Pulled jackfruit has been in high demand amongst the meatless crowd over the last year. Still unfamiliar to many, everything from faux meat tacos to marinated barbecue has been created with the Asian fruit that shreds just like an all-day, slow cooked piece of meat.

Ripened jackfruit can be eaten for its naturally sweet taste while unripened, green jackfruit can easily take on any flavor and is typically an ingredient in savory curry or fried chips. Hailed as a “miracle crop,” jackfruit is known as the largest tree-borne fruit in the world. It’s easy to grow, resistant to pests and drought, and some will argue that it’s leaning in the direction of becoming a replacement crop for other widely overused crops like corn and wheat.

You can find whole jackfruit at your local Asian market for about .99 cents per pound or the canned young, green, unripened version in water. When you compare that price to organic pork roast at $10.00 per pound along with jackfruit’s zero saturated fat and cholesterol, hands down, its definitely worth a taste test.

[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10139″ info_text=”ADVERTISEMENT” info_text_position=”above” font_color=”#757575″ font_size=”10″ padding=”15″]

While restaurants are gradually catching on to this meat replacement ingredient, Tucson is happy to have Veg in a Box provide impeccable Jackfruit fajitas and Lovin’ Spoonfuls occasionally features shredded, spicy jackfruit tacos as a lunch special. If whipping up our vegan barbacoa isn’t what you had in mind on a Friday night, be sure to visit one of these top vegan spots for this impressive dish. You won’t be disappointed.

Many thanks to Desert Tortoise Botanicals, Sunizona and Sleeping Frog Farms for providing our organic and locally grown ingredients to help make this dish fantastic!

Editor’s Tip: Here, in Southern Arizona, for an authentic bread, try a bolillo roll. They’re easy to find. Outside of Tucson, bolillos might be a bit more difficult to locate.

Jackfruit Barbacoa

• 1 whole young, green jackfruit or 2 cans in water*
• 2 tomatoes, blended into liquid*
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 onion, diced*
• 1 green chili, diced*
• 4 garlic cloves, minced*
• 2 tbsp aminos*
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar*
• 2 blended dates*
• 1 tbsp olive oil*
• 1 tsp liquid smoke*
• 1 tsp oregano*
• 1 tsp cumin*
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika*
• 1 tsp turmeric*
• 1/2 tsp black pepper*
• 1 tsp sea salt

1. Saute the onions and green chili in oil for about a minute.
2. Add garlic and saute for another minute.
3. Add remaining ingredients and simmer.
4. Rinse diced jackfruit and gently pull to tear pieces from the firm core. The fruit will separate easily. Rough chop any difficult pieces and add to the simmering sauce. Stir well and cover for 15 minutes.
5. Serve on bolillo, or your choice of bread, with grilled green chili and pineapple. Enjoy.

*Indicates organically grown