Pounded Yam

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Pounded yam is a popular African dish similar to mashed potatoes but heavier. Pounded Yam is very smooth and tasty. It is often eaten with Egusi soup.  Yam, which is widely available, is boiled and pounded into a smooth mash. You’ll most likely find people eating pounded yam with Egusi, Banga, Ogbono, or some other meal.

How to Make Pounded Yam:

1. Peel the skins off the yams and slice them into about ½ inch thickness.
2. Rinse and place the yams in a pot and add enough water to the level of the yams. Rinse about once or twice till you get clear water.
3. Cover and cook the yams for about 30 minutes, checking every 10 minutes or thereabout until the yams are fork tender.
4. Pound into a dough-like consistency until it’s completely smooth with no yam chunks left.
5. The amount of water you will need to boil the yam will vary depending on how dry the yam is. Fresh yams in the early season of the harvest will take less water while yams harvested in the later season will require more water.
6. This also applies during the pounding; you will need more water for the dry yam and less water for the less dry yams.
7. Serve with your favorite soup or stew

How to make Pounded yam using a Blender

Pounded yam is a staple food, healthy and highly nutritious, however, it can be stressful to pound with the conventional mortar and pestle because it takes a lot of energy and sweat. Hence, using a blender makes it less stressful and also saves you time and energy. Without wasting your time, we will move to the steps needed to make a flawlessly blended yam without chunks.

Directions

1. Peel, rinse, and cut the white yams into medium-sized cubes.
2. Put the yam chunks in a pot, cover with water, and cook on medium heat.
3. Cook the yams until they are tender. The surrounding water should be hazy and slightly soupy, and a knife should be able to be inserted easily into the yam pieces. These are two indications of a well-done yam for preparing the ideal pounded yam.
4. When you’re satisfied, drain the water from the yam and put it aside.
   The container of your blender should now contain the cooked yam bits. Typically, I add a few yam cubes, blend for two seconds, and then add more. After about 5 seconds in the blender, your smooth, pounded yam will be ready. Continue to examine it, and when it’s smooth, turn off the blender. The pounded yam becomes softer and more elastic, so there’s no need to run your blender for too long.