21/02/2021
WANT TO STORE YAMS? HERE ARE 5 TIPS THAT WILL COME IN HANDY
For someone who was raised in Benue State, the largest producer of yam in Nigeria, I could say I have seen some of the biggest and sweetest yam tubers in the country. Yam is a staple in Benue. Some people fry it, boil it, pound it, roast it, or consume it as amala as in yam flour. I specially like to have roasted yam with sweet palm oil. Aside from the yumminess and distinct traditional flavor, it reminds me of my grandpa who always treated me to some slices of roasted yams, submerged in salted palm oil.
5 YAM STORAGE TIPS FROM AN EXPERIENCED YAM SELLER
Before I proceed with letting you in on some of the easy tricks to prolonging the shelf life of yams. Let me share a bit of my experience from selling yams.
About 4 years ago, I decided to venture into selling yams. I mean, I live in a part of the country where we have an abundance of these yams. I did a quick market survey and began to buy and resell to people who lived in places where yams are very expensive. I made an ad on my page and the orders began to come in.
I enjoy the business but it means many mornings of brawling with garage boys who now wear vests crested with the word “LOADER”. I got a firsthand experience which helped me better understand why Nigeria ranks quite low in the listing of countries by ease of doing business in them. And the problem of transportation of goods is one main reason
Just before the lockdown, we had hundreds of yams ready for dispatch when the restriction of interstate travels was enforced. Here are a few things I learnt about yam storage from that experience:
- Never buy big tubers if you want to store. The only time I would advice anyone to buy those pricy large tubers of yams is, if they want to impress their in-laws or consume it in a couple of days after buying. Why? The bigger the yam, the easier for it rot.
- Keep yams in well ventilated areas: Those tubers need air and do not do great in hot places. If you keep your yams in the kitchen, keep them away from the heat source with which you cook. Heat is bad for them and ventilation is one main reason why yams were stored in barns constructed with wood, bamboo, and thatch.
- Don’t stack yams on the floor. Always place them on elevated platforms. A table, shelf or something. If you don’t have any of such, use thick cartons. Place the cartons on the floor before putting the yams atop them
- Keep the rodents out.
- Always cut off the tendrils which begin to shoot out after several weeks of storage. No, it is not the yam growing to give you more yams, it is the moisture getting out to leave you with hard slices when you finally want to cook them.
Want to buy yams? Leave a comment and I will reach out to you.