Post by macmex on Jan 29, 2023 23:52:12 GMT
Folks, on the internet there's a lot of mentioned about proper curing of sweet potato roots. I believe storing them in a warm (pretty much hot), humid place, for several days, before putting them into long term storage, probably does help. However, I suspect that this is less important than simply protecting them from the cold, period. This includes after the roots are place in long term storage.
Sweet potato roots should NEVER be stored in refrigeration or anything even close to such cold temperatures.
I believe it best that they never be exposed to temps before 50 F., though they may be "okay," if only exposed for a brief time. The longer they remain in cooler temps, the more damaging it will be. I store my roots in an unoccupied room in our house where temperatures just about never go below 55 F. The very best storage performance I've seen was in roots which had been stored within about 15' of our wood stove, where winter temperatures sometimes reach over 90 F.
Most sweet potato roots should easily store until March or April, if stored at room temperature. Most years, I am still eating from the previous year's harvest until at least June, when generally... I run out.
Yet, if you purchase sweet potatoes in the supermarket, you may see that they have no where near the longevity in storage. Our harvest was smaller than usual, last fall, so my wife splurged and purchased 40 lbs of sweet potatoes at the grocery store back in December. We had not been eating them that much, as frankly, our own home grown roots are generally more attractive, and often more tasty. Recently, we got back into that crate and noticed that many of these roots had sunken spots which were turning black. When we cut those spots out, we found that many times the rot extending pretty far into the heart of the root, rendering it useless. Some of the roots which we managed to salvage cooked up and appeared okay, but they had a bad flavor, and ended up in the trash.
What happened to them? Are commercial varieties deficient in storage capacity? Of course not! Commercial varieties were developed specifically with storage in mind. No, the problem is that these roots were stored in a refrigerator, perhaps for several weeks. Though they appear to be alive, they are either dead or "mortally wounded." They are essentially ruined. I'm trying to cook up the few that seem alright, so that we have a chance at freeze drying or eating them before they are all lost.
I seriously doubt that most produce dept. workers receive any training beyond how to price and stock produce on the shelves. Being in produce they know little more than the average customer about sweet potatoes or other "cold phobic crops."
For years I've purchased extra sweet potatoes, "to fill in the cracks" of our own production, always waiting until just after Thanksgiving to catch the best deals. When sweet potatoes were running over a dollar a pound I could find them as low was 30 cents a pound, the Monday after Thanksgiving. I shared this hack with a good many people, as it has been a wonderful way to obtain inexpensive, healthy food...that requires no refrigeration for storage. This year sweet potatoes in our local went up to about $1.22 a lb just before Thanksgiving. I waited and they only dropped to $1.08 a lb. afterwards. I figure that produce managers were under pressure to make a profit on their sweet potatoes, even when they didn't sell during peak demand. Instead of putting out a "bargain bin," and giving a bargain price, they squirreled some away in THE COOLER, in the back and only restocked their normal bins, as they slowly needed replenishing. So, when we bought them the great majority were ruined, even if they did not yet show it.
So, the moral of the story:
1) Protect your own roots from cool conditions in storage.
2) Be suspicious of roots offered after the normal season's rush. Perhaps the time for my hack has passed. Most definitely, the time for growing ones own is upon us.
Anyone else had experience with spoiled roots?
