Fruit Tree of the Day: Jakfruit
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Today’s fruit tree is the jakfruit. It’s a fruit that can grow bigger than a watermelon, but grows on a tree… and that’s about all the good I can say about it. It doesn’t taste disgusting, but it has a very meh flavor. Worse, it takes a whole lot of work to cut up. Only the arill immediately around the seeds is edible, (as are the seeds themselves, if boiled. They taste like meh mashed potatoes) and there’s a lot of waste. On top of that, the tree and fruit have a very sticky, spready sap inside them, so unless you lube up your hands with oil or wear long gloves, you’ll get the sap stuck to you too.
You may be able to try some for yourself. I’ve seen it available for sale at regular supermarkets (only whole fruits, though, and I’ve never seen anyone actually buy one there. ;)) and at Asian stores (where they actually sell cut up pieces so you save yourself a little work and a lot money). You may be more impressed with the flavor than I was. Lots of Asians really like it and use it in cooking. I got to try a dish that had jakfruit in it. The dish was good, but I couldn’t really pick out the jakfruit since it has such a meh flavor.
The tree itself grows very well in Florida, but it grows very slowly; it needs really thick, strong wood to support those huge fruits! Though, interestingly, one branch doesn’t usually bear the entire weight of the fruit—they’ll either grow from the trunk onto the ground or from a upper branch onto a lower one, using that one for additional support. The fruit takes a very long time to ripen; you’ll usually find new flowers/fruits forming before the old crop fully ripens. So, if you like jakfruit, you’ll be able to have it almost year-round.
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Wow, Jakfruit (Jackfruit)!
I have tried this and I like it.
I have also seen some at the local grocery. They can get crazy big.
I seem to recall reading that Jackfruit is also being used as a meat alternative in recipes for firm, lean meat - Grilled and BBQ’d like pulled pork, or used in braising and stews.
Trader Joe’s has cans of it.
@mike808 Ew. Canned is always worse, and jakfruit doesn’t taste that good to begin with. Keep that to yourself.
@mike808
I think I even saw it at Kroger’s recently too in their organic or freezer section. I know it’s becoming a thing as a meat alternative.
@mike808 Yes, Jackfruit (never seen is spelled “Jak” before) is used in lots of premade alt-meats found in supermarkets(at least here in Orlando). Also used at a lot of vegan/vegetarian restaurants around here.
“Pulled” Jackfruit
Nope. The Asian produce market (open 3 days/week) has them. Not for me.
I freaking love jackfruit! It’s got a nicely, mild tangy taste to it. Some people compare it to durien, but that’s just nasty. It is pricey, probably cause of the difficulty to cut them open. Anyways, thanks for posting about these, OP.
I tried jackfruit in a plant-based recipe I was working on. I got it in cans because that’s all I could get. If it comes packed in brine rinse the hell out of it or it will taste like olives.
Jackfruit is very neutral and takes on whatever flavor you give it when cooked. It has a stringy texture like shredded meats. So it works well with bbq seasonings and sauce as a pulled pork substitute, or seasoned like taco meat as a shredded chicken substitute. I don’t think I’ve seen any recipes for it that don’t just use it to mimic meat.
I wound up not using it in my recipe as I didn’t think it added anything and actually could be confused for meat, taking away from the impact I wanted to have. So now I still have three cans of it looking for something to do with them.
@djslack Compost? Unless the brine will kill the composting.
How to make Jackfruit BBQ Sandwiches
