I did it!!!It being: finally created THE jackfruit recipe that I will use again and again (and already have)! The first time I tried jackfruit, I was a brand new vegan. I had heard about this vegetarian restaurant in Fort Collins, Colorado called Tasty Harmony. By the way, this was 2012, and although that's only a few short years ago, the world was a completely different place when it came to eating plant-based. Actually, I don't even think the term "plant-based" had become a thing (or maybe just breaking out thanks to Forks Over Knives documentary). Tasty Harmony was so ahead of their time. Anyway, I looked them up online and found this YouTube video (which still only has 91 views haha) and saw this pile of nachos topped with something called jackfruit. I was so intrigued. When I tried it for the first time, I was absolutely hooked. As you know from my Vegan Pulled Pork Showdown, this was one of my all-time favorite foods, veganized! Since then, I've been making jackfruit for the past several years. I even won my best friend Amber by inviting her over and making BBQ jackfruit sandwiches. Jackfruit has been my go-to for years now, making it for lake day with The Fresh Press, family gatherings, cooking lessons, bachelorette party catering, wellness fairs, and of course at home. I slap it on a bun with some cole slaw for a traditional BBQ experience, tuck it into some tacos, pile it on nachos like Tasty Harmony did, put it on a crust for the ultimate BBQ pizza, top a salad with it, and roll it up in lettuce wraps. And I have FINALLY pinpointed a recipe that doesn't: 1) take forever 2) take too much unnecessary effort 3) use too many uncommon ingredients 4) disappoint In this recipe, we are essentially making our own BBQ sauce and cooking the jackfruit in it. I love this because it eliminates the need for store-bought BBQ sauce which is loaded with sugar. However, feel free to add more homemade or store-bought BBQ sauce for serving. |