Murasaki means Purple

Recently I had a craving for some sweet potato pie but not just any sweet potato pie, Okinawan sweet potato pie - a Hawaiian specialty. I called Nijiya, my local Japanese market, to see if they had these specific sweet potatoes and the kind woman from the produce section said they didn't have Okinawan ones, but they have purple sweet potatoes. Good enough for me and my sweet potato pie craving.

I found a recipe on my favorite Hawaiian recipe website and off to Nijiya I went. When I arrived there were a couple of different sweet potato options. I wasn't sure which was which but I semi-assumed all Japanese sweet potatoes are purple. Any Japanese sweet potato I ever had has been. I asked what the difference between the two potatoes were and the woman (who I'm sure is the same woman I talked to on the phone) said this one (handed it to me) was the purple one. The other one (she pointed to it) was white. "Purple!" I said, thanked her, chose my perfect potato, and went straight to the check-out line.

I made the pie - delicious! - and took the rest of the pie to work for co-workers to enjoy. One colleague, who I call "CB," really loved it and coined it "Hawaiian Pie." A couple of days later we made a deal that if he taught me 3 of his tricks on Excel then I'd trade him a "Hawaiian Pie." I couldn't ask for a better bargain! (I love spreadsheets. I have a canvas bag that states it and at work I'm even a member of "LOCAS" - Lovers of Checklists and Spreadsheets.)

So with another "Hawaiian Pie" to make, tonight back to Nijiya I went. Same store, and unfortunately, same predicament. Which one was the purple sweet potato? Back to ask for help. I saw the kind woman again and with the potato I thought was purple in hand, I asked, "Is this the purple one?" She looked at it, read the label and said, "No, no. I show you..." At this point I'm sure she recognized me from last week. There surely can't be that many customers that ask for purple sweet potatoes. She walked with me back to the potato section and said, "This is the purple one. Murasaki. Murasaki means 'purple' in Japanese." "Ah," I responded, "thank you. I should know that." She laughed at my comment because I'm full Japanese and being a "good Japanese girl" growing up, one of my two years of Japanese language class should have taught me that "murasaki" means "purple." But now I know and I will not forget!

What I appreciated most about this was that my local grocer took a moment to teach me. Plus, now I know exactly which potato I need for my "Hawaiian Pie."

I thank her - and I'm sure CB thanks her too!