Yams are imported into the United States from the West Indies and Central America. They are exceedingly large, frequently weighing from four to ten pounds. They do not grow in the United States. The so-called yam of the southern States is simply a large variety of a sweet potato. The large yam, dioscorea alata, to be thoroughly digestible, must be baked for a long time. When well baked and soft to the center, they are the most delicious of all starchy foods.

Scrub the outside with a brush, rinse in cold water, put it in a moderate oven and bake slowly until tender - a yam weighing one pound, an hour; two pounds, an hour and a half.