BBQ Pulled Jackfruit

BBQ Pulled Jackfruit Adapted from a recipe by Mary McDougall (www.drmcdougall.com)

Jackfruit is a large, starchy, fibrous fruit that is sweet when it is ripe and is eaten as a dessert. When it is unripe it is used in savory dishes as a vegetable. You can find it in cans in most Asian markets. For this recipe, be sure to buy the kind packed in water or brine, not the sweetened variety. This recipe should be made in a crockpot because it needs a long time to simmer in order for the jackfruit to take on the barbecued flavor.

2 20 ounce can young green jackfruit in brine or water

1 -1/2 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed or minced

1-1/2 cup fat-free barbecue sauce (approximately)

¼ cup water

  1. Drain the jackfruit and rinse several times with water. Let rest in the strainer to remove as much water as possible while sautéing the onion and garlic.
  2. Faux Sauté the onion and garlic in a non-stick pan until softened slightly, about 5 minutes.
  3. Place the jackfruit in the bottom of a crockpot, (it won’t look like there is much of it, but as it breaks apart there will be plenty for 8 servings),
  4. spoon the onions and garlic over the top and add 1 cup of barbecue sauce and the water. Stir gently to mix well, cover and cook on high heat in the crockpot for about 3 hours before stirring.
  5. After 3 hours stir gently and add about ¼ cup more barbecue sauce. Cook for an additional hour on high.
  6. Uncover and stir, breaking up the jackfruit as much as possible into strands. Reduce heat to low.
  7. Cover and continue to cook for another 3-4 hours, stirring and breaking up the jackfruit until it is all broken into strands. Add the remaining ¼ cup barbecue sauce. Occasionally stirr as necessary. The jackfruit will become softer and easier to break apart the longer it cooks. It should be very thick and stringy at the end of the cooking time.
  8. Serve on buns, topped with lettuce and other favorite veggies.

Hints: This is a fantastic barbecued sandwich just bursting with flavor. Choose any of your favorite fat-free barbecue sauces in this recipe, the flavor will be slightly different depending on which sauce you choose. The secret is in the long cooking time which gives the sauce plenty of time to meld into the jackfruit. This is a much healthier choice for a barbecued filling than either soy or gluten, with much more flavor