Fascinating info about the Japanese sweet potato. Here in Hawaii, Safeway sells what they call a Japanese yam. It looks like your purple sweet potato, only it's the color I associate with sweet potatoes - kind of a burnt orange. But I've seen purple ones, too, so I'll have to look for them next time I go shopping.

I recently started eating the yams, mainly for their fiber and nutritional value. I'm embarrassed to say that I nuke them in the microwave. My excuse? I don't enjoy cooking and want to be able to make my meals as quickly as possible. I may need to change that a bit with this vegan diet, but unlike my veggie days in the '70s, there are a lot of "quick fix" organic choices at our local health food store.

Based on what I've read here, I'll definitely keep eating them. Thanks for sharing!