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chipotle chicken filled sweet potatoes | confections of a dietitian

Sweet potatoes are one my favorite foods. Besides being an excellent source of Vitamin A and many other nutrients, I love the sweetness they lend to so many dishes. I learned, while researching for our move to Okinawa, that sweet potatoes are a large part of the Okinawan diet. If this wasn’t exciting enough, I realized that Okinawa doesn’t have the orange variety we are used to in the U.S., but the purple variety, called beni-imo.

For those of you who don’t know me, I should explain. Purple is my favorite color. By favorite color, I mean, my life is purple. My phone, laptop, suitcase, even baking supplies in my kitchen–it’s all purple. So the fact that Okinawa has purple sweet potatoes, well, I knew my life was never going to be the same. Okinawans love, and have created, beni-imo everything. Ice cream, Kit-Kats, pastries–if something can be flavored, it will be beni-imo and it will be purple. It’s delicious and amazing and makes me love Okinawa that much more.

purple sweet potato | confections of a dietitian

There are a few different varieties of sweet potatoes that we can buy here in Okinawa. The beni-imo, most commonly used and modeled after for desserts, has purple skin and a deep purple flesh. Our favorite though, has purple skin with white flesh. I use this variety most commonly for cooking, since it seems to have the right balance of sweetness and starchiness, and are the sweet potatoes you see pictured here. I can occasionally find the orange flesh sweet potatoes too.

Now that you’ve read enough about my obsession with the color purple and sweet potatoes, let’s talk about this recipe. These chipotle chicken filled sweet potatoes are the perfect combination of sweet and smoky. The chipotle seasoning gets brushed on the sweet potato skins, giving them a crispy exterior. It’s also mixed with the chicken, which can make the dish spicy (so be cautious with how much chipotle you use) but adds a lot of flavor. I love that the filling also includes spinach, so I usually do not make side dishes to go along with it. I just serve it with lots of guacamole, because any excuse to eat guacamole is a good one, and sour cream or Greek yogurt.

chipotle chicken filled sweet potatoes | confections of a dietitian