It has taken me forever to jump on the jackfruit bandwagon. I had it for the first time in LA when my step-mother ordered jackfruit “fish” tacos at Sage Oganic Vegan Bistro. Just a few weeks ago my husband had the jackfruit reuben at FüD. But, truthfully, it took a reader email to encourage me to try jackfruit myself. She asked if I had ever cooked with jackfruit (no) and would I mind trying it in the pressure cooker and let her know how it works?
Martie, this is for you!
Jackfruit is, well, a fruit. It’s flesh is very meaty and, when cooked, it shreds, so it’s become a darling among vegans who remember pulled pork sandwiches but now know that pigs are friends, not food. Vegan versions of “pulled pork” sandwiches with jackfruit abound on the interwebs.
I bought canned jackfruit, packed in water (NOT syrup), from an Asian market.
The jackfruit is pre-cut and not in a brine so I did nothing but rinse and drain the jackfruit before adding it to the pressure cooker.
I started to mix and match ingredients from a couple of my barbecue sauce recipes. Since the idea behind this recipe is to emulate “pulled pork” I used whole mustard seeds, instead of ground mustard, because it is commonly used to season cooked meat. The combination of the whole mustard seeds and cayenne pepper make this a very spicy dish.
BBQ Pulled Jackfruit
From Vegan Pressure Cooking by JL Fields
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup (40 g) finely diced onion
- 1 tablespoon (8 g) minced garlic
- 1 can (17 ounces, or 476 g) jackfruit, packed in water, rinsed and drained
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 3 tablespoons (48 g) tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) maple, date, or brown rice syrup
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup (120 to 180 ml) water
Instructions
Pressure Cooker Instructions
- In an uncovered pressure cooker heat the oil on medium-high. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 3 minutes, until the onion is soft. Add the jackfruit, seasonings, tomato paste, vinegar, Worcestershire, and syrup and stir to combine. Add enough of the water to cover the jackfruit and mix well.
- Cover and bring to pressure. Cook at high pressure for 3 minutes. Allow for a natural release.
- Remove the lid and stir the jackfruit and sauce well. Use a fork to pull the jackfruit into shreds. This should be very easy to do.
- Serve on the toasted bread or buns.
Suggested Slow Cooker Instructions (with my thanks to Ambur)
- Mix all ingredients, except oil and jackfruit, in a bowl.
- Add oil to the slow cooker, the add the jackfruit.
- Pour the BBQ sauce over the jack fruit, coating it well.
- Cover and slow cook on low for 3 – 4 hours.
- NOTE: I have not tested these suggested slow cooker instructions – you may need to keep an eye on it to ensure there is enough liquid.
One can of jack fruit makes enough for four hearty sandwiches.
As I said, this is very spicy but my husband and I love hot and spicy (you are so naughty!) so we served the BBQ Pulled Jackfruit on avocado to add a cooling element to the sandwich. If you prefer something less spicy, reduce the amount of cayenne pepper and/or whole mustard seeds.
So, come on, I know you’ve done it. How have you used jackfruit?
22 thoughts on “Pigs are friends, not food. Eat this BBQ Pulled Jackfruit Sandwich.”
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I love jackfruit! Last year I made Jackfruit BBQ Tacos (http://www.sprint2thetable.com/2011/06/jackfruit-bbq-taco/), but you were much smart than I was… I use fresh jackfruit – it took FOREVER to cut out and it is the stickiest stuff I’ve ever handled. Will definitely be trying this canned variety next time. 🙂
@Sprint2theTable:disqus , would love the check out your recipe but the link doesn’t work – can you repost?
Weird… trying again: http://www.sprint2thetable.com/2011/06/jackfruit-bbq-taco/
There it is! And I remember that recipe now. It only took me 18 months to try jackfruit – maybe the actual fruit scared me! LOL
I have never tried jackfruit, let alone cooked with it. Very intriguing.
Try it! I think you’ll like it!
Yup! In curries, stews, salads, ice ‘creams’ I love it! You can find my recipes here: http://www.skinny-vegan-food.com/p/recipes.html?search_term=jackfruit&ui=1112
This recipe looks great, I’ll definitely be trying it- thanks!
Thanks, @93237e59166ecf88d8d658b616e764b6:disqus !
I’m so excited that you tried this! It looks amazing! I used jackfruit to make “crab” cakes, but this is the ultimate recipe- the one I’ve been waiting to try! Thanks so much for doing this! Yay!
My pleasure, @1525631657c725c7ec3f52f6370ac0d1:disqus! Thanks for the inspiration!
never tried jackfruit, but i didn’t know that they offered it in a can. that’s a neat idea. thanks for the inspiration.
You’re welcome, @thechimes:disqus! Hope you try it!
I love Jackfruit prepared this way. I’ll have to venture beyond the bbq version and try something different. But the pulled jackfruit sandwich is wonderful!!
I need to play with it a bit more, too, @48be86d34c0807824c2f470b13c59322:disqus!
I’ve only used jackfruit to make carnitas so far. I definitely need to try this BBQ version!
That sounds great, @facebook-692426063:disqus! I’ve used jackfruit with sweet potatoes in enchiladas, too: https://jlgoesvegan.com/my-favorite-pressure-cooker-cookbooks-a-jackfruit-and-sweet-potato-enchiladas-recipe/
Ahhhhhh! I love working with jackfruit. It so remarkably mimics that shredded texture I used to get in the Tex Mex food of my youth. And I’m lovin’ the look of that bread, JL. I like mine all grainy (I see some good looking seeds peeking out) and majorly toasty, too! Thanks for sharing.
If allergic to latex, may not be able to eat jackfruit.
Thanks for posting this recipe! I made it once and promptly misplaced my copy of your book. Looking forward to taking this camping!
You are welcome, @sally@sallyweigoldcharette:disqus! Have fun!