Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Folks,

Jackfruit seems to be the new darling of the vegan crowd. I recently found out that I can buy the flesh broken down at a nearby Vietnamese market. Anyone cook with it? Recommendations?

I do know jackfruit, but I don't grow it. I have only tried it a couple of times, and it's good - sort of like several fruits together. Pineapple, banana and apple in the background, is what I remember. There are a bunch of recipes out there, with even more showing up lately, with jackfruit becoming more popular.

Josh, my dad loved jackfruit= guanabana. I usually had it in milkshakes. My favorite fruit ever is its cousin Anon. I found this recipe that may be right for you. It appears to be Cuban Ropa Vieja made with jackfruit instead of beef. jackfruit.

This thread reminded me of a bumper sticker I only saw once, years ago:

"I know Jack"

Don't cook it. DO NOT do that vegan pulled pork recipe with it. <shudder> Just eat it. It is very nice when it is eaten out of hand. Wear gloves when cutting fresh fruit. The latex has been removed from the frozen.

--Lisa

Lisa,

Latex?

Yes, latex. Fresh jackfruit has a latex substance surrounding the fruit pods. You should oil your knife, cutting board, hands, etc., before cleaning a fruit. What you eat is the covering of the seeds. The seeds themselves are supposed to be edible but I haven't had those. I have friends who have a jackfruit tree that gives 30lb to 40lb fruit. It is nuts. These 40lb fruits just hanging from a shoestring like stem from a tree. It looks odd.

There was a video that I had seen about cleaning one... let me see if I can find it. Found it.

--Lisa

Lisa,

Huh.

I can get whole jackfruit too, of course (or halves or quarters), but for $5/lbs, the prepared pods seem like a much better bet.

Anyway, I've actually had jackfruit tacos, and they were cooked kinda like meat. It was actually fairly tasty, which is why I was wondering (more like chicken breast than pork, but not really like either).

Fuzzy,

Though I've never seen it in any of my markets, I have seen references to unripe jackfruit being used, and that it has a "meaty" taste, which is used in vegetarian dishes in areas where it is available.