Post by macmex on Nov 22, 2024 19:39:35 GMT
November 22, 2024
This is the traditional time of year in the USA that folks purchase sweet potatoes. For months, the going price for store bought roots has been around $1 a pound. I was in the supermarket yesterday and saw a sale.
That's a lot better. Here's one observation: those roots are at least twice the size of what is normally sold in the store. Many people avoid large roots, which explains the lower price. If you want a lot of food for your money though, there's no reason to avoid large sweet potato roots. They're as good to eat as the smaller ones. You might just have to eat off of one root for more than a single meal, but it'll will be just as tasty, nutritious and tender as a smaller root. Don't be afraid of large roots.
On the other hand, most years the price of sweet potatoes drops even more, just a day or two after Thanksgiving. I've seen priced go as low as 30 cents per pound. In years when I've had a small harvest in my own garden, I've astonished a cashier by showing up at the register with 40 lb of roots at 30 to 33 cents per pound. The last time I did that I had to bring my own boxes. The roots tend to poke holes in the cheap plastic bags the store uses.
These store bought roots generally have good flavor, albeit, to my taste, somewhat generic in flavor. I truly enjoy the variety of taste and texture of those varieties which I grow. still, any sweet potato is much much better than no sweet potato! I like to have a root almost every day, all winter long, and that's just for my morning snack!
If the variety isn't important to you, a store bought root, purchased now might well serve to produce all the slips one could want for their 2025 garden. Hopefully they haven't been stored in cold storage (can ruin them for seed). If you try this, select a healthy looking root with dried or sunken spots. Store it in a WARM location in your house.