Wednesday, May 5, 2010

JACK-FRUIT----(THE LARGEST FRUIT TO GROW ON A TREE)

The heart of the jackfruit is also used to make the yellow dye for monks robes
My computer table and desk , I cut a jackfruit tree down and had the wood sawed into boards and gave to man to make me a table , I love the color . No stain was added to color the wood all natural color

Another shot of my desk or table


I don't know how the limbs can hold these heavy fruits without breaking (some can weigh 50 lbs.)

This is younger fruit

Small pieces cut from the fruit to get to the eatable part of the fruit


These are the small segments or pods that are eatable and contain the seed


The seeds are good to eat , roast them and they taste like a chestnut

These pods are very sticky and you have to be careful not to get on your counter and knife .


This pictures shows the prickly side of the fruit, that you have to cut thru to get to the pod segments inside . These are very sweet when ripe and a lot of folks like to cook them green as a subsitute for meat , and also to boil and put in a Thai soup.


Yesterday Ciejay went in the field behind our house where there is a huge jack-fruit tree and cut off one of the fruits ready and ripe (you can tell by the smell), and you can't believe how big it was , it must have weighted 25 lbs. at least.
I love jack-fruit , but it is really hard to peel and cut and get the fruit out as it is filled with a rubber juice that keeps most folks from cutting and eating them , but Ciejay has a way of doing it and does not get to much rubber on everything .We had it for a fruit dessert after dinner and it was the sweetest one I have eaten in all my 6 years here in the LOS . Not only was there enough for us , but she divided it among all the neighbors and they were all thankful, that they did'nt have to cut and clean out for themselves . Not only is Jack-fruit great to eat but the wood from the tree is prized for it's quality to make musical instruments, the wood has a wonderful yellow color that makes beautiful furniture (see the picture of my table) and the heart of the wood is used to make the dye to color the robes for the Thai monks.
Jackfruit
By , About.com Guide
Definition: Enormous and prickly on the outside, jackfruit looks somewhat like durian (though jackfruit is usually even larger). Once a jackfruit is cracked open, what you will find inside are pods or "bulbs". Often referred to as the seeds, these bulbs are actually a kind of fleshy covering for the true seeds or pits, which are round and dark like chesnuts. The fleshy part (the "bulb") can be eaten as is, or cut up and cooked. When unripe (green), it is remarkably similar in texture to chicken, making jackfruit an excellent vegetarian substitute for meat. In fact, canned jackfruit (in brine) is sometimes referred to as "vegetable meat".
Jackfruit can also be purchased frozen, dried, or canned either in brine (usually unripe) or in syrup (ripe and sweet). If using fresh jackfruit, it's a good idea to oil your knife and hands first before cutting, as the fruit is very sticky.
Jackfruit contains many vitamins and minerals, and offers numerous health benefits. The fruit's isoflavones, antioxidants, and phytonutrients mean that jackfruit has cancer-fighting properties. It is also known to help cure ulcers and indigestion.

12 comments:

Mike said...

Malcolm when I saw the title of the post and the picture of monks- well I did wonder!

As they say you learn something everyday- thanks for the info.

Personally I do not like Jackfruit but MTF and Doy do.

Mike said...

Malcolm when I saw the title of the post and the picture of monks- well I did wonder!

As they say you learn something everyday- thanks for the info.

Personally I do not like Jackfruit but MTF and Doy do.

Malcolm said...

Mike, jack-fruit like durin takes a bit getting use too now I like both , glad you like the monk picture , I knew that would catch somes attention .

Anonymous said...

thats a wonderful desk M.

I sure am learning a lot reading your posts. nice work !

*lynne* said...

I didn't know jackfruit was the source of the color of those robes!

btw in Malaysia, the jackfruit known to cause 'wind'.. not in the 'odoriferous emanations from behind' kind, but the 'omg my intestines are filled with air and it hurts!' kind, and therefore is not to be eaten by those with gastric problems, or on an empty stomach. Do the Thai have a similar take on the fruit's effects?

LOVE the table, btw!!

*lynne*

p/s: my today.com blog is no more, I've moved it to blogspot, fyi

Camille said...

Hi Malcolm,

Jackfruit is good indeed, didn't know about roasting the seeds, that's one to remember!

Nice monk picture, had my eyebrows raised as well!

Lawrence said...

Malcolm, I really enjoy posts as informative as this one: very helpful detail about the preparation of jackfruit. I love it as a dessert, but don't think I'll be using it as a chicken substitute, I like chicken too much.

With a table like that, no wonder you write such good posts!

The Photo at the top is of Acharn Chah with some of the first monks he sent to England. It was taken about 1976, think. The American monk Acharn Sumedo was (and is) the senior monk here, he is standing on Acharn Chah's right. I also recognise a Kiwi monk who is still in the robes, abbot of a branch monastery in UK. Where did you come across this?

Talen said...

Malcolm, That desk is absolutely beautiful...I will have to look into some jack fruit wood when I finally get to Thailand.

The family farms have a few jack fruit trees and occasionally one will fall from the tree ....scary propositions because they have some weight behind them and I would hate to get one upside the head.

Martyn said...

Malcolm the current weather warrants putting a huge chunk of ice cream on top of that fruit.

Interesting about the dye for the monks robes, it makes sense and obviously dates back a long long time.

Best wishes from Udon Thani.

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