Find out how to cook jackfruit, a delicious and healthy fruit that has grown in popularity in recent years as plant-based diets become popular.
As many of us are making a conscious effort to reduce our meat intake and opt for vegetarian or vegan foods (opens in a new tab) instead, ingredients like jackfruit are stepping in as a great alternative. When cooked, jackfruit curiously resembles shredded pork (opens in a new tab). If you haven’t had the chance to see jackfruit in the flesh, they are quite extraordinary. The fruit is huge, with hundreds of spikes all over the skin.
Our guide covers everything you need to know about how to cook this unusual fruit at home, including how to prepare it, how to cook it in the oven, and the health benefits of eating jackfruit too…
How to cook
jackfruit
When it comes to cooking this curious ingredient, it’s actually super easy and extremely versatile. It cooks pretty fast, so it’s great for a super-quick dinner, but you can also cook it low and slow in a variety of dishes.
If you are cooking with fresh jackfruit, see above how to prepare it. If you are using canned jackfruit, simply drain and rinse with cold water before use.
How to fry jackfruit
The pan is a quick and efficient way to
cook jackfruit.
- Simply fry the sliced onions in a pan with a little oil, add chopped garlic, 1 chopped red pepper and cook for 5-7 minutes
- Add 1 can of drained jackfruit, along with a splash of water and a couple of tablespoons of BBQ sauce.
- Cook over medium heat, Breaking the jackfruit with a spoon, for 10 minutes, or until the jackfruit is tender.
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A great filling for jackfruit tacos, served with avocado slices and corn tortillas.
How to bake or roast jackfruit
- Preheat oven to 200C/Gas 6
- Shred the jackfruit with two forks and place on a lined baking sheet
- Drizzle with oil and season with salt, pepper and any grass and spice you want; You can also incorporate other vegetables or legumes, such as chickpeas here.
- Roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes, bifurcating in half.
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Serve on pita bread, buns, on top of baked potatoes or with a side of chips.
How to Slowly Cook Jackfruit Adapt
your favorite slow cooker recipe (opens in a new tab), substituting the main meat or vegetable for
jackfruit.
Add all the ingredients to the bowl of a slow cooker, cook over high heat for 2-3 hours before crushing the jackfruit and mixing again. Serve with rice, bread, or seasonal vegetables.
How to prepare jackfruit If you manage to get your hands
on a fresh jackfruit in your hands, first of all, keep in mind that it contains natural latex, so if you have a latex allergy, be sure to wear gloves when handling
it.
How you prepare jackfruit
will depend on what you plan to do with it and whether you buy a young (yellow) or older (green) fruit.
A ripe jackfruit will have yellowish, pointed skin and can be eaten like any tropical fruit; as breakfast, snack or desserts.
Depending on the size of the jackfruit, you
can buy this already divided into segments, if not, this is what you should do:
- The inside of jackfruit is quite sticky, so it is recommended to grease a sharp kitchen knife to facilitate the process; some recommend greasing the outside of the fruit as well.
- Carefully, but firmly, Cut the fruit in half lengthwise, and then into quarters.
- Remove the hard core to make it easier, this will reveal the bright yellow fruit pods, which are what you are going to eat. Remove the pods, removing the fibrous skin on the outside and the seed on the inside, and wash with cold water.
- The seeds are also edible and many people boil them and add them to curry or stews, or roast them as a snack.
Young jackfruit is much harder, with pale flesh and a less developed taste, so it is mainly used for cooking, as it has strong flavors extremely well. It is the young and green jackfruit with the fibrous consistency that imitates meat. It is most commonly found in the UK already prepared in cans from brands such as Biona, Cooks and Co and Natures Charm, making it perfect for a quick meal.
If you get hold of young jackfruit, they are so easy to prepare that you ripen them, but much stickier with resin that can be stained.
- As with ripe jackfruit, oil your knife, this time a shar
