Roasted Yam or Plantain

Roasting* is a cooking method that uses dry heat where hot air envelops the food, cooking it evenly on all sides with temperatures of at least 150 °C (~300 °F) from an open flame outside the house, oven, or other heat source . . .

Roasting* can enhance flavor through caramelization (nutty flavor) and Maillard browning (crusty flavor) on the surface of the food. Roasting uses indirect, diffused heat (as in an oven), and is suitable for slower cooking of meat, yam or plantain in a larger, whole piece.

For roasting yam or plantain*, they may be placed on a rack, in a roasting pan or, to ensure even application of heat, may be rotated on a spit or rotisserie (a cooking appliance with a rotating spit for roasting and barbecuing). If a pan is used, the juice can be retained for use in the gravy.

For me, there is really no difference between roasting and barbecuing yam or plantain*. A Barbecue is a meal or gathering at which meat, fish, or other food such as yam or plantain is cooked out of doors on a rack over an open fire or on a portable grill.

A portable grill is a cooking appliance used for the preparation of food at a barbecue, or a brick fireplace containing a grill or just plain roasting the yam or plantain on a small pile of wood assembled in a rack-form outside the house to roast for eating pleasure.

Today, I shall be talking about the ingredients or recipe for garnishing and cooking the accompanying food items eaten together with the roasting yam or plantain*. The yam or plantain must be firstly roasted (refer to roasting above*) before the use of the ingredients for cooking the gravy or sauce as listed below.

Take note* that the plantain may be either the ripe or unripe plantain*.