How to choose iron stick yam

Although most businesses on the market now say that they sell iron stick yams, in fact, iron stick yams also have many obvious characteristics when selecting them, so everyone must keep their eyes open when choosing. Some of them are simply fake iron stick yams. After you buy this kind of yams home, they do not have the unique taste of iron stick yams, and the nutritional value is not rich enough. So what are some familiar selection techniques when choosing iron stick yam?

How to choose iron stick yam

Compared with ordinary yams, iron stick yams are "short", "thin", "have long burrs", "have a head and a tail", and have a "delicate cross-section". Iron stick yam is usually no longer than a meter and no thicker than two fingers, unlike other yams which are often as plump and round and long as an arm.

The iron stick yam has slender strips and a firm texture. It is not easy to break when knocked against each other (a bit exaggerated), so it is called iron stick yam. Because it is short and thin, it is usually sold whole, unlike other yams that have to be cut into segments due to their length.

The iron stick yam has long thorns, a darker skin, and sometimes has purple spots. The iron stick yam is often big at one end and small at the other, with a long and thin tail, which sometimes accounts for half of its length. The thickness is not as uniform as that of ordinary yams. The cross section of the iron stick yam is delicate, its color is as white as porcelain, its texture is as hard as porcelain, and its surface is as fine, pure and white as porcelain and jade. Ordinary yam has a large water head, a sparse texture, no porcelain-colored reflection, and obvious granularity.

The cross section of iron stick yam does not turn yellow easily. Ordinary yam will turn yellow quickly if not handled after being cut. It is very resistant to steaming and will not become mushy even after a long time of cooking. The taste is delicate, floury and sweet, with a slightly medicinal flavor.

How to choose common yam

What we usually eat most is ordinary yam, which is relatively cheap, can be used in cooking and as medicine, and is more popular among ordinary people.

For ordinary yams, you should choose those with more hairs and heavier weight (so that they will have a relatively floury taste), those with less water content (high dry matter content and easy to preserve), those that are not easy to turn yellow when cut (easy to preserve), and those that have a lot of mucus after cutting (yam has high content of polysaccharides and glycoproteins and high nutritional value).

The cross section is red and has a hard core. The juice is not sticky like water, which means it has been frozen. It’s best not to choose.

How to prevent yam from turning black when cooking?

After the yam is cut, the polyphenols in it will turn yellow when it comes into contact with oxygen in the air, and turn black when it comes into contact with iron in an iron pan under the action of polyphenol oxidase. To prevent the yam from changing color, you can pre-process the yam to inactivate the polyphenol oxidase before cooking. You can: ① Blanch the meat after cutting it; ② Steam it with the skin on in a steamer for one minute or microwave it for one minute.

How much yam is suitable to eat every day?

The daily therapeutic dosage of processed Huaishan Yao is 15 to 30 grams, and the dosage for health care is 10 to 20 grams.

The appropriate amount of fresh yam per day is 100 to 200 grams. Because the polyphenols in fresh yam are not oxidized, they are easily combined with minerals such as calcium and cause constipation. If you encounter this situation, just stop eating it for a day or two.