jackfruit - spiney fruit redux!

I'm a big fan of jackfruit bubble tea. yummm, so tasty! after i did the durian post i've been thinking about jackfruit, the 2nd biggest fruit, next to pumpkin! if you get a chance to try it, do so. some interesting (?) facts about jackfruit:


"The jackfruit tree is handsome and stately"

"Jackfruit is the largest tree-borne fruit in the world, reaching up to 80 pounds in weight and up to 36 inches long and 20 inches in diameter"

"The fruit is unusual as it is borne on the main branches and the trunks, occasionally even from surface roots of the tree"

"Trees have been observed to survive and recover from hurricane force winds"

"Mature fruit have 35 to 40% edible flesh"

"The cut stem will immediately exude white, sticky latex; this latex will permanently stain clothing. "

"Jackfruit have a number of uses. Green, immature fruit may be used as a vegetable in cooking including soups, and baked dishes, and fried. The pulp of ripe fruit may be eaten fresh, dried, or preserved in syrup or used for salads. The seeds can be boiled and roasted (eaten as a nut) and have a chestnut flavor. Jackfruit is low in calories and fat and a good source of potassium and Vitamin A"

"The leaves and rind of the fruit are fed to livestock. The wood is used for making furniture and musical instruments."

"As a fruit it provides a somewhat spicy and sweet tasting flavor. Fresh jackfruit is most often shredded and served in salads or added to desserts such as ice cream. "

"A general distinction is made between soft jackfruits, which can be broken open with the hands, and the hard ones which requires a knife to open them. Strangely, it is the latter that is preferred, but there are many varieties that do not fall into either category. Some believe that the best variety of all is the "peniwaraka" (honey jak) from Sri Lanka. "

"Although the smell of the fresh fruit has a disagreeable musty odour, the flesh inside has an aroma of pineapples and bananas. Inside the fruit and under its nubbly green shell is a number of fruit compartments or segments arranged like a wheel. Each fruit contains a few, or up to 500, large starchy edible seeds"

"As the fruit ripens, it is often covered with a bag -- not to keep birds away but to encourage ants to swarm around it to repel other insects. "

"The young shoots and flowers are sometimes eaten as a vegetable. The pulp is firm, thick, and sweet and will continue to ripen even after it is peeled. If the bulbs are boiled in milk and then drained and cooled, the congealed mass that is left forms a pleasant orange-coloured custard. The flesh is sometimes candied by the Chinese and Malaysians. "

www.practicallyedible.com/ is a website about food. very cool, check out why vegetarians shouldn't drink wine and other facts, as well as definitions, recipes and info about evenything edible.