How to prepare raw jackfruit to cook —

Spread out three layers of newspapers on the floor or your table. Apply generous amounts of oil onto your knife/sickle blade and onto your hands to prevent the sap from sticking to your knife, fingers and hands. 

Chop jackfruit in the middle, into two halves; wipe clean the white sap that drips off using a paper napkin. Chop it further into halves. Cut off the outer skin of raw jackfruit until you get a smooth surface and the thorny peel is all gone. 

Now chop the raw jackfruit pieces into thin slices or cubes depending on how you want to use them in cooking. Add the raw jackfruit pieces into a bowl containing water with a pinch of turmeric powder (to prevent the discolouration). This process also helps wash off the excess sap. You are done prepping raw jackfruit for cooking.

Jackfruit cutlet

Ingredients

2 cup raw jackfruit, cut into large pieces

2 tbsp chickpea flour

¼ cup chopped onions

6 green chillies, chopped

½ bunch coriander leaves, chopped

1 tsp red chilli powder

½ tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp garam masala powder 

Salt to taste

Oil for frying

Method

In a pan, boil the raw jackfruit pieces with salt and turmeric powder for 10 minutes. Cook till the water evaporates. Remove from flame and allow it to cook down. Mash them and add the remaining ingredients, except oil. Mix well, knead into a soft dough. Divide into balls, flatten into rounds. Heat oil in a pan. Fry the cutlet till golden brown. Serve hot with tomato sauce.

Jackfruit dalna

Ingredients 

500g raw jackfruit

1 cup chopped potatoes

3 tbsp oil

Salt to taste

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper powder

½ tsp sugar

1 tbsp ghee

2 bay leaves 

¼ tsp cumin seeds

To be blended into a smooth paste —

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp turmeric powder

2 green chillies

1 tsp garam masala powder

Water as required

Method

Cut the jackfruit into small pieces. Remove the outer skin, seeds and fibrous portion retaining only the flesh. In a deep pan, boil the fruit pieces in enough water for 10 minutes. Drain and keep aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan, add potatoes and cook till they turn soft and golden brown in colour. 

Remove from flame and keep aside. 

In the same pan, heat the remaining oil and add the grounded masala paste, salt and sugar. Mix well and sauté, sprinkling water as required, cook until the spices turn golden brown. Add one cup of water, boiled jackfruit and potatoes, mix well and simmer for 5 minutes. In another pan, heat ghee, add the cumin seeds and bay leaves. When the seeds crackle, pour the tempering on the dalna and mix well. Serve hot. 

Jackfruit pickle

Ingredients

500g chopped raw jackfruit

¼ cup grated mango

250ml mustard oil

4 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

4 tsp mustard seeds

2 tsp fennel seeds

¼ tsp asafoetida

4 cloves

4 peppercorns

2 bay leaves

Salt to taste

Method

Boil the jackfruit. Strain the water completely. Heat oil in a pan; add the clove, bay leaves peppercorn and asafoetida. Remove the pan from heat. Add fennel seeds and raw mango. Add chilli powder, turmeric powder, mustard seeds and salt to taste. 

Put again on flame and mix well. Add jackfruit and mix well so that mango is well incorporated in jackfruit. Stir for 2 minutes. Let it cool before transferring it into a    glass jar.

Jackfruit kheer

Ingredients

2 cups raw jackfruit, cut into small pieces

2 tbsp ghee to fry

1 cup sugar or to taste

2 green cardamoms

2 litre thick boiled milk

½ cup cashew nuts and raisins

Method

Heat ghee in a pan, add cashew nuts and raisins. Fry them until golden in colour and keep aside. In the same ghee fry jackfruit pieces till slightly brown. Add milk and allow to boil along with jackfruit. Let it cook in the milk and condense it to ½ the quantity. Add sugar, cardamoms, cashew nuts and raisins. Cook on low heat for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Echor-chingri (green jackfruit curry with prawn)

Ingredients

500g green jackfruit

250g prawns

1 big potato, cut into pieces

1 cup chopped onion

2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste

1 cup chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp green chilli, 1 tsp red chilli powder

½ tsp turmeric powder, ½ tsp cumin seed

½ tsp garam masala powder

¼ cup mustard oil

Sugar and salt, to taste

Method

Cut and wash the jackfruit. Heat 4 cups of water in a pan with some salt and turmeric powder. When the water starts to boil, add jackfruit. Cook till the jackfruit is tender. Drain and keep aside. Clean the prawns and marinate with salt and turmeric powder. Now heat oil in a wok and fry prawns and potatoes and keep in a bowl. 

In the same oil, add cumin seeds and fry for a while. Then add chopped onion and fry till golden brown. Add ginger-garlic paste and stir for few minutes. Add turmeric, green chilli, red chilli, salt, sugar and fry again with little water. 

Now add chopped tomatoes and cover the pan to soften the tomatoes. Cook until oil separates from the spices. Add fried prawn, potatoes and boiled jackfruit and 2 cups of water. Cook for another 10 minutes with the lid on. When the gravy is thick and oil floats over, remove from heat. Sprinkle some garam masala powder and serve.

Photo: Collected