Question
Paul Delva
Do you have any tips for cooking with jackfruit?
Answer
Typically in a savory context would be to use green jackfruit, um, you know, which has more of a, a savory flavor, that is to say less sweetness has developed, and then also a firmer texture. Okay? Um, and then, uh, you know, the, the jackfruit can be, uh, cooked, um, often partially cooked or par cooked, um, uh, you know, whether it's saute or sometimes it's, uh, baked in the oven, uh, once it's pulled apart, uh, it could be steamed, uh, and then it's seasoned, and then you kind of follow through with whatever process you're, you're working with, or, you know, whether it's combining with other, um, binding ingredients to make a burger patty, or you're making a saute or something else. Um, but, uh, you know, so there's, the goal is to try to, of course, to maintain the, the integrity of the, the firmer fiber and structure of the under ripe fruit. And, uh, so avoiding, uh, ripe fruit is gonna be part of that equation. And then to avoid overcooking, uh, is gonna be part of that as well. Um, but, uh, you know, also, I would say that, um, you know, as you make a, uh, a burger patty that's made from jackfruit or any other, uh, plant-based, um, you know, whole food ingredient, uh, that I can think of, um, let's try not to compare it to a meat-based patty. Um, the, the, the, the structure of a plant-based patty is going to be softer. Um, the, uh, the, the, the, the protein and, and just the, uh, the fleshy material of the meat, the ground meat in a meat-based patty, uh, becomes very firm. And, uh, that's, that's a, a mental transition, largely speaking, that many of us need to make as we transition to the plant-based, um, um, you know, equivalent, I'll say in terms of a burger patty. Okay? Um, so it's not gonna be, uh, regardless of how green, um, you know, in this case, the jackfruit might be, it's not gonna be as firm as a, uh, a meat-based patty.
