Meet ʻUala: Hawaii Sweet Potato

Meet ʻUala: Hawaiʻi-Grown Sweet Potato

An essential staple in the traditional Hawaiian diet.

Shop Now

Creamy, delicious, and higher in antioxidants than blueberries. Add more purple to your plate!

Preparing dinner is fast with recipe-ready ʻuala – farm-fresh and already peeled, cut, steamed and frozen – making cooking with purple sweet potatoes a cinch.

ʻUala in the Kitchen

What are sweet potatoes good for? This Hawaiʻi staple is used in a multitude of ways from potato chips to pie. Go beyond the simple steamed and sliced side dish you’re used to and transform ʻuala in ways you never imagined with these creative recipes from our community.

Sweet Potato Recipes

Mashed Purple Sweet Potato

Whip up a buttery batch of mashed purple sweet potato in less than 10 minutes with our recipe-ready ʻuala.

Purple Sweet Potato Pie

Vivid purple Okinawan sweet potato packs healthy antioxidants into this delicious pie recipe - pe...

Sweet Potato Bread

A simple sweet potato bread recipe perfect for an afternoon snack, french toast or bread pudding.

Sweet Potato: Past to Present

‘Uala, or sweet potatoes, have been a staple crop in Hawai‘i for centuries, with varieties introduced from South America by Polynesian voyagers centuries ago. Early Hawaiians appreciated this hardy tuber for its ability to thrive in drier climates. They used it to make ‘uala ho’omalamala, similar to poi, and ‘uala ‘awa’awa – an alcoholic beverage made of fermented mashed ʻuala and water. Our bright-purple Okinawan variety arrived in Hawai‘i during the plantation era and has become a local favorite.

Fun Fact: There are around 270 documented Hawaiian names for sweet potato cultivars.

Good substitute for imported starches:

In the early 1900s, sweet potatoes were the tenth most valuable agricultural crop in Hawai’i – reducing the need for wheat flour in pastries and occasionally acting as a substitute for animal feed. Currently Hawaiʻi growers export millions of pounds of sweet potato to the continental U.S. annually.

Growing ‘Uala:

ʻUala is a drought-resistant crop that can be harvested year-round. Sweet potato is an excellent ground cover for newly established agroforestry systems.

Learn More About ʻUala

The Okinawan Sweet Potato: A Purple Powerhouse of Nutrition

The primary nutritional benefit, and the one for which Okinawan sweet potatoes are especially prized, is their high antioxidant levels.

Meet Our ʻUala Ambassador

Sarah is best known on Oʻahu for her farm-to-table events, her food and wellness blog The Healthy...

What is the Difference Between Purple Sweet Potato and Ube?

Many people confuse Okinawan sweet potato and ube because of their shared purple color so we're sharing the major differences and similarities between these plants.

Our Farmers Grow ʻUala

Our “farmer owned, ‘āina grown” approach enables farmers to focus on farming, while the co-op takes on aggregation, processing and marketing for them – helping to increase the viability of local agriculture and the food security of our islands.

Discover Recipe-Ready ʻUala

Shop Now

Co-crops like ‘uala support local farmers, regenerative agroforestry, and community health, and reduce Hawaiʻi’s dependence on imported staples. You can contribute in the most delicious way – by eating and cooking with purple sweet potatoes! Let us make it easy for you with our recipe-ready ‘uala.

Find us at your local grocery store!

Check out our product locator

Sign Up For Updates

Promotions, new products and sales. Directly to your inbox.