Jackfruit is a popular meat substitute, but did you know that it can be added to desserts too? A large fruit, jackfruit is pulpy and delicious when eaten ripe. Often the tender jackfruit is used to make sabzis and curries, as well as savoury crisps. A favourite among vegetarians, it’s a superfood too. A tropical fruit, commonly found in Asia and Africa, jackfruit is very often treated as a vegetarian meat. The reason being its meaty taste and chunky texture.
Known as kathal in Hindi, there are plenty of dishes one can make with this nutritious fruit. Be it a kathal biryani, a jackfruit burger or a kathal ki barfi, you’d be surprised to know how versatile it is. Here are some jackfruit-based desserts that you can try at home.
1. Jackfruit Halwa
One of the easiest and most commonly eaten desserts in many parts of India is halwa. Although it is derived from the Turkish version, a halwa is a thick pudding made with flour or lentils. To give it a healthy spin, add jackfruit to the halwa. Combine with ghee and jaggery while stirring continuously and your dessert is ready.
2. Jackfruit Payasam
Payasam, for the uninitiated, is a South Indian counterpart of kheer. While the word refers to milk, the consistency of a payasam is thinner and is usually sweetened with jaggery. This jackfruit payasam has coconut milk, jaggery and cardamom for flavouring. Top with some cashews and a milky and creamy milk pudding is prepared with the goodness of jackfruit.
3. Jackfruit Modak
Commonly eaten during Ganesh Chaturthi, modak is a dumpling-shaped sweet meat that is Lord Ganesha’s favourite. Since so many variations of modak have come up these days, this jackfruit recipe is a healthy spin on the same. Filled with chopped jackfruit, grated coconut and jaggery, the rice flour dough is wound into desired shape and steamed.
4. Jackfruit Laddoos
Not only is the skin and pulp of jackfruit very beneficial, the seeds of this fruit are equally useful. Very often, they are added to curries but in this case, the jackfruit seeds are being used to whip up delicious laddoos. Paired with grated coconut, jaggery and cardamom powder, the jackfruit seeds add a crunch to the balls which are then rolled and set.
5. Jackfruit And Sabudana Dessert
This is a layered dessert that finds hints of jackfruit and sabudana in it. A super-healthy sweet meat that one would find hard to resist, it is made creamy with almond milk and coconut. A mix of brown and white sugar is used to sweeten the dessert and sabudana adds a moist touch to the sweet. Layer jackfruit and sabudana one after another and top with grated coconut.