Kamote Cue

Kamote cue is Fried sweet potato chunks that is coated with caramalised sugar and is very popular in Philippines as a meryenda. This dish is full of carbs and can easily energize a person to get through the rest of the day. You can find the kamote cue in busy streets, commonly sold alongside other popular Filipino street foods like turon, banana cue, maruya, buko juice and palamig.

KAMOTE CUE RECIPE

Ingredients:

• ½ kilo sweet potatoes
• brown sugar
• oil (for frying)

Directions:

1. Wash and rinse the sweet potato thoroughly to remove the soil. Peel them gently and then cut into large circles.
2. Heat a lot of oil in a pan. Fry the sweet potatoes using medium heat. Stir them from time to time to cook evenly. When light brown, sprinkle brown sugar into the sweet potatoes (not in the oil). Let them boil for a few seconds without stirring to allow the sugar to caramelize. Stir a bit to reveal the other side. And then repeat the steps until all the slices are coated with sugar.
3. When already coated with the sugar, remove them from the pan and transfer to a strainer to drain excess oil.
4. Transfer them into skewers while still hot.
5. Enjoy the kamote cue together with your favorite afternoon tea or coffee. Yum!

WHAT IS A SWEET POTATO?

Root crops are a group of plants which are grown for the roots to be harvested. The roots are usually large, starchy and mildy sweet. The sweet potato is  one of the most common types  of root crop planted in our country for consumption. Other plants from the root crop family includes potatoes, purple yam, turnips, jicama or singkamas,  and cassava.

Being a starchy vegetable, the sweet potato got its name because it is always compared to the potatoes but are described as a sweeter version. Fun fact: Did you know that a 100 grams of the sweet potato is only 86 calories?

The sweet potato has a lot of varieties and the two most common colors are the orange and the white one (with a purple flesh). Among the root crops, the sweet potatoes are often used in desserts rather than in savoury meals. Sweet potatoes are usually added in dishes like ginataang halo halo, or in stand-alone dishes like kamote cue, kamote fries or cheesy baked sweet potatoes.

WHAT IS KAMOTE CUE

Kamote cue is one of the best selling meryendas in our school canteen. This has always been my childhood favorite meryenda. It competes with banana cue on being my ultimate combo with buko pandan palamig during recess time. I can still remember the blockbuster long lines during our recess time, hoping and praying to have a kamote cue which is always on a limited edition.

As the saying goes, eating sweet potatoes can make you gassy. After enjoying a whole stick of kamote cue, me and my group of friends always wait on who among us will first.. fart. Laughing wirh my friends after eating kamote was one of my best childhood memories.

Aside from enjoying the kamote cue as a snack, this treat is also considered one of the most bentable food item all year round. #WalangKupas During one of our fund-raising activities, I helped in making large batches of kamote cue. Whenever and wherever, kamote cue is a hit!

If you are still thinking of a small business, you can start with making and selling some kamote cue!

HOW TO MAKE KAMOTE CUE

Making the kamote cue is super easy once you have read this recipe. I remember the very first time I made kamote cue without any references, and it became a total failure since the only thing that should happen to make the kamote a banana cue, making the sugar caramelize and stick to the kamote, did not happen. My lola saw me struggling and told me the easiest way we can make kamote cue.

Start with obtaining your kamote or sweet potatoes. We believe in the saying na “kapag may itinanim, may aanihin”. My lolo started planting the sweet kamote a few months back, waiting for it to be cooked as a kamote cue. Harvesting the sweet potato can be a challenge if its big and irregular in shape. Simply pull out the sweet potato and remove the soil once you get home.

Peel the sweet kamote into large and thick circles. Deep fry them in hot oil until light brown. These thick cuts might take a while to cook through. You may do a taste test in between cooking to check if the kamote had been cooked up to the center.

When the sweet potatoes are starting to turn light brown in color, you may now starting to add the sugar. For this recipe, we want to use brown sugar instead of white since brown sugar develops a more caramel flavor when caramelized.

Sprinkle a lot of sugar onto the sweet potatoes. Do not stir for a few minutes to let the sugar stick and caramelize in the kamote. Once you see the sugar sticking, you can now stir the kamote to reveal the unsugared areas. Repeat the stirring and sprinkling sugar until all areas are coated with sugar. But remember not to do this for too long as the caramelize sugar has a great tendency to burn. If you’re a beginner, it is recommended to do this dish in smaller batches first.

If you are having a hard time making the sugar stick in to the kamote, then let me share another way you can make the kamote cue. Of course, fry your sweet potatoes first. But instead of sprinkling the sugar directly into the sweet potato, we make a sugar syrup which will then be a glaze once poured or dipped into the sweet kamote pieces.

The last step to do is to put the kamote into skewers. Do this while the sweet potatoes are still hot. Use a tong when transferring them into sticks to make this step easier.

The kamote cue is now ready and the last thing to do is to enjoy this sweet and starchy treat.

COOKING TIPS:

• ●      You can also enjoy the sweet potatoes as kamote fries. Instead of cutting into large circles, cut the sweet potato into large fries then follow the steps on adding and caramelizing the sugar.

Paano Magluto ng Kamote Cue

Mga Sangkap:

• ½ kilo ng kamote
• asukal na pula
• mantika (pang prito)

Paano Lutuin:

1. Iharvest ang iyong mga kamote. Hugasan ang mga ito para matanggal ang mga dumikit na lupa. Balatan ang mga ito at hiwain ng makakapal na circle.
2. Magpainit ng maraming mantika. Iprito ang mga kamote ng ilang minuto gamit ang katamtamang apoy. Haluin ito paminsan minsan para maging pantay ang luto. Kapag light brown na, budbudan ang mga kamote ng asukal (wag sa mantika). Hayaan itong kumulo. Wag munang hahaluin para dumikit ng maayos ang asukal. Hintaying magcaramelize ang asukal. Haluin ito para malagyan ng asukal ang ibang side. Gawin ang mga steps na ito hanggang magkaron ng asukal ang lahat ng sides ng kamote.
3. Kapag nalagyan na ng asukal ang mga kamote, alisin ang mga ito sa kawali at ilipat sa strainer para tumulo ang sobrang mantika.
4. Ilagay sa barbecue sticks ang mga kamote habang mainit pa para maging camote cue.
5. Enjoyin ang kamote cue kasama ng mainit na kape o tsaa. Yum!