Hi, Johnny Meat!
I can see that you’re hungry.
Me hungry.
Me need MEAT!
Mmm.
Delicious meat!
Yes, it truly is…
“meat.”
Hey Munchies!
Welcome if you’re new!
I’m Alyssia,
and today I am STOKED because I have been wanting to do a jackfruit video for like a
YEAR,
but I’ve been so intimidated by it.
It’s hard to find the whole fruit, it hasn’t always been easily accessible,
and is still sort of just emerging as a health food,
but when I saw Trader Joe’s now offers CANNED jackfruit,
I was like, okay, yes, I can do this.
This makes life easier.
FYI: This video was NOT sponsored, I am just a Trader Joe’s freak.
So, if you don’t know, jackfruit is the largest tree-borne fruit in the world,
one fruit can weigh between 10 and 100 pounds
and the seeds inside are SUPER nutrient dense,
AND the fruit is really high in fiber.
It’s native to south and southeast Asia and is tough to find in the US.
Sometimes in bigger cities like New York you can find it,
and it’s popping up more a bit now but, overall,
it’s not just lying around conveniently for people to find.
On top of that, it’s not super convenient to prepare
because you’ve got this HUGE dinosaur-looking fruit that you’ve got to manage.
WHICH is why I’m so excited for these cans of jackfruit.
The REALLY cool thing about jackfruit is that when it’s cooked, the texture really resembles
meat,
so if you’re plant based or trying to incorporate more recipes without meat,
this is a great way to do that and still get the meat “taste.”
I don’t actually love the taste of the jackfruit plain, it has NO sugar at all,
even natural sugars, so it’s pretty tangy, and I think it is better cooked than raw.
So today I’m sharing 3 jackfruit recipes,
and I think you’ll be pleased to see how simple they are.
Let’s get to it!
First we’ve got BBQ Jackfruit Sliders!
I recommend draining and rinsing the jackfruit to start for most recipes
since they are generally stored in brine,
and for this one I’m shredding it into smaller pieces to give it that “pulled” texture
that I love in barbecue.
Then I’m adding olive oil to a pan and sautéing some onion and garlic until tender and fragrant.
I’ll add my jackfruit, broth, low-sugar bbq sauce—
and I do have a recipe for that in my UnJunk Your Foods eBook if you want to check that
out
but you could use anything here—
and then we will just stir, reduce the heat to medium low
and cook for about 30 to 40 minutes, lower and slower offers more flavor.
Stir that occasionally as it cooks.
So beautiful!
It actually looks like meat!
I’m also making an avocado slaw for my sliders.
I mash avocado in a bowl, and then add some shredded cabbage and carrots,
thinly sliced red onion, lime juice, a bit of maple syrup, and salt and pep.
Then I just assemble my BBQ jackfruit and slaw on my slider buns and I’m good to go!
These are adorable, but MOST importantly they are tasty!
Jackfruit itself is a tad sweet but also tangy,
and it lends itself really well to the barbecue flavors of this recipe.
Worth a whirl!
Next up I’ve got a slow cooker recipe because I know you guys can’t get enough of those,
and why would you?
They make life easy because we just add everything to the slow cooker.
For my Jackfruit curry, I add jackfruit, onion, red bell pepper, tomato paste,
coconut oil, or you could use grass-fed butter if you don't need this to be plant-based,
ginger paste, minced garlic, garam masala,
curry powder, cumin, salt and pep,
and coconut milk.
I mix that up,
place on the lid, and let it cook low and slow—4 to 6 hours.
When it’s done, it’s so tender and tasty.
You could of course use any protein for these recipes, including this one,
but isn’t it neat that a FRUIT yielded the final product?
Amazing!
The slow cooker just makes finding flavor so much easier, AND it’s so tender,
it just falls apart just like slow and low cooked meat.
If you’re enjoying these recipes and tips and want more,
subscribe and hit the bell so you can be notified of new videos each week!
The last one I’ve got for you is a Tortilla Soup.
I’m adding olive oil to a saucepan with onion and garlic.
Once tender, I add jalapeno until fragrant.
Then I can add tomato purée, lime juice, chili powder,
paprika, cumin, and oregano and cook until bubbly.
Then I add broth and my jackfruit, which is cut similarly to the first recipe,
so it will resemble pulled meat.
Season to taste.
I bring that to a boil, turn the heat down to low, and simmer for 20 minutes.
Now a tortilla soup wouldn’t be complete without tortilla strips, so I’m making my
own!
I’ve made tortilla chips loads of times, and this is the same process.
I cut my corn tortillas into small strips that are about 1/4 of an inch wide,
add them to a baking rack, spray them down with cooking spray,
and season with salt and pepper.
I bake those until crispy, and they’re perfect for my soup!
To assemble, I add some my tortilla strips to a bowl, ladle in my jackfruit soup,
and garnish with avocado and extra tortillas strips!
Now, if you don’t need this to be plant-based, you could add some cotija cheese or sour cream,
it’s SO delicious!
A great recipe to have on hand as we approach fall, too—
I LOVE soup on cold days!
I hope you all enjoyed these recipes and learning about jackfruit!
If you have any favorite jackfruit recipes or preparations,
please feel free to share them in the comments,
and if you found this video useful I hope you’ll share it!
Thank you so much for your support!
If you want to check out my UnJunk your Foods eBook or any of my other eBooks,
you can use the code “JACKFRUIT” at checkout
for 10% off and ebook or package of your choice, this week only.
I’ll see you next week!
And remember,
it’s all a matter of Mind Over Munch.