Sweet Potato and Taro Potato Salad

Today I'm sharing a potato salad that's perfect for an autumn table.

Potato salad is a home-cooking staple, but this time I made it with the two most popular tubers of the season!

The sweetness of the sweet potato makes it easy for kids to eat, not just adults.

The stickiness of the taro also binds everything together, so you can get away with less mayonnaise and keep it healthy!

Sweet Potato and Taro Potato Salad

Ingredients (serves 3)

Sweet potato: 8 cm (about 150 g)
Taro (satoimo): 6 small ones (about 230 g)
Edamame: 1/4 bag (about 20 pods)
Bacon: 2 slices

[A]
Mustard: 2 tsp
Mayonnaise: 2 tbsp
Salt and pepper: a little

Directions

1. Cut the bacon into 1 cm strips and cook until crisp. Peel the taro and sweet potato, and cut the sweet potato into roughly 3 cm cubes. Boil the edamame in hot water for 2 minutes and take the beans out of the pods.

2. Put the sweet potato and taro into a pot, add water to cover about a third of the sweet potato, cover with a lid, and heat over medium heat.
Once it boils, steam-simmer for 7 to 8 minutes, until a bamboo skewer slides easily into the sweet potato.

3. Drain off the water and move everything to a bowl. Mash with a masher until the taro's stickiness pulls it together, then stir in the edamame and season with A.
Spoon into a dish and scatter the bacon on top. Done.

Tips

Steam-simmer slowly to bring out the sweetness of the sweet potato and taro

You could do the whole thing in the microwave, but it tends to cook unevenly.

Boiling in plenty of water works too, but if you overdo it the taro turns mushy and the sweet potato gets soggy.

That's why I recommend adding just a little water and steam-simmering.

The sweet potato is quite firm at first, but it turns fluffy all the way through, and the slow, gentle heat brings out the sweetness of the vegetables!

Adjust the amount of sweet potato to taste

How sweet a sweet potato is depends on the variety and its condition.

Taste it once it's steamed, and if it's too sweet, feel free to use a little less.

Adjust it to the sweetness you like!

Recommended wine

This recipe is also featured at Lekker Africa, which sells South African wine!

I contribute wine comments and recipes there, and for this dish I recommended the Grenache Blanc (white) from Laar Wines.

It has a toasty, fragrant aroma and a smooth, full-bodied mouthfeel. It's a party-friendly wine that goes with almost anything and is nice to sip slowly.

I've written a short introduction to South African wine below, so have a read if you're curious!