Yams... Yum.

Remember when I mentioned that while I’m pretty great at snagging grocery bargains, I’m not so terrific at planning far enough in advance to pull meat out of the freezer? Well, on those occasions when I’m halfway home and realize that I have yet to figure out what to cook for dinner, more often than not, I fall back on rotisserie chicken. The local chain near me actually does a pretty decent rotisserie chicken, and I usually use the purchase as an opportunity to make a batch of stock.

Anyway, it was just one of those nights when I was pressed for time, and so I grabbed a rotisserie chicken and then tried to decide what I wanted to DO with it. So I grabbed a bottle of Hawaiian teriyaki sauce, some edamame (which Offspring 2 loves) and then paused in front of the yams, which were a little on the, shall we say, puny side. Definitely not something I’d bake, but they did give me an idea.

So groceries in hand and plan at the ready, I headed home and set to work.

First up was the rice. This is a favorite way of mine to prepare it. Really simple, but it gives it a nice boost of flavor. I did, however, hold back ½ cup of the coconut milk and just added more stock.

Next, I poured a bit of the teriyaki sauce over the chicken and put it in a 300º oven just to keep it warm and allow the sauce to caramelize a bit. Then I moved on to the yams.

Spiced Coconut Yams

1 lb yams, peeled and cut into ¼” slices*
2 Tbs olive oil
½ tsp garam masala
½ tsp dried ground ginger (fresh would be good as well - about 1 Tbs)
½ tsp salt
½ cup unsweetened coconut milk

In a sauté pan (I used my cast iron skillet), heat the oil over medium heat. Add the yams and sauté until they are browned and almost cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add seasonings and continue to sauté another minute or so, allowing the seasonings to become fragrant. Pour in coconut milk and allow the liquid to come to a boil. Stir occasionally until most of the liquid evaporates. Serve immediately.

*(The yams I was using were pretty small, so I ended up with ‘coins’, but you can certainly use a regular sized yam and just cut it down the center and then cut into slices.)