Pulled Jackfruit Recipe: A Vegan Essential

Pulled Jackfruit has become very on trend in the vegan world…and with good reason. Jackfruit are the biggest fruit in the world and they look like a cross between a lychee and a rugby ball.  They are incredibly good for you.  I remember when I lived in Birmingham (UK) the streets would be lined with these strange looking fruits and I had no idea what they were or how much I would become obsessed with them. Now that I live in rural France they’re are incredibly hard to get hold of, I’ve never seen fresh Jackfruit but they’re available tinned in big cities, my nearest is Toulouse.

Tinned Jackfruit come can be sweet (in syrup) or savoury (in Brine or water). I’ve been experimenting with several dishes using it which I’ll mention in later blog posts but I had to start with my pulled Jackfruit recipe. The beauty of cooking with Jackfruit is its meaty texture and the way that it absorbs flavours. I remember eating pulled pork before I became vegetarian and enjoying it but I think pulled Jackfruit is much better and I don’t know why anyone would use pork now!

My recipe is really easy, there’s no need to spend hours making the spicy BBQ sauce first, I just mix all the ingredients together in a slow cooker and cook for at least 1 hour. Also some recipes involve removing the core of the Jackfruit to make the ‘pulling’ part easier. Personally I find this a waste and totally unnecessary.  My recipe includes the core and pulls perfectly.

Makes 4 burgers:

2 tins of Jackfruit in Brine or water

3 tablespoons Tomato ketchup (I use homemade but shop bought is fine)

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

4 tablespoons of water

3 tablespoons of agave syrup or maple syrup

1 teaspoon of dijon mustard

2 teaspoons of tamarind paste

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

1 teaspoon of smoked paprika

1 teaspoon of vegetable bouillon

3 tablespoons of soy sauce

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

Begin by draining the Jackfruit and placing it in a slower cooker with the other ingredients. (If you don’t have a slow cooker you can place in a casserole dish with a lid on cook at 150 degrees celcius for 2 hours, stirring occassionally.  If it looks too dry just add a little water).

Mix well to ensure that all the Jackfruit is coated by the marinade.

Put in the slow cooker for at least 1 hour…longer if you have time.

When the cooking time is up empty the ingredients into a bowl and then ‘pull’ the Jackfruit apart.

Serve in a bun with coleslaw and vegan mayonnaise