Ube
PHPurple yam — Dioscorea alata
- Color
- Naturally deep-purple
- Taste
- Softly sweet, creamy, vanilla-like
- Texture
- Full, velvety-smooth
- Use
- Lattes, cakes, ice cream, desserts
A common confusion
Ubevs Taro
They both look purple on Instagram, and their names get used interchangeably — but ube and taro are completely different plants. Time to set the record straight.
Ube★ PH
Taro Side by side
The difference in 30 seconds
Taro
A whole different root — Colocasia esculenta
- Color
- White / beige with purple flecks
- Taste
- Earthier, nuttier, less sweet
- Texture
- Starchy, neutral
- Use
- Bubble tea, savoury dishes, chips
Difference 01 · Color
One is purple. The other pretends to be.
Ube is naturally deep-purple. Slice a fresh ube in half and the color jumps right at you. Taro, on the other hand, has a light cream, beige or pale-lilac inside with purple flecks. Many taro lattes and taro bubble teas are purple because of added dye, not because of the root itself.
Ube — naturally purpleTaro — light with flecks Difference 02 · Taste
Creamy dessert vs. earthy side dish
Ube tastes soft, sweet and creamy — think vanilla with a hint of pistachio and coconut. It fits naturally in dessert. Taro is drier, nuttier and earthier. Lovely in savoury dishes or bubble tea, but it lacks ube's creamy, oh-so-soft roundness.
Ube
Softly sweet, creamy, vanilla-like
Taro
Earthier, nuttier, less sweet
Difference 03 · Texture
Velvet vs. starch
Boiled and mashed, ube turns velvety-soft and full — perfect for folding into whipped cream or cheesecake. Taro stays drier and starchier, closer to a white-potato mash. That's exactly why ube is so loved in lattes: the texture makes it creamy without needing extra cream.
Difference 04 · Use
Where each one belongs
Ube is used for
- Ube lattes (hot & iced)
- Cheesecake
- Ice cream
- Crinkle cookies
- Pandesal
- Halaya & jam
- Pancakes
Taro is used for
- Bubble tea
- Taiwanese savoury dishes
- Taro chips
- Mochi (sometimes)
- Roasted taro
- Soup
★ Why the confusion
How do we keep mixing them up?
Both roots are at home in Asian cuisine and increasingly show up in the same cafés. The names — purple yam, taro, purple sweet potato — get used interchangeably in the Western world.
And then there are the powders: many taro powders in supermarkets are dyed bright purple with artificial colorant to mimic that ube look-and-feel. The result: people think taro is purple, while on its own it's almost white.
For the latte fans
Which do you pick for your latte?
For a creamy, dessert-like latte: ube. The flavor is rounder, sweeter and softer than taro. Taro works better in bubble tea with tapioca, where the earthy flavor balances sweet syrup. For a latte with both natural purple color and creaminess — pick ube.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Now that you know the difference — pick the real one.
Taste Filipino is 100% pure Filipino ube. No taro, no dyes, no additives.