a fork, set aside for a while. In a deep frying pan, combine coconut and condensed milk, sugar, put on medium heat. Stir the liquid until it boils and begins to thicken. Reduce heat to low and add yams. Gradually add the flour mixture to the saucepan. Heat and stir until the dish has a pudding consistency. Pour in melted butter at the very end. Distribute in containers and let cool well in refrigerator. It is recommended to sprinkle with toasted grated coconut before use.
- Purple Yam Bread … Ube gives baked goods a very soft and delicate texture, the dough does not settle and bakes well. Prepare 200 g of purple yam puree, 200 g of milk, 300 g of flour, 25 g of sugar, a teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of dry yeast, 15 g of vegetable oil. Combine the ube puree and 2 tablespoons of water, then place in the microwave for 5 minutes. If excess water remains, drain off. Combine with remaining ingredients and knead well for 15-20 minutes. Place the dough in a baking dish and place in an oven preheated to 220 degrees. Bake until the match sticks into the dough comes out dry.
Interesting facts about purple yam
In folk medicine, ube is used as a mild laxative, a remedy for dermatitis, fever, gonorrhea, tumors, and even leprosy. Yams are sometimes grown as an ornamental plant, used to decorate flower beds.
Traditional Chinese healing systems use ube to quickly heal wounds, treat depression, fatigue, weight loss, poor appetite, and digestive disorders. Sometimes yams are fed to livestock, the ube extract is used in sweeteners and for the production of various cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and culinary products.
The homeland of Dioscorea alata is Southeast Asia, as well as the surrounding areas - Taiwan, the Ryukyu Islands in Japan, Assam, low-lying areas of Nepal, New Guinea, Christmas Island. In the future, the root crop escaped from its natural habitat and settled far beyond its borders. Now wild yam can be found in central-eastern China, Africa, Madagascar, various islands of the Indian and Pacific Ocean, as well as in some states of the United States (Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Puerto Rico, Haiti and the Virgin Islands) …
The popularity of ube as a food product is beyond doubt. Fried yam chips are eaten during a religious fast in Maharashtra, ube desserts are prepared for the holidays in Sri Lanka to celebrate Christmas in the Philippines, world-renowned pastry chefs make a truffle substitute from the root vegetable, and bake muffins and donuts.
In shape and appearance, purple yams can be easily confused with related species such as sweet potatoes, taro, water yam, and other root vegetables. If you cut the product, everything falls into place - only ube can boast of a rich purple pulp.
Watch a video about purple yam:
Purple yam is a natural, healthy and delicious food. The root vegetable is rich in carbohydrates and offers a lot of fast-released energy, with almost no fat. The benefits of purple yam are to fight depression, improve the functioning of the genitourinary, respiratory and cardiovascular systems, solve digestive problems and some inflammatory diseases. The sweet taste of ube will be a pleasant bonus for dessert lovers and diabetics. At the same time, the plant is rich in a whole spectrum of vitamins, antioxidants, macronutrients and rare medicinal compounds. Originally popular in the Philippines, the root vegetable is gradually gaining recognition overseas, appearing more and more on the pages of fashionable culinary magazines.
