Curried Jackfruit

Learn how to make some homemade curried jackfruit from scratch. Go ahead and fool your non vegan friends with this delicious, aromatic one pan curry dish made from chunks of young jackfruit simmered in coconut milk with an array of vegetables.

An abundance of jackfruit recipes are the lastest meat free substitute to hit the culinary world. I'm so excited to share this curried jackfruit recipe with you all.

If you're new to vegan cooking or simply not in the "know" no worries because this recipe will keep you up to speed.

Vegan cuisine has officially gone up a notch thanks to some good old jackfruit.

What is jackfruit?

Jackfruit is a crop that originates from south Asia, but you will find it growing in the tropics too. In countries like Hawai'i, Brazil, Australia, the Caribbean region and of course various parts of Asia.

While there are various types of Jackfruit species.

I'm not going to bore you with the names and ways to distinguish between them.

Chances are you probably won't need that type of information so it would just serve as unnecessary babble.

The difference between ripe and unripened jackfruit

What you do need to know are the two stages of formation - ripe and unripe, otherwise known as "young" and "mature".

For this recipe you will need the green jackfruit in other words, one that hasn't matured yet.

If you're living in a tropical region, you will already know what type of jackfruit I'm referring too.

A young jackfruit that hasn't turned yet has more ofa dense texture with a savoury taste.

This unriped stage is ideal for using as vegetable meat. The soft interior can be cut into chunks or shreded just like meat, resembling pulled pork or chicken.

The aforementioned is the texture that we will be working with today. Moreover, this "meaty" texture is what's used in Asian cooking to make vegan stir fries, curry etc..

Ingredients you will need

• Jackfruit - You will need young (green) savoury jackfruit for this recipe.
• Curry powder - I like to use my trusty, go to homemade Jamaican curry powder.
• All purpose seasoning - I use this as a multi purpose seasoning for psuedo meat and meat recipes.
• Onion/scallion/garlic and ginger - This is the base/foundation ingredients.
• Bell peppers - Any coloured bell peppers work well however, I like to use red and green.
• Pimento berries - For that signature Caribbean touch, also known as allspice.
• Paprika/cumin/thyme and chadon beni - These are the combination of spices and herbs that I feel compliment the jackfruit.
• Sweet potato - To make the recipe more Caribbean I prefer to use Caribbean sweet potato which is red skinned with a white/creamy coloured flesh.
• Tamarind/tomato paste - both pastes offer a tarty and tangy taste.
• Coconut milk - Unsweetened and full fat coconut milk is needed
• Scotch bonnet - A whole scotch bonnet pepper.
• Black pepper and pink salt - To enhance the taste.

The steps

• Place the jackfruit chunks in a medium sized bowl.
• Season with the curry powder and all purpose seasoning then set aside.
• On medium heat, add the olive oil to a medium sized frying pan or skillet.
• Add the jackfruit and cook for a few minutes to lock in the seasoning.
• Remove the jackfruit from the pan and set aside.

• Replenish the pan with olive oil.
• Add the curry powder and "burn" (cook) the curry powder for about one minute.
• Add the onion, scallion, garlic and ginger and saute until soft and translucent.
• Add the bell peppers and okra and cook for 3-5 minutes or until soft.

• Add the paprika, cumin, all purpose seasoning, raw cane sugar (optional) and chadon beni then stir so all of the ingredients are combined.
• Add the thyme and pimento berries.
• Add the tamarind paste, tomato paste, coconut milk, sweet potato and scotch bonnet pepper and stir.

• Bring the pan to a rolling boil.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low, put the lid on and simmer for up to an hour (stirring half way through).
• Once cooked, remove the lid and do taste test and add pink salt and pepper to taste.
• Discard the thyme stems and scotch bonnet pepper, before serving.

Notes and tips

• Make sure to buy "young" jackfruit. It should state what it is on the can.
• Jackfruit is a vegan friendly meat substitute and gluten free and paleo approved.
• You don't have to cut the jackfruit into triangles, you can shred it instead if you want to.
• For best results, consume the curry immediately and don't freeze it.
• Any leftovers should be refrigerated (when cool) for up to 2 days.
• Make sure the jackfruit you are using is the GREEN/young savoury type and NOT the YELLOW type that's sweet and in syrup.
• You can make this recipe with another meat substitute such as tofu if you wish
• I used the my homemade Jamaican Curry Powder and All Purpose Seasoning to make this recipe with.
• If you cannot find scotch bonnet use a fresh chilli, or jalapeno (uncut).
• If you want your curry FIERY then cut into the scotch bonnet to release the heat or omit it if you want a mild curry.
• Pimento berries is also known as allspice
• You can buy jackfruit from most Asian/Caribbean supermarkets.
• Use orange sweet potatoes to substitute Caribbean sweet potato if you cannot source it.

Serving suggestions

• Brown Rice
• Steamed Cabbage
• Cauliflower Rice
• Green Banana Mash
• Air Fried Plantain
• Callaloo

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Curried Jackfruit

Learn how to make some homemade curried jackfruit from scratch. Go ahead and fool your non vegan friends with this delicious, aromatic one pan curry dish made from chunks of young jackfruit simmered in coconut milk with an array of vegetables.

5 from 2 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Entree

Cuisine: Caribbean

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 40 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 223kcal

Author: Charla

Ingredients

To season and cook the jackfruit

• ▢ 20 oz can of jack fruit (567g) drained and cut into chunks
• ▢ 1 tablespoon curry powder
• ▢ 1 tablespoon all purpose seasoning
• ▢ 4 tablespoon olive oil

To make the curry

• ▢ 4 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 2 tablespoon curry powder
• ▢ 1 medium onion chopped
• ▢ 2 large scallion chopped
• ▢ 4 garlic cloves minced
• ▢ 1 tablespoon ginger minced
• ▢ 1 red bell pepper chopped
• ▢ 1 green bell pepper chopped
• ▢ a handful of whole okra
• ▢ 1 teaspoon paprika
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon cumin
• ▢ 1 teaspoon all purpose seasoning
• ▢ ½ teaspoon raw cane sugar optional
• ▢ 1 tablespoon chadon beni
• ▢ 6 sprigs of thyme tied together
• ▢ 1 tablespoon pimento berries or ¼ teaspoon of ground allspice
• ▢ 2 tablespoon tomato paste
• ▢ 1 tablespoon tamarind paste
• ▢ 1 large red skin caribbean sweet potato chopped
• ▢ 14 oz can of full fat coconut milk (400ml)
• ▢ 1 scotch bonnet
• ▢ himalayan pink salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Place the jackfruit chunks in a medium sized bowl.
• Season with the curry powder and all purpose seasoning then set aside.
• On medium heat, add the olive oil to a medium sized frying pan or skillet.
• Add the jackfruit and cook for a few minutes to lock in the seasoning.
• Remove the jackfruit from the pan and set aside.
• Replenish the pan with olive oil.
• Add the curry powder and "burn" (cook) the curry powder for about one minute.
• Add the onion, scallion, garlic and ginger and saute until soft and translucent.
• Add the bell peppers and okra and cook for 3-5 minutes or until soft.
• Add the paprika, cumin, all purpose seasoning, raw cane sugar (optional) and chadon beni,then stir so all of the ingredients are combined.
• Add the thyme and pimento berries.
• Add the tamarind paste, tomato paste, coconut milk, sweet potato and scotch bonnet pepper and stir.
• Bring the pan to a rolling boil.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low, put the lid on and simmer for up to an hour (stirring half way through).
• Once cooked, remove the lid and do taste test and add pink salt and pepper to taste.
• Discard the thyme stems and scotch bonnet pepper, before serving.

Video

Notes

• • Make sure to buy "young" jackfruit. It should state what it is on the can.

• • Jackfruit is a vegan friendly meat substitute and gluten free and paleo approved.

• • You don't have to cut the jackfruit into triangles, you can shred it instead if you want to.

• • For best results, consume the curry immediately and don't freeze it.

• • Any leftovers should be refrigerated (when cool) for up to 2 days.

• • Make sure the jackfruit you are using is the GREEN/young savoury type and NOT the YELLOW type that's sweet and in syrup.

• • You can make this recipe with another meat substitute such as tofu if you wish

• • I used the my homemade Jamaican Curry Powder and All Purpose Seasoning to make this recipe with.

• • If you cannot find scotch bonnet use a fresh chilli, or jalapeno (uncut).

• • If you want your curry FIERY then cut into the scotch bonnet to release the heat or omit it if you want a mild curry.

• • Pimento berries is also known as allspice

• • You can buy jackfruit from most Asian/Caribbean supermarkets.

• • Use orange sweet potatoes to substitute Caribbean sweet potato if you cannot source it.

Nutrition

Calories: 223kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Sodium: 115mg | Potassium: 416mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 4889IU | Vitamin C: 18mg | Calcium: 103mg | Iron: 2mg

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