Japanese candied sweet potato
About Japanese candied sweet potato
Japanese candied sweet potato is a fried sweet potato coated with syrup. It is popular as a snack because it is easy to make at home, has high nutritional value, and is sweet and satisfying to eat.
This is also known as “Daigaku-imo”, which means university potatoes. Although the origin of “Daigaku-imo“ is uncertain, it seems to relate to university students. For example, the ones that college students liked to eat, and the ones that students made and sold etc.
I used to eat this snack often when I was a kid, but I still make it from autumn to winter, which is the sweet potato season. The recipe I share with you this time I found on the Japanese website “cookpad” more than 10 years ago. Since then I’ve been making it for a long time at home. It’s easy to make with a single frying pan and it’s very delicious. The outside is caramelized and crunchy and the inside is fluffy and sweet.
Recipe tips
Now, in this paragraph, I’ll write some points to make it well.
Sweet potato
There are various sweet potatoes. I use cream flesh with Purple skin , but you can use other types as well. Try what you can get and find out what you like.
Preparation: you don’t need to peel the sweet potato, so wash it well to remove any dirt on the outside. Soak sweet potatoes in water for about 10 minutes to prevent discoloration. Drain the water and use a paper towel to thoroughly remove the water to prevent it from splashing.
Sweet potatoes are a very nutritious food. If you like, read about nutrition and health benefits from the link below.
During cooking
Pay attention to the heat. Start cooking on medium heat, and when the sugar melts and bubbles, reduce the heat and continue cooking. It takes about 10 minutes depending on the size of the cut sweet potatoes. At this time, if the heat is too high, it will burn very easily, so please check and adjust the heat.
Japanese candied sweet potato
Equipment
- a frying pan with a lid
Ingredients
- 1 Medium to large sweet potato (about 300 ~ 400g)
- 3 ~ 4 tablespoon Vegetable oil
- 3 ~ 4 tablespoon Sugar (fine granulated sugar)
- 1/2 teaspoon Black sesame seeds
Instructions
- Wash the sweet potato well, cut it into bite-size pieces by rotating the sweet potato.
- Soak them in water for about 10 minutes.
- Drain the sweet potatoes and wipe them well with a paper towel.
- Put 3-4 tablespoons of oil in a cold frying pan, sprinkle 3-4 tablespoons of sugar.
- Place the sweet potatoes so that they do not overlap, cover and start to heat the frying pan. When it begins to bubble, turn the heat down to low / medium low and let it cook for 10 minutes. (It burns easily, check regularly.) Stick a bamboo skewer into the potato and check if it is cooked. If it is stabbed smoothly, it is cooked. If not, cook for a few more minutes. At this point, the surface touching the frying pan is caramelized and crispy.
- Remove the lid. Flip the potatoes and cook the other surfaces for another couple of minutes. When the surface is evenly golden and crispy, serve on a plate. Sprinkle sesame seeds and it's done .
Notes
It’s easy and tasty, so please give it a try. I put a link below for the muffin recipe with sweet potatoes, so please make it if you like.
Thank you for reading and Bon Appetit!
