A few weeks ago I was out for dinner with a friend who was raving about some vegan pulled pork taco’s he had recently had made from Jackfruit.
After a bit of research into the plant, I discovered it is being being hailed as the next big foodie trend. Not only is it the largest tree-borne fruit on the planet, but its nutritional value is so high, it is being touted as a miracle crop that may replace wheat, corn and other staple crops that will come under threat because of climate change.
The increasing popularity of this miracle fruit is making it easier to find in grocery stores, although in order to get the pulled pork texture you need to use the younger fruit – “green jackfruit.”
On a mission to find out what all the fuss was about, I headed down to China town to pick up a few cans myself.
After a few versions, I came up with the following Jackfruit taco recipe. If you give it a try please leave any comments or variations in the comments.
Enjoy!
Jackfruit ‘pulled pork’ tacos
3 jalapeños, chopped
2 tbsp oil
4 cloves garlic
1.5 tbsp chilli powder
2.5 tsp cumin
1/2tsp cayenne
450ml ketchup
125ml lime juice
1 cup dark brown sugar
3 tins of jackfruit in brine (in water works too and bit easier to find)
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp dijon mustard
- Saute garlic & jalapeños in oil for a minute. Add all the spices, stir and cook until fragrant (a minute or so).
- Add ketchup, lime and brown sugar. Stir until all the sugar has melted. Partially cover and keep cooking on a low heat until sauce has thickened to the consistency of ketchup. Add a bit of Salt and pepper to taste.
- You can add a bit of hot sauce here if you like it extra spicy.
- Drain and rinse the canned jackfruit. Use your hands to tear the strands of jackfruit from the harder core. The fruit will come apart pretty easily. Then use a knife to chop up the harder bits.
- Heat oil in pan and add the pulled jackfruit. Cook until it gets a bit grey. Add the dijon mustard and stir in.
- Add the BBQ sauce (you can keep some on the side if you want, but I like it sticky) and stir in to coat. Cook until it’s almost starting to get a little crispy and sticking to the pan a little.
- Serve on cork tacos (flour works to but not as tasty) with lettuce, guacamole and coriander….
Recipe adapted from the guardian