I’m sure we’re all fairly well-versed with potatoes — especially when it is fried. They come in all shapes and sizes: thin cut fries, curly fries, crinkle cut fries, hash browns, smiley-shaped ones, and even the tornado potato.  

In recent years, however, the sweet potato has made a name for itself for being the healthier alternative to the regular potato. Today, we discuss the difference between the potato and sweet potato, as well as the difference between the white, orange, and purple sweet potato to find out which potato will be crowned the king of potatoes.

First, let’s talk about the difference between the potato and sweet potato.

	Potato	Sweet Potato
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Nutrition	Rich in iron, magnesium, potassium Contains 77 kcal/100g	Rich in fibre, vitamin A Purple sweet potato is high in antioxidants too! Contains 86kcal/100g
Glycemic Index	Higher in glycemic index	Lower in glycemic index

So… which is better? Well, when consumed as part of a balanced diet, they provide multiple nutritional benefits. Be that as it may, the way we consume potatoes/sweet potatoes are rather different, and this can affect how healthy it becomes.

Potatoes are typically consumed deep fried in terms of french fries — and this isn’t the healthiest option, of course. Another common way of consuming it is baked, however, cheese/sour cream/butter/salt are typically added (with bacon!) which have a high fat content. Of course, we can’t forget mashed potatoes which have been boiled (that’s great!) but is mixed in with butter/milk which then increases the fat content.

On the other hand, sweet potatoes are typically eaten on its own roasted/baked/boiled. Additional toppings are rare for sweet potatoes unlike the typical potato, which means that no additional fats have been added. This makes it a healthier option!

In the next part, we will be discussing the differences between the sweet potato colours.