Jackfruit packs some nutritional wallop. The fact that you can cook, chunk or shred it like chicken or pork makes it a go-to main ingredient in many vegetarian and vegan dishes.
KATIE WORKMAN: ‘If you’ve never heard of jackfruit, keep your eyes open: You’ll start noticing it everywhere. Jackfruit is a very large tropical fruit often used as a meat substitute. It packs some nutritional wallop, and the fact that you can cook, chunk or shred it like chicken or pork makes it a go-to main ingredient in many vegetarian and vegan dishes. Its flavor is neutral, and it takes to all kinds of seasonings… Jackfruit is popping up on menus across the country, at vegan and vegetarian restaurants…
Jackfruit is native to India, and also grows in Southeast Asia, Mexico, the Caribbean and South America. It ranges from 15 pounds to a whopping 70… With many people looking for plant-based alternatives to meat, jackfruit’s trajectory is up, up, up. Robert Schueller, head of marketing at Melissa’s Produce, a specialty produce company, has noted that upward trend for several years. “It was about five years ago that the fruit started to really take off,’’ he says. “Vegetarians and vegans found out how this fruit could be used as a ‘meat substitute’ for pulled pork sandwiches and as a taco meat”…
“We eat meat because of the texture and the spices. Jackfruit is a great substitute,’’ Means says. “It’s one of the best choices for us because we can mimic meat, Jackfruit grows in abundance, and it has potassium, fiber, magnesium, lots of nutrients. We put it in tacos, and we make sandwiches, like a barbecue pulled `pork”… Jackfruit Café tries to educate people in its community about jackfruit and alternatives to a meat-eating diet, she says, predicting, “in seven to 10 years, jackfruit will be as popular as beef”.’ SOURCE…
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