TtoE Tender Yamatoimo

The latest foraging expedition at my nearest supermarket made my heart sink. So many staple foods are nearly double the price they were last year. The price of cabbage is through the roof due to poor harvests. This time last year, I told you about eating economically in 2024 and the same rules apply this month. Filling the pretty cane basket in that blog post costs about 20% more this year.

Potatoes, too, are a bit dear right now. While on the hunt for spuds, I spied some grubby tubers labeled 土付き山芋 priced at 200 yen. These are yamatoimo, a tuber that looks like a hairy foot to me, but Japanese sources I read said they have lobes that resemble ginkgo leaves.

So I thought I’d have a go. I realized they’d require a little labour to prepare, and after some Google-jutsu, I discovered that you scrape them with a spoon as they’re irregularly shaped and gooey.

More Googling turned up a simple recipe. I fried them in a little butter until golden brown, dressed them with shoyu, and added some sprouts. I think they’d go well with any greens you have on hand - mizuna, bean sprouts, or mibuna. The resulting stir fry was a good combo of tender yamatoimo and lightly crunchy greens.

Have you prepared this veggie in your home cuisine? Or at a restaurant? How do you recommend preparing it?