Have you ever seen a jackfruit?
Looks aren’t everything…
I had passed by them in the farmer’s market, not knowing what that prickly thing was. Never thought twice about it. Until I saw this recipe by Jessica @ Clean Green Simple: Carolina Pulled “Pork” BBQ Sandwich.
BBQ? Jackfruit? Curiosity killed the blogger.
Exhibit A: the funny-looking fruit in the back left corner of the $35 farmer’s market pic I posted Monday:
Jackfruit. Not just any jackfruit – that is just 1/4 of a jackfruit (they pre-slice them). They can grow to be 8o lbs and 3 ft long! My quartered piece was just 99 cents. So cheap – I would have been losing money if I didn’t buy it!
The Low-Down
It was delicious raw – a little chewy, tropically-sweet, reminiscent of a mango in flavor. It’s also in season right now!
Jackfruit is also super-nutritious:
- Energy replenish-er and revitalizes the body instantly (I can vouch for this – I perked up and went to the gym after dinner!)
- Good source of Vitamin-A, B, C cancer-preventing antioxidant flavonoids (like β-carotene and lutein)
- Mineral-rich (potassium, magnesium, manganese and iron)
- Full of fiber
- Improves iron absorption
- Normalizes blood sugar levels and supports healthy thyroid gland
I took about 1.5 C of fresh jackfruit (you can also find it canned), and tossed it in a quick dry rub. I used Jessica’s dry rub recipe for guidance, but simplified it a bit for a change.
Tossed in the dry rub
After that, I added ad-libbed a wet sauce.
The best thing about BBQ is that you can really make it up as you go!
Coated in wet sauce and ready to bake
So. Good.
It took a long time to make since I had to peel/seed the jackfruit and I got the spice rub in my eye, but it was TOTALLY worth it.
Doesn’t it look like the taco is levitating?!
I had just seen Evan @ The Wannabe Chef post a socca taco shell, so I decided to turn Jessica’s sandwich into a taco!
These were super easy to make and I liked them much better than “regular” hard taco shells.
Coolest thing I’ve ever made
Served with a salad of roasted tomatillo, cilantro, watercress, and lime juice.
Oh, and did I mention you can eat jackfruit seeds? Yup. I can’t find the stats, but they are rumored to be a good source of protein. I toasted those up in a skillet and tossed them on my salad too!
My BBQ-Taco ended up being vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free, dairy-free, and soy-free. Combine that with a 99 cent jackfruit, it felt $$$ free.
Favorite dish so far this year
Jackfruit BBQ Taco
- 1.5 C jackfruit (~1/2 of a jackfruit)
- 1 shallot, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- Socca, bread, or taco shell… whatever you want to put it in
For the dry rub:
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground mustard
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- pinch garlic powder
For the wet sauce:
- 4 T fire-roasted tomato chunks
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp canola oil
- 1 tsp blackstrap molasses
- 1 tsp cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 C water
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Sauté shallot with a splash of oil over medium heat until translucent. Add garlic and sauté ~1-2 mins longer, until fragrant.
Mix together dry rub spices and toss with jackfruit pieces until coated. Add to a medium-sized pan and cook over medium-high heat for ~5 mins to toast spices.
Stir together wet sauce ingredients and add to pan, along with shallot and garlic. Simmer jackfruit in sauce for 20-30 mins until softened.
Using a fork, shred the jackfruit pieces into small stringy bits. Spread mixture evenly on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 15 mins until slightly dried out and toughened.
Scoop in to taco shells (or bread) and garnish with lime and cilantro. Enjoy!
Serves 2-4.
***
Happy WIAW!!!
It’s certainly not everything I ate, but everything else paled in comparison.
Have you ever had jackfruit?
What is the coolest thing you’ve ever made?
