Where the name ‘jackfruit’ probably means something to a few people, the name ‘jackfruit’ does in most cases. fruit is especially popular among vegetarians. Jackfruit is a fruit that fits into a healthy diet and comes from the mulberry family. It is a very large fruit with a neutral to mildly sweet taste. What exactly is this fruit, where does it come from and how do you incorporate this fruit into a meal?
A Large Fruit On A Beautiful Tree
This jackfruit, in Latin Artocarpus heterophyllus, is a tree that originally comes from India, but can now be found in more Asian countries. Such as the countries Indonesia, Philippines, and Malaysia, among others. fruit is related to the mulberry and the fruits on the tree can grow very large.
The tree itself, which can reach 20 to 25 meters in height, has branches with spreading dark green oval-shaped leaves and the top of the leaf is slightly glossy. There are small flowers that form at the leaf axils. The fruits that grow from the trunk are quite large and can grow to a size of 60 to 70 centimeters. In exceptional cases, this can be as much as 1 meter. In terms of weight, the jackfruit can grow to about 40 kilograms. It is therefore the largest fruit there is.
After planting a young tree, it takes at least 3 years before the first fruits appear on the tree. The ripe fruit has hard skin and somewhat yellowish flesh. The taste of jackfruit can be called neutral or subtly sweet.
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The wood of the tree is used to make instruments for a gamelan orchestra. Gamelan is a traditional music style in which gongs, drums, flutes, and string instruments – which you can mainly find on the Indonesian islands – are brought together.
Carrot As Medicine
From a naturopathic angle, the root of the fruit tree is used to treat skin conditions such as allergies. It is also used against insect bites and tea is made from it. Tea is said to be good for the respiratory system.
Where Can Jackfruit Be Bought And What Does It Cost?
Fresh jackfruit is not for sale in some country supermarkets or regular fruit and vegetable shops. The shop generally has fruit and some specialized organic stores also sell it. In cans, the better-equipped supermarket usually has it on the shelf.
Jackfruit is, especially compared to other fruits, relatively expensive. This has to do with the fact that only about 30% of this large fruit is really edible. There are quite a few inedible pieces inside the fruit and the skin is quite thick.
fruit is canned and fresh frozen (transporting the whole fruit is too expensive). In 2020, Jackfruit costs an average of $ 3.50, rising to $ 5.50 per 250 grams. If you want to buy the organic variant, you pay an average of $ 1.50 to $ 2.00 extra for it.
Health Aspects
Jackfruit is a healthy fruit that fits perfectly into a healthy diet. There are several vitamins and minerals in this fruit, namely:
- Vitamin A, B2, B3, B6, B11, C
- Calcium
- Phosphorus
- Iron
- Potassium
- Magnesium
- Manganese
- Zinc
Eating Jackfruit
If you want to eat jackfruit fresh as a fruit, use the ripe variety. If you want to include jackfruit in your meal, use the unripe variety (also available in cans). The advantage of incorporating fruit into the meal is that the fruit absorbs all kinds of flavors quickly. It can be compared to a sponge that you put in a bowl of water.
For this reason, fruit is ideal for ‘melting together’ different flavors and making it form a whole. This also means that in the examples mentioned where jackfruit can be incorporated into the meal, various flavors such as sweet, sour, bitter, and, of course, salt come back. Putting together the meal in this way promotes an optimal taste balance.
Include In The Meal
Jackfruit takes on a fleshy structure during baking, which is why the fruit is sometimes regarded as a meat substitute. If you are a ‘starting’ vegetarian, then fruit is ideally suited to include in your meal. With fruit in the meal, you will not be surprised when it comes to the well-known taste of meat. However, fruit is not a full-fledged meat substitute, because the vitamin and mineral composition is different. For example, there is much less iron and protein in jackfruit.
How To Prepare?
Because the taste of jackfruit is quite neutral, the taste cannot really be described if you are going to process it fresh or from a can. If you want to give fruit a specific taste, marinate it first. Because jackfruit absorbs the flavor quickly, you don’t have to marinate for hours. A good half hour is usually sufficient.
However, marinating is not necessary before using it in a meal. So you can also just process it while preparing the meal. Baking with (cream) butter gives jackfruit a little more a meaty substance and baking color than in oil. In the pan, jackfruit is most like chicken pieces.
Examples Of Applications
You can fry fruit in (cream) butter and then you can make it crispy by baking it very briefly on a hot fire. What jackfruit is used more for is to make a kind of pulled pork. Bake it in (cream) butter and let it simmer a little longer in the pan. How long it has to simmer depends on how small the pieces are, but expect from 5 minutes to about 20 minutes. The moment you can pull the pieces apart with a fork, it is ready. Prepared in this way, jackfruit is great to eat in different types of meals. You can think of:
- Jackfruit on a fresh bun with some slices of mature cheese, mayo, and chopped chives. Make sure the fruit is at an ‘edible’ temperature so that the freshly made sandwich can be eaten as is.
- Jackfruit in a generously prepared salad with capers, tomatoes, cocktail onions, a dash of extra virgin olive oil, and pepper if you like it spicy or some coriander if you like it a little more bitter. For best results, the jackfruit is lukewarm.
- Processing jackfruit in a wrap is also a great option. Add different types of beans and pour over the top with yogurt sauce, mixed with some chopped chives. If you want it spicier, you can also mix some chili flakes through the yogurt sauce. If it is very spicy, chop a red pepper through it (with seeds in it it becomes even spicier).
- fruit in a ‘kap salon’ variant, with fries, grated cheese, tomato and cucumber slices, some lettuce, and garlic sauce. Add this jackfruit nice and warm from the pan.
- Jackfruit is an oven meal of zucchini slices, chopped onion, a dash of olive oil and flavored with fresh black pepper, chili flakes, and some salt. 20 to 30 minutes in the oven at 175 degrees.
Straight From The Fist, As A Dessert Or Snack
Jackfruit does not necessarily have to be baked. You can also eat it right out of the fist. Jackfruit has a fairly neutral taste and it is always said that you should learn to eat such a fruit. Because of its neutral taste, fruit is often combined with another piece of fresh fruit.
You can also combine it cut into cubes or shaved (with the cheese slicer) with full-fat (Greek) yogurt, full-fat quark, or ice cream. The reason to choose full products is that they have more flavor. This also benefits the combination of added fruit. Finally, add some honey or give it a twist with sweet strawberry syrup or slightly more sour lemon syrup. Great as a dessert or snack.
Cut into long slices, it can also be fried in sunflower oil and with a pinch of salt, as an alternative chip with drinks.
Finally
Jackfruit has a fairly neutral to mildly sweet taste and the fruit can easily be called versatile. You can easily use the fruit in various ways in the meal, as a dessert or snack. Moreover, jackfruit fits perfectly into a healthy diet.
