When it comes to tacos there’s no substitute for flavor. We love soft tacos around here and enjoy a taco that’s got plenty of spices, some avocado, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. But, for anyone who is looking to make healthier choices meat-free meals can a useful tool to have in your recipe box. Enter jackfruit soft tacos. This tropical fruit makes a wonderful meat substitute and does have some protein, but also decent amounts fiber, carbohydrates, vitamin C, and various minerals.
If you’ve been looking at alternatives to meat then you may already know what jackfruit is. For everyone else here’s a run down. Jackfruit is a tropical fruit that can grow quite large in size. When young the flesh is often canned and resembles pulled chicken or pork in texture. Jackfruit doesn’t have a strong flavor and so takes on the spices of any given dish, making it an excellent choice for making meat-free tacos with. You won’t be able to do the same with ripe jackfruit as the taste and texture changes to be something closer to mango when the fruit is matured.
Jackfruit is native to regions of India and Malaysia, but is most commonly found canned in the US. However, you can also sometimes find spiced young jackfruit in the refrigerated section of the grocery. To process this fruit you’ll need to take 2 forks and pull the jackfruit pieces into shreds so that it resembles pulled pork. Don’t worry if it doesn’t look very meaty when you open the can- it will by the time you finish the recipe.
Next sauté onion, garlic, and jalapeño in olive oil. Add the jackfruit to this along with BBQ sauce, cumin, oregano, coriander, smoked paprika, salt and the magic ingredient of orange zest. Once the flavors have a chance to come together in the pan assemble your tacos on tortillas that have been warmed in the oven.
Place the jackfruit on first, followed by the jackfruit, and then top with thin slices of avocado. Serve with lime wedges for the ultimate in flavor and garnish with cilantro if desired. As is this recipe is vegan but you can of course add a bit of shredded cheddar or pepper jack to your tacos if you’d like.
You might not believe that a fruit can make a good replacement for meat, but in the case of jackfruit tacos it works really well. The well-spiced sauce goes a long way towards flavoring the shredded fruit pieces. You have to try it for yourself and see just how tasty healthier eating can be.
Jackfruit Tacos
Allergens: Gluten
Diet: Vegan Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 14-oz cans young jackfruit, drained and rinsed
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
- 3/4 cup barbecue sauce
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp grated orange zest
- 10 to 12 (6-inch) flour tortillas
- 1/3 cup shredded red cabbage
- 1/3 cup shredded carrots
- 1 ripe avocado, thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
- 2 limes, cut into wedges
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Using 2 forks separate jackfruit pieces into small shreds. Heat olive oil in a larger pan over medium heat on the stovetop. Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add garlic and jalapeño and cook for another minute.
- Add jackfruit, barbecue sauce, cumin, oregano, coriander, smoked paprika and salt to the pan and stir well. Cook for 5 minutes or until jackfruit is beginning to brown. Remove from heat and fold in orange zest.
- Place tortillas on baking sheet and heat in oven for 5-8 minutes or until warmed through. Assemble tacos using cabbage and carrots as the base layer, followed by jackfruit, then top with avocado and cilantro. Serve with a lime wedge.
Recipe adapted from Simply Recipes.