Jackfruit "meat"
bigbandjohn
Posts: 769 Member
Hey all.
Looking for people who have tried the jackfruit "meat" items from the store. Thinking of picking up the tex-mex one, but don't want to lay out too much money if it's not that good. Would love some non-veggie types opinions, but open to all views. Not necessarily trying to have it be a meat replacement (as in replace eating beef or pork), but a meat-like addition to my diet. If it tastes pretty good and has a decent texture, I may try it.
Go for it
Looking for people who have tried the jackfruit "meat" items from the store. Thinking of picking up the tex-mex one, but don't want to lay out too much money if it's not that good. Would love some non-veggie types opinions, but open to all views. Not necessarily trying to have it be a meat replacement (as in replace eating beef or pork), but a meat-like addition to my diet. If it tastes pretty good and has a decent texture, I may try it.
Go for it
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Replies
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It's tasty, IMO, but doesn't taste at all like meat. And much of the taste of a packaged product like that will be how tasty the BBQ sauce (or whatever sauce) is, to you personally. That's going to vary by person as well as brand.
Jackfruit itself is just a mild-tasting, slightly sweet fruit, that shreds into bits that have a somewhat firm texture, so are useful as a simulated pulled pork sort of thing. They don't taste like pork. They don't have a strong taste.
Be aware that this doesn't contain much protein, either.
I'm a veggie, if that matters.0 -
I don’t personally like packaged jackfruit that’s flavored like meat at all. And I usually love meat replacement products. I eat quite a few of them regularly.2
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Back to add: It isn't "flavored like meat" in the sense of most "meat replacement products". It's just jackfruit shreds with some kind of sauce.
I don't enjoy most meat replacement products, so rarely eat them. Most of them don't really taste like meat, and I never much liked meat anyway. That's over of the reasons I became vegetarian.
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The packaged, flavored jackfruit products that I’m referring to are very much intended as meat replacements and are seasoned and marketed as a direct replacement for meat in meals/sandwiches/tacos. Not sure why you’re trying to correct me on this.3
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She's not trying to "correct" you, I think there's a difference here in the use of the word "flavoring".
One of you may be using it as "seasoned as if it's..." and the other may be understanding it it be used as "having some sort of artificial flavor enhancement added to it in order to mimic the flavor of..."
Commercial jackfruit is seasoned with sauces usually used on meat, but it's not artificially enhanced with some sort of "meat flavoring".
Back to the thread, I've never tried the jackfruit products due to the low protein count.
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Many of the products are more than simply the fruit with a sauce mixed in. They include things like yeast, smoke, added proteins, etc. While these aren’t “artificial”, they’re certainly used to more closely mimic meat. These products seemed to be what the OP was talking about.
In either case, I don’t personally care for the few I’ve eaten.0 -
GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »She's not trying to "correct" you, I think there's a difference here in the use of the word "flavoring".
One of you may be using it as "seasoned as if it's..." and the other may be understanding it it be used as "having some sort of artificial flavor enhancement added to it in order to mimic the flavor of..."
Commercial jackfruit is seasoned with sauces usually used on meat, but it's not artificially enhanced with some sort of "meat flavoring".
Back to the thread, I've never tried the jackfruit products due to the low protein count.
Yup, not trying to correct/dispute you, @placeboBL, I was just trying to clarify for the OP what the product actually is like to eat. It is absolutely marketed as a meat replacement.
Often, people expect a "meat replacement" to be trying to taste like meat. This one seems more targeted at replacing meat in the sense that you can use it to make a pseudo-pulled-pork-like sandwich (or whatever) that looks like what omnivores eat. It doesn't taste like meat, and doesn't have protein (many of the other vegan "meats" do have material amounts of protein).
The jackfruit products I buy on occasion (Upton's) are in the vegan fake meat part of the store (I forget what they really call it), along with various vegan "bacon", "roast", and "burger" products and that sort of thing.
Ingredients of Upton's BBQ flavor are jackfruit, tomato paste, vinegar, molasses, filtered water, onion, sugar, sea salt, garlic, black pepper, chili powder, paprika, liquid smoke. It's just jackfruit with BBQ sauce ingredients added. The liquid smoke is about as close as it gets to meat flavoring (i.e., to make it taste like meat), and not all the other flavors (Thai, for example) include the liquid smoke.
It takes like jackfruit, which I also eat and like as an actual fruit, raw and plain.
In my book, there's nothing abstractly wrong with plant-based meat replacement products. I just don't enjoy most of them, personally. Leaves more at the store for others, right? 2 -
I eat them regularly and, IMO, they're typically as good as the sauce they're served in. The jackfruit itself doesn't have a strong flavor. I like it best in BBQ sauce and I tend to make my own with canned jackfruit (although I do also like the Upton's brand). What I like about them is that they're relatively low calorie (the jackfruit, that is, the sauce obviously varies). The "drawback" is that they're low protein (compared to what one would typically expect for meat or a meat substitute), but I just make this up with other foods.0
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I understand the distinction being made @AnnPT77 and thanks for clarifying.
The more commercialized “meat replacements” talked about here — Morningstar Farms, for example — do go overboard with the added ingredients to get that meat flavor. I don’t particularly care for them. I was more referring to things like flavored seitan and tempeh, which add flavor in a similar way to jackfruit products. I find these to be very tasty.
I suppose personal context and specifics would have helped us avoid confusion. 😀1 -
janejellyroll wrote: »I eat them regularly and, IMO, they're typically as good as the sauce they're served in. The jackfruit itself doesn't have a strong flavor. I like it best in BBQ sauce and I tend to make my own with canned jackfruit (although I do also like the Upton's brand). What I like about them is that they're relatively low calorie (the jackfruit, that is, the sauce obviously varies). The "drawback" is that they're low protein (compared to what one would typically expect for meat or a meat substitute), but I just make this up with other foods.
Jane, where are you finding the canned jackfruit?
From my reading (which was perhaps incorrect), the pseudo-pulled-pork dishes would use somewhat green jackfruit, and what's available fresh in stores is ripe jackfruit. (Well, maybe some of the whole jackfruit are green, but a whole jackfruit tends to be around the size of a basketball, if not larger: Daunting! ).
I've looked for canned green jackfruit, but not found any canned at all, ripe or green. I've seen the foil-packet kind online, but only by the case: Also daunting.
What kind of store, what section are you getting it - or is it online? Thanks!
Apologies for the digression, OP! :flowerforyou:0 -
janejellyroll wrote: »I eat them regularly and, IMO, they're typically as good as the sauce they're served in. The jackfruit itself doesn't have a strong flavor. I like it best in BBQ sauce and I tend to make my own with canned jackfruit (although I do also like the Upton's brand). What I like about them is that they're relatively low calorie (the jackfruit, that is, the sauce obviously varies). The "drawback" is that they're low protein (compared to what one would typically expect for meat or a meat substitute), but I just make this up with other foods.
Jane, where are you finding the canned jackfruit?
From my reading (which was perhaps incorrect), the pseudo-pulled-pork dishes would use somewhat green jackfruit, and what's available fresh in stores is ripe jackfruit. (Well, maybe some of the whole jackfruit are green, but a whole jackfruit tends to be around the size of a basketball, if not larger: Daunting! ).
I've looked for canned green jackfruit, but not found any canned at all, ripe or green. I've seen the foil-packet kind online, but only by the case: Also daunting.
What kind of store, what section are you getting it - or is it online? Thanks!
Apologies for the digression, OP! :flowerforyou:
@AnnPT77, you should get to Trader Joe's when you have a chance...they have canned green jackfruit, or at least they have had it recently. I'm not a big jackfruit fan and TJ's sometimes discontinues things abruptly, so I'm not sure whether they still have it. If you go, call ahead and make sure they have it, since it's a long trip for you.
OP, I agree that jackfruit is going to be as good (or not) as the sauce it's in. That's pretty much what it will taste like. When I've eaten jackfruit, I thought the consistency was a bit squishier than meat. You may find that the texture is somewhat like chicken or pulled pork, but softer. I generally don't eat it very much because I don't love it and it's not very high in protein, so it doesn't work very well for my macros.1 -
janejellyroll wrote: »I eat them regularly and, IMO, they're typically as good as the sauce they're served in. The jackfruit itself doesn't have a strong flavor. I like it best in BBQ sauce and I tend to make my own with canned jackfruit (although I do also like the Upton's brand). What I like about them is that they're relatively low calorie (the jackfruit, that is, the sauce obviously varies). The "drawback" is that they're low protein (compared to what one would typically expect for meat or a meat substitute), but I just make this up with other foods.
Jane, where are you finding the canned jackfruit?
From my reading (which was perhaps incorrect), the pseudo-pulled-pork dishes would use somewhat green jackfruit, and what's available fresh in stores is ripe jackfruit. (Well, maybe some of the whole jackfruit are green, but a whole jackfruit tends to be around the size of a basketball, if not larger: Daunting! ).
I've looked for canned green jackfruit, but not found any canned at all, ripe or green. I've seen the foil-packet kind online, but only by the case: Also daunting.
What kind of store, what section are you getting it - or is it online? Thanks!
Apologies for the digression, OP! :flowerforyou:
I order it from Amazon. Once I had tried it and knew I liked it, I wasn't worried about ordering a case (six cans) at a time.
They sell jackfruit in syrup and brine. For pseudo-pork, you want to make sure it's in brine (which you can then rinse off). The kind I get is described as "young green" jackfruit. I have heard some people say they've found jackfruit in Indian grocery stores, but I've only ever seen the kind in syrup there.1 -
Good Info. I definitely will try something from H-mart next time I visit. In the meantime, it may be worth checking out the canned or packaged from Kroger (I know they have the refrigerated tex-mex type). As I figured it's not meat tasting, but that's ok. If it works well with the flavors for enough people, it's worth trying. No one has said "Heck no!" yet, just not to their tastes.
I am guessing H-mart is the best place for fresh. Anywhere else anyone's found it?
Also, any good recipes, either sweet or savory for this? - maybe I should start this in a different thread under recipes.0 -
bigbandjohn wrote: »Good Info. I definitely will try something from H-mart next time I visit. In the meantime, it may be worth checking out the canned or packaged from Kroger (I know they have the refrigerated tex-mex type). As I figured it's not meat tasting, but that's ok. If it works well with the flavors for enough people, it's worth trying. No one has said "Heck no!" yet, just not to their tastes.
I am guessing H-mart is the best place for fresh. Anywhere else anyone's found it?
Also, any good recipes, either sweet or savory for this? - maybe I should start this in a different thread under recipes.
I don't know what H-Mart is. I don't think we have it here.
I've seen sliced chunks of jackfruit here at Whole Foods, and at a local market that stocks all kinds of unusual and international produce. The latter also has whole ones (giant, spiky, elongated, vaguely pear-shaped, green-to-brown exterior) If you buy it fresh, you'll want to look up how to use it. There are giant seeds (I've read that you can cook them), a kind of rubber-y seed coating, the actual edible parts, a pithy core, and some surrounding pith. It's a srange one!
The packaged ones are easier.
And it's your thread: You can ask about recipes if you want to. I don't have any (don't much use recipes). So far, I've just eaten it fresh/raw, or bought the Upton's in sauce once in a while.
Thanks to others for the buying tips! A case of 6 cans sounds pretty manageable. It would be fun to play with in enchiladas/burritos, casseroles, stews and such, I'm thinking. Tastes good, relatively low cal, some good micros.0 -
They are a Korean (Asian) supermarket. There is one in Troy, Michigan. Not sure how close that is to you. Their website is https://www.hmart.com/ if you want to look into it more. They carry Chinese Eggplant, which to me is one of the best. I use it like the large globe, but it's tons sweeter, IMHO. I believe they carry Jackfruit in cans, if not fresh as well.
I will check Whole Foods next time I'm in the area of one (currently the nearest one is 3 hours away).0 -
OP, unless you're really into cooking your jackfruit fresh, I hear it's a fair amount of work to start with a fresh one. Many people buy canned or frozen to avoid that prep work. However, if you do want to buy fresh jackfruit, H-Mart might have it. I don't know if it's popular in Korean cooking; it seems to be more of a Thai thing.
Here are directions on how to prepare a fresh jackfruit: https://www.thespruceeats.com/preparing-and-cooking-jackfruit-32170610 -
bigbandjohn wrote: »They are a Korean (Asian) supermarket. There is one in Troy, Michigan. Not sure how close that is to you. Their website is https://www.hmart.com/ if you want to look into it more. They carry Chinese Eggplant, which to me is one of the best. I use it like the large globe, but it's tons sweeter, IMHO. I believe they carry Jackfruit in cans, if not fresh as well.
I will check Whole Foods next time I'm in the area of one (currently the nearest one is 3 hours away).
Good to know! Troy is an hour and a half or so away, but I get there occasionally. I haven't checked out all the local Asian/Indian/etc. markets yet, though: That would be a good thing for me to get on in the new year, for various reasons.
My local produce mega-place has the Chinese eggplant, as do some of the farmers market folks in the summer. (I switch up my eggplant depending on taste & purpose.)
Thanks! 0 -
OP, unless you're really into cooking your jackfruit fresh, I hear it's a fair amount of work to start with a fresh one. Many people buy canned or frozen to avoid that prep work. However, if you do want to buy fresh jackfruit, H-Mart might have it. I don't know if it's popular in Korean cooking; it seems to be more of a Thai thing.
Here are directions on how to prepare a fresh jackfruit: https://www.thespruceeats.com/preparing-and-cooking-jackfruit-3217061
The ripe ones don't require that much prep fuss, to eat as a fruit. It's somewhere just slightly beyond the difficulty range of pineapple, I'd say: Cut off the rind/pith, cut out the core, pull/cut out the yummy bits from the remaining pith and seeds. The yummy bits hold together pretty well when you pull them from the pithy parts, though might need a cut at the base, and are a decent size (not tiny), so not that fussy.0 -
OP, unless you're really into cooking your jackfruit fresh, I hear it's a fair amount of work to start with a fresh one. Many people buy canned or frozen to avoid that prep work. However, if you do want to buy fresh jackfruit, H-Mart might have it. I don't know if it's popular in Korean cooking; it seems to be more of a Thai thing.
Here are directions on how to prepare a fresh jackfruit: https://www.thespruceeats.com/preparing-and-cooking-jackfruit-3217061
The ripe ones don't require that much prep fuss, to eat as a fruit. It's somewhere just slightly beyond the difficulty range of pineapple, I'd say: Cut off the rind/pith, cut out the core, pull/cut out the yummy bits from the remaining pith and seeds. The yummy bits hold together pretty well when you pull them from the pithy parts, though might need a cut at the base, and are a decent size (not tiny), so not that fussy.
Is the boiling step not required? That would definitely make it easier to prepare.0 -
OP, unless you're really into cooking your jackfruit fresh, I hear it's a fair amount of work to start with a fresh one. Many people buy canned or frozen to avoid that prep work. However, if you do want to buy fresh jackfruit, H-Mart might have it. I don't know if it's popular in Korean cooking; it seems to be more of a Thai thing.
Here are directions on how to prepare a fresh jackfruit: https://www.thespruceeats.com/preparing-and-cooking-jackfruit-3217061
The ripe ones don't require that much prep fuss, to eat as a fruit. It's somewhere just slightly beyond the difficulty range of pineapple, I'd say: Cut off the rind/pith, cut out the core, pull/cut out the yummy bits from the remaining pith and seeds. The yummy bits hold together pretty well when you pull them from the pithy parts, though might need a cut at the base, and are a decent size (not tiny), so not that fussy.
Is the boiling step not required? That would definitely make it easier to prepare.
I've never boiled the fresh/ripe ones to eat raw, and I'm not dead yet. I have always bought chunks, though . . . I wouldn't see that that would make a difference, vs. whole: The chunks are just a round or half-round cut from the giant fruit.0 -
OP, unless you're really into cooking your jackfruit fresh, I hear it's a fair amount of work to start with a fresh one. Many people buy canned or frozen to avoid that prep work. However, if you do want to buy fresh jackfruit, H-Mart might have it. I don't know if it's popular in Korean cooking; it seems to be more of a Thai thing.
Here are directions on how to prepare a fresh jackfruit: https://www.thespruceeats.com/preparing-and-cooking-jackfruit-3217061
The ripe ones don't require that much prep fuss, to eat as a fruit. It's somewhere just slightly beyond the difficulty range of pineapple, I'd say: Cut off the rind/pith, cut out the core, pull/cut out the yummy bits from the remaining pith and seeds. The yummy bits hold together pretty well when you pull them from the pithy parts, though might need a cut at the base, and are a decent size (not tiny), so not that fussy.
Is the boiling step not required? That would definitely make it easier to prepare.
I've never boiled the fresh/ripe ones to eat raw, and I'm not dead yet. I have always bought chunks, though . . . I wouldn't see that that would make a difference, vs. whole: The chunks are just a round or half-round cut from the giant fruit.
I read the article. They are using unripe "green" jackfruit. Perhaps in it's unripe form this step may be either necessary or helpful for other reasons. Not sure.0 -
OK. Bought some of the "tex mex" jackfruit. Going to try it for lunch tomorrow. Let you know how it goes.
My expectations:
1) it won't taste like meat
2) will be salty as all heck (but that goes with just about any pre-seasoned items I buy)
3) hopefully will be good enough as a supplimental dish from time to time to keep my calorie count down
I have had some "meat replacement" items in the past that were actually good in their own right. There was a vegetarian Chineese restaurant that did a shrimp dish that was excellent and I would actually go out of my way to get it from then as it was better than most of the local restaurants real shrimp versions of the same dish. Maybe this will end up falling into that category.1 -
I love jackfruit and I used to eat it a lot when I was little, but I only eat the ripe variety, fresh from the tree. I remember trying the green kind and not liking it. Typically the green, unripened fruit has to be cooked - not necessarily boiled, just cooked. You can probably eat it raw just like any vegetable but it may not taste much like anything, except maybe slightly bitter.1
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bigbandjohn wrote: »They are a Korean (Asian) supermarket. There is one in Troy, Michigan. Not sure how close that is to you. Their website is https://www.hmart.com/ if you want to look into it more. They carry Chinese Eggplant, which to me is one of the best. I use it like the large globe, but it's tons sweeter, IMHO. I believe they carry Jackfruit in cans, if not fresh as well.
I will check Whole Foods next time I'm in the area of one (currently the nearest one is 3 hours away).
Anyone in the Boston area looking for an Asian market should check out http://www.kammanfoods.com/quincy/en/ - it's amazing!
I think I've seen canned jackfruit, but not sure. I'd be surprised if they don't have it - they are huge.
They also have branches in NY and NJ, but I have no personal experience with them.0 -
bigbandjohn wrote: »OK. Bought some of the "tex mex" jackfruit. Going to try it for lunch tomorrow. Let you know how it goes.
My expectations:
1) it won't taste like meat
2) will be salty as all heck (but that goes with just about any pre-seasoned items I buy)
3) hopefully will be good enough as a supplimental dish from time to time to keep my calorie count down
I have had some "meat replacement" items in the past that were actually good in their own right. There was a vegetarian Chineese restaurant that did a shrimp dish that was excellent and I would actually go out of my way to get it from then as it was better than most of the local restaurants real shrimp versions of the same dish. Maybe this will end up falling into that category.
Let us know what you think, if you're willing? No pressure, either way is fine, taste is personal . . . but I"m always curious how these things turn out. :flowerforyou:0 -
OK. Having it now. To me, the texture look is right, but eating it's more like fruit... which it is. I feel it the bite texture could be akin to a winter squash - perhaps a cross between butternut and spaghetti squash. It does absorb the flavors well (I really couldn't identify a jackfruit taste clearly), so while I wouldn't not eat it, it's not really a true meat replacement in my view for the main reason of a texture fail.
I would say its bulk you eat to help fill your stomach while reducing calories. I did have the Tex-mex version, which is of course pre-prepared. It ends up being over $2 per serving (I did a 4.9 oz serving portion @88 calories), so aside from dieting I wouldn't bother with that product. It was ok, but not that great. I can get the veggie bowls from produce for that price, and it's a lot more bulk and quite tasty. I will look and see what fresh/canned jackfruit goes for per serving because I am curious to see if it can be part of my diet in other forms. I might look to see if it's cheap enough canned to add it with other items to bulk out a recipe if it would help reduce cost. Might work in a chili that way (like when people add squash or carrots to chili). Could be good there. However, I wouldn't go out of my way to get it if I wasn't in need of reducing calories if the cost is as high as what I tried.
Ultimately, if you need to reduce caloric intake and want to add bulk to recipes, this may help. I would probably say consider this over tofu for some replacements since tofu is a processed product, and jackfruit is (more) natural. Except in MapoTofu. Definitely still use tofu for that. Again, until I dig deeper, I see that tofu can be found for around $1.50-$2.50/lb, where the jackfruit product I tried would of been $7-$8 per pound, but it was a finished product, so it's not a fair price comparison.
So to review my predictions:bigbandjohn wrote: »1) it won't taste like meat
2) will be salty as all heck (but that goes with just about any pre-seasoned items I buy)
3) hopefully will be good enough as a supplimental dish from time to time to keep my calorie count down
1) I was correct. Doesn't really have a taste
2) Actually, it's not as bad as I though it would be. At only 160mg, it is only fractionally higher than my goal calorie/sodium ratio max average. So, it didn't taste like a salt lick as I expected. Strong seasoning, but not bad.
3) To supplement my diet, it does get a pass while I'm dieting. The verdict is still out for beyond that (non-dessert applications), but I am prepared that it won't be a meat-like meal, per-se.
One last thing today:I love jackfruit and I used to eat it a lot when I was little, but I only eat the ripe variety, fresh from the tree. I remember trying the green kind and not liking it. Typically the green, unripened fruit has to be cooked - not necessarily boiled, just cooked. You can probably eat it raw just like any vegetable but it may not taste much like anything, except maybe slightly bitter.
I will definitely try ripe jackfruit at some point. Probably won't get fresh from the tree like you did, though. Where were you that it was fresh if I may ask @swirlybee ?
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bigbandjohn wrote: »OK. Having it now. To me, the texture look is right, but eating it's more like fruit... which it is. I feel it the bite texture could be akin to a winter squash - perhaps a cross between butternut and spaghetti squash. It does absorb the flavors well (I really couldn't identify a jackfruit taste clearly), so while I wouldn't not eat it, it's not really a true meat replacement in my view for the main reason of a texture fail.
I would say its bulk you eat to help fill your stomach while reducing calories. I did have the Tex-mex version, which is of course pre-prepared. It ends up being over $2 per serving (I did a 4.9 oz serving portion @88 calories), so aside from dieting I wouldn't bother with that product. It was ok, but not that great. I can get the veggie bowls from produce for that price, and it's a lot more bulk and quite tasty. I will look and see what fresh/canned jackfruit goes for per serving because I am curious to see if it can be part of my diet in other forms. I might look to see if it's cheap enough canned to add it with other items to bulk out a recipe if it would help reduce cost. Might work in a chili that way (like when people add squash or carrots to chili). Could be good there. However, I wouldn't go out of my way to get it if I wasn't in need of reducing calories if the cost is as high as what I tried.
Ultimately, if you need to reduce caloric intake and want to add bulk to recipes, this may help. I would probably say consider this over tofu for some replacements since tofu is a processed product, and jackfruit is (more) natural. Except in MapoTofu. Definitely still use tofu for that. Again, until I dig deeper, I see that tofu can be found for around $1.50-$2.50/lb, where the jackfruit product I tried would of been $7-$8 per pound, but it was a finished product, so it's not a fair price comparison.
So to review my predictions:bigbandjohn wrote: »1) it won't taste like meat
2) will be salty as all heck (but that goes with just about any pre-seasoned items I buy)
3) hopefully will be good enough as a supplimental dish from time to time to keep my calorie count down
1) I was correct. Doesn't really have a taste
2) Actually, it's not as bad as I though it would be. At only 160mg, it is only fractionally higher than my goal calorie/sodium ratio max average. So, it didn't taste like a salt lick as I expected. Strong seasoning, but not bad.
3) To supplement my diet, it does get a pass while I'm dieting. The verdict is still out for beyond that (non-dessert applications), but I am prepared that it won't be a meat-like meal, per-se.
One last thing today:I love jackfruit and I used to eat it a lot when I was little, but I only eat the ripe variety, fresh from the tree. I remember trying the green kind and not liking it. Typically the green, unripened fruit has to be cooked - not necessarily boiled, just cooked. You can probably eat it raw just like any vegetable but it may not taste much like anything, except maybe slightly bitter.
I will definitely try ripe jackfruit at some point. Probably won't get fresh from the tree like you did, though. Where were you that it was fresh if I may ask @swirlybee ?
Tofu is processed, but unless you're avoiding processed things just for the sake of avoiding them, I'm not sure if that is a problem. It's high in protein, relatively low fat (for those who are concerned about such things), generally affordable in many parts of the world, and it can be a good source of calcium and iron. Jackfruit *doesn't* check most of those boxes, so I don't consider them to be equivalent foods. I eat and enjoy both of them, but tofu is much more nutritionally dense.0 -
bigbandjohn wrote: »I love jackfruit and I used to eat it a lot when I was little, but I only eat the ripe variety, fresh from the tree. I remember trying the green kind and not liking it. Typically the green, unripened fruit has to be cooked - not necessarily boiled, just cooked. You can probably eat it raw just like any vegetable but it may not taste much like anything, except maybe slightly bitter.
I will definitely try ripe jackfruit at some point. Probably won't get fresh from the tree like you did, though. Where were you that it was fresh if I may ask @swirlybee ?
It was in the Philippines. I didn't literally pick it fresh off the tree though.
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I bought canned jackfruit at trader jack's and made BBQ Shredded Jackfruit sandwiches. Tasted like pulled pork.
By itself, Jackfruit doesn't have a meaty flavor. It has a texture that is similar to meat. It shreds like meat does.0 -
bigbandjohn wrote: »OK. Having it now. To me, the texture look is right, but eating it's more like fruit... which it is. I feel it the bite texture could be akin to a winter squash - perhaps a cross between butternut and spaghetti squash. It does absorb the flavors well (I really couldn't identify a jackfruit taste clearly), so while I wouldn't not eat it, it's not really a true meat replacement in my view for the main reason of a texture fail.
I would say its bulk you eat to help fill your stomach while reducing calories. I did have the Tex-mex version, which is of course pre-prepared. It ends up being over $2 per serving (I did a 4.9 oz serving portion @88 calories), so aside from dieting I wouldn't bother with that product. It was ok, but not that great. I can get the veggie bowls from produce for that price, and it's a lot more bulk and quite tasty. I will look and see what fresh/canned jackfruit goes for per serving because I am curious to see if it can be part of my diet in other forms. I might look to see if it's cheap enough canned to add it with other items to bulk out a recipe if it would help reduce cost. Might work in a chili that way (like when people add squash or carrots to chili). Could be good there. However, I wouldn't go out of my way to get it if I wasn't in need of reducing calories if the cost is as high as what I tried.
Ultimately, if you need to reduce caloric intake and want to add bulk to recipes, this may help. I would probably say consider this over tofu for some replacements since tofu is a processed product, and jackfruit is (more) natural. Except in MapoTofu. Definitely still use tofu for that. Again, until I dig deeper, I see that tofu can be found for around $1.50-$2.50/lb, where the jackfruit product I tried would of been $7-$8 per pound, but it was a finished product, so it's not a fair price comparison.
So to review my predictions:bigbandjohn wrote: »1) it won't taste like meat
2) will be salty as all heck (but that goes with just about any pre-seasoned items I buy)
3) hopefully will be good enough as a supplimental dish from time to time to keep my calorie count down
1) I was correct. Doesn't really have a taste
2) Actually, it's not as bad as I though it would be. At only 160mg, it is only fractionally higher than my goal calorie/sodium ratio max average. So, it didn't taste like a salt lick as I expected. Strong seasoning, but not bad.
3) To supplement my diet, it does get a pass while I'm dieting. The verdict is still out for beyond that (non-dessert applications), but I am prepared that it won't be a meat-like meal, per-se.
One last thing today:I love jackfruit and I used to eat it a lot when I was little, but I only eat the ripe variety, fresh from the tree. I remember trying the green kind and not liking it. Typically the green, unripened fruit has to be cooked - not necessarily boiled, just cooked. You can probably eat it raw just like any vegetable but it may not taste much like anything, except maybe slightly bitter.
I will definitely try ripe jackfruit at some point. Probably won't get fresh from the tree like you did, though. Where were you that it was fresh if I may ask @swirlybee ?
Thanks for the review: Very thorough.
FWIW: My Whole Foods has fresh jackfruit occasionally, plastic-wrapped chunks or slices, in the case where they put cartons of cut-up fruit and that sort of thing. Anyplace that carries unusual fruit/veg, or international markets with fresh produce, might have it. Look it up online so you know what it looks like cut open, so you can recognize it. It's not inexpensive, there or at the local market that has it sometimes. I think it's about $4-$5 for a chunk that would be about 3 servings for me . . . maybe 100-200g servings? (The cut piece weighs more, because of the parts you don't eat.) But I'm in the US North (Michigan); it doesn't grow hereabouts.
Tofu is a processed product (as is tempeh), but to me it's meaningful that it's one people have been eating (and living long enough to breed ) for at least a couple of millennia. I like tempeh in chili better than tofu in chili (though cut-up smoked tofu is OK), but tempeh is a newcomer processed food - only been around a few hundred years.
Again, thanks for getting back to us about what you thought! :drinker:0
This discussion has been closed.
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