Easy Vegan Jackfruit Burgers (made with canned jackfruit)

 An easy vegan pulled jackfruit burger the whole family will love. Made with canned jackfruit.

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EASY VEGAN JACKFRUIT BURGERS (made with canned jackfruit)

Fancy making some homemade jackfruit burgers, but find the thought of making them quite daunting?

Try these easy jackfruit burgers made with canned (tinned) jackfruit.

They have lots of flavour and they are super simple to make.

As an added bonus they are low-calorie and very quick to make.

IS JACKFRUIT A HEALTHY INGREDIENT?

Jackfruit is a really healthy ingredient as it has so many vitamins and minerals.

1 cup of it has just 155 calories and 3 grams of fibre.

As well as fibre, it contains:

• Vitamin A
• Vitamin C
• Magnesium
• Copper
• Manganese
• Riboflavin
• Potassium

WHAT IS JACKFRUIT?

Jackfruit is a tropical fruit, which is grown in India and many other tropical and subtropical parts of the world, including Malaysia, the Caribbean, Africa, Australia, and Puerto Rico.

It's the largest fruit in the world and is part of the same family as mulberry, breadfruit, and figs.

Jack fruit is the fruit from a Jack Tree and it is yellowy-green and spiky on the outside, while inside it has a fibrous core filled with fruity pods which have a large seed inside them.

Both the pods and the seeds are edible, but it's the soft pods we tend to cook with.

You can read more about it in the Good Housekeeping article What is Jackfruit?

WHAT DOES JACKFRUIT TASTE LIKE?

When it's ripe it has a fruity flavour somewhere between mango and pineapple.

When it's unripe it has more of a bland, neutral flavour, which is great for adding strong flavours to.

Jackfruit is generally used in vegan cooking for it's soft, chewy texture and its ability to take on other flavours.

Canned (tinned) jackfruit is usually more towards the unripe side of the scale and is perfect for savoury dishes as it isn't too fruity in flavour.

FRESH OR CANNED JACKFRUIT?

You can cook with fresh or tinned jackfruit.

The tinned jackfruit is pre-prepared, so less mess and fuss to use in recipes, but fresh is ok to use too.

When preparing fresh jackfruit, you want to use a really sharp knife, which is brushed with oil (it is very sticky) to carefully cut it open.

Once you have opened it, you can lift out the pods and remove the seeds.

LINDA McCARTNEY'S FAMILY KITCHEN

This easy but delicious recipe comes from the new cookbook Linda McCartney's Family Kitchen.

Over 30 years ago, Linda McCartney started to promote meat-free cooking and share her passion for eating compassionately and creating easy family recipes.

This fabulous new cookbook Linda McCartney's Family Kitchen is full of Linda's recipes which have been updated for the plant-based diet so popular with many of us today.

Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney worked together to bring us this modern take on their family recipes, helping Linda's legacy live on.

DISCOVERING LINDA McCARTNEY

I was really excited to get my hands on Linda McCartney's Family Kitchen, as I turned to Linda (well her books), for help and recipes when I moved fully to a vegetarian diet as a student.

I was living in student digs and a novice cook back then and really needed some help.

There weren't many vegetarian and vegan options back then and you usually had to visit a health food shop for vegetarian or vegan ingredients.

The nearest to convenience foods you could buy were dry sausage or falafel mixes or if you were lucky your health food shop sold chilled foods like veggie sausage rolls or pies.

Home Cooking was my first cookbook as I ventured into the world of vegetarian cooking and it was a well-used and well-loved book.

It must have been lost between house moves or loaned to someone and not returned, so I only have this slightly out-of-focus photo and some great memories or meals I served up for my family and friends.

WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM LINDA McCARTNEY'S FAMILY KITCHEN?

Inside this beautifully shot cookbook, you will find over 90 simple. but wholesome plant-based recipes.

It also includes family stories and photos, that give us some insight into this famous family and their love for Linda.

The chapters include a general guide to Plant-Based Eating; Breakfast and Brunch; Soups and Salads; On the Go; Quick and Easy Meals; Weekend Feasts; Sides and Snacks; Baking and Puddings and Seet Treats.

Linda McCartney's Family Kitchen: Over 90 plant-based recipes to save the planet and nourish the soul by Linda, Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney is published by Seven Dials in Hardback at £26.

RECIPES TO LOOK OUT FOR

I'm loving this new cookbook. 

Here are a few of the recipes that caught my eye:

• Blueberry & Banana Breakfast Muffins
• Sweet Potato Rosti with Avocado, Coriander and Chilli
• Radish,  Bean and fennel Salad
• Black-Eyed Bean Cakes
• Green Bean and Tofu Red Curry
• Mushroom & Lentil Pie
• Chargrilled Cabbage with Thai Dressing and Cashew Nuts
• Crunchy Pecan Cookies
• Key Lime Pie

HOW TO SERVE PULLED JACKFRUIT BURGERS

Jackfruit burgers are served similar to sloppy joes or a vegan version of pulled pork.

Here are some serving suggestions:

1. BURGER BUN - serve on a soft burger bun with lettuce, tomato, red onion and vegan cheddar
2. LETTUCE WRAP - serve it on a lettuce wrap with salad
3. SLAW - serve it on a burger bun with coleslaw for that creamy contrast, try my vegan carrot and dill coleslaw
4. TOASTIE - serve in a toastie with vegan cheddar
5. BAKED POTATO - top a baked potato with this and some grated vegan cheddar, guacamole and vegan soured cream (or cream fraiche)
6. QUESADILLA - serve in a quesadilla with grated vegan cheddar
7. HOT DOGS - top hot dogs with a generous serving

HOW TO STORE PULLED JACKFRUIT

Once cooked and cool, you can store pulled jackfruit in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Alternatively, once cool, you can freeze in an airtight container for 3-4 months, then defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat.

MORE VEGAN BURGER RECIPES TO TRY

Here are some more easy vegan recipes for you to try:

• 10 Minute Spicy Bean Burgers
• Easy Black Bean & Peanut Burgers
• Black Bean, Beet & Brazil Nut Burgers
• Easy Chickpea & Coriander Burgers
• Lentil & Mushroom Burgers
• Smoky Red Pepper & Cheese Bean Burgers

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pulled jackfruit, cooking jackfruit, vegan pulled jackfruit burgers, jackfruit burgers, vegan burgers

dinner

British

Yield: 4

Author: Jacqueline Meldrum (with kind permission)

Vegan Pulled Jackfruit Burgers

Vegan Pulled Jackfruit Burgers 

 It can take 2,350 litres of fresh water to produce just one 150g beef burger – that’s enough water to fill 30 bathtubs or have a five-hour shower! 

So that’s a good reason to try this sensational pulled pork-style jackfruit instead and enjoy the burger experience without harming the environment. 

You can buy jackfruit in jars and tins.

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 25 Min

Ingredients

Burgers

• 2 x 400g (14 oz) tins or jars of jackfruit in water
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
• 1½ tsp ground cumin
• 5 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
• 3 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbsp tomato purée
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

To Serve (optional)

• 8 cos lettuce leaves
• 4 burger buns
• 4 slices of vegan cheese
• ½ small red onion, peeled and finely sliced
• 1 large tomato, thinly sliced

Instructions

1. Drain the jackfruit, rinse it thoroughly and pat dry. Cut it into thin slices.
2. Put the oil into a large non-stick pan and place over a high heat. Add the jackfruit and stir-fry for 5–7 minutes, until it begins to colour.
3. Add the garlic, paprika and cumin and fry for another minute until aromatic.
4. Reduce the heat to medium, add the soy sauce, maple syrup, vinegar and tomato purée and simmer for another 3–4 minutes, stirring frequently, until all the liquid has reduced down and the jackfruit has thickened and become sticky.
5. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary with salt and pepper.
6. To serve, place some lettuce on the base of a burger bun, top with vegan cheese, if using, slices of red onion, tomato and the jackfruit. Place the other half of the bun on top and serve immediately.
7. Enjoy!

Notes:

Calories:

Pulled Jackfruit without the bun and toppings = 172 calories per portion (4 servings)

With burger buns and suggested toppings = 385 calories per burger (4 servings)

Storing pulled jackfruit

Once cool, you can store pulled jackfruit in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or freeze in an airtight container for 3-4 months, then defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

385.46

Fat (grams)

12.90

Sat. Fat (grams)

2.52

Carbs (grams)

57.99

Fiber (grams)

3.54

Net carbs

54.45

Sugar (grams)

30.83

Protein (grams)

11.99

Sodium (milligrams)

1931.47

Cholesterol (grams)

0.00

Disclosure: The publisher sent me a copy of this cookbook for review purposes and gave me permission to share the recipe. I was not expected to write a positive review and any opinions expressed are my own.