Try These Last-Minute Mashed Sweet Potatoes From Expat Chef Jeffery Powell

It's Thanksgiving once again! And while there are lots of options to be had in terms of Turkey Day meals in the capital, we've asked expat chef Jeffery Powell to share a recipe for readers to try: last-minute mashed sweet potatoes.

Who is Chef Jeff?

Jeffery Powell is a 38-year veteran of the restaurant, hotel and bar industry with more than 24 years of experience in the upper management side of the business.

Having spent nearly 19 years combined in Shanghai and Beijing, Chef Powell has made a name for himself in the F&B communities in both cities.

Make it

Without further ado, here's what you need to make Jeff's mashed sweet potatoes!

Ingredients:

2 kg sweet potatoes or yams

55 ml fresh squeezed lime juice

70 g honey

200 g butter

15 g salt

3 g fresh ground black pepper

5 g five spice powder

Method:

1. Wash the sweet potatoes and poke two to three holes in the skin of each to allow steam to escape while cooking.

2. Place the potatoes in a 190-degree Celsius oven and roast them for a half hour to an hour until they're tender to the touch.

3. Remove the potatoes from the oven and allow them to cool for 5 minutes.

4. Cut the potatoes in half and squeeze the insides from the skins into a mixing bowl. Discard the skins afterwards.

5. Add the butter, black pepper, five spice powder, 2/3 of the honey, and about half of the lime juice and mix with a spoon until the butter and spices are mixed in and the potatoes have started to fluff up.

6. Add salt to taste and adjust the amount of lime juice and honey to balance things out (Note: each sweet potato differs in natural sweetness, so how much extra sweet you want depends on the potato as well).

7. Pour the potatoes into a serving bowl and, unless serving immediately, cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

8. Once ready to serve, spoon some potatoes into a bowl and top with a dab of butter.

Tips:

1. Jeff suggests adding the lime juice and honey once you've mashed the potatoes. The sweet potatoes I bought happen to be super sweet, so I didn't need to use much honey.

2. Jeff uses lime juice in order to balance out the extra sweetness from the honey. It definitely gives a nice acidic flavor to the potatoes.

3. Five spice powder adds a bit of Chinese flair to the dish, to remind you you're doing Thanksgiving in the 'Jing.

Read: Beijing's Winter Vegetables: Three Sweet Potato Recipes You Can Follow At Home

Image: Courtesy of Jefferey Powell, Irene Li, Unsplash