Tender jackfruit is simmered with tomatoes and Mexican spices, then served over refried bean slathered tortillas to make these spicy jackfruit tinga tostadas.
Just about every time I post a jackfruit recipe or share one on social media, someone asks me “What does jackfruit taste like?” I almost hate to answer, because it’s not very exciting. The answer is that jackfruit tastes pretty much like nothing.
Sounds like a disappointment, but when you think about it, lots of amazing vegan ingredients that do a great job of standing in for meat taste like nothing. Haven’t we been hearing for years that tofu takes on the flavor of what you cook it with? And seitan might have some savory flavor when you buy it, but that’s only because it’s been simmered in a bunch of seasonings. Wheat gluten on its own is pretty flavorless.
With jackfruit it’s all about the texture. Jackfruit has a tender, meaty texture that works great in place of any kind of pulled meat. And the fact that it has essentially no flavor is actually a bonus, because you can season it up to make it taste like whatever you want.
Most jackfruit recipes mimic pulled pork, but today I went for a veganized version of chicken tinga. That wasn’t too tough, because from what I can remember, chicken has a much more neutral flavor than pork. Right? It’s been a while, but I think that’s the case!
I used lots of spices to make the dish super flavorful. If you want your vegan cooking to taste good, stock your pantry, because spices are where it’s at. The seasonings are a bit heavier than those you’d find in traditional chicken tinga, with soy sauce adding some savory flavor and smoked paprika adding some smokiness. But it’s so worth it.
And one of my favorite things about this recipe is that as far as the jackfruit tinga itself is concerned, most of the ingredients are pantry staples. Keep them on hand and you can throw it together any time you’d like, and if you’re not feeling the tostadas or don’t have all the ingredients, switch it up and make tacos, sandwiches, burritos, fajitas, or whatever you’d like.
Jackfruit Tinga Tostadas
Tender jackfruit is simmered with tomatoes and Mexican spices, then served over refried bean slathered tortillas to make these spicy jackfruit tinga tostadas.
Ingredients
For the Refried Beans
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 (14 ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
For the Jackfruit Tinga
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 (20 ounce) cans young green jackfruit in brine, drained and rinsed
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder (use less for a milder version)
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Pinch ground cinnamon
- 1 (14 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt and pepper, to taste
For the Tostada Shells
- 8 corn tortillas
- Oil or cooking spray
For Serving
- Shredded lettuce
- Avocado slices or guacamole
- Fresh cilantro
Instructions
To Make the Refried Beans
Coat the bottom of a medium skillet with olive oil and place it over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add in the garlic and cumin, and continue to sauté for about 1 minute more, until very fragrant.
Stir in the beans and about 1/2 cup of water. Bring the mixture to a simmer and allow to cook, uncovered for about an hour, until the beans fall apart completely, adding more water to the skillet as it dries up during cooking. You can shorten the cook time and mash the beans with a fork if you prefer, but I find the texture is much nicer if you just let them simmer. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
To Make the Jackfruit Tinga
While the beans cook, coat the bottom of a large skillet with olive oil and place it over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and jackfruit and continue cooking until the jackfruit softens up a bit, about 5 minutes more.
Stir in the cumin, oregano, chipotle powder, smoked paprika, and cinnamon, then stir in the tomatoes, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, liquid smoke, and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a simmer and allow to cook for about 20 minutes, until the jackfruit is tender, adding a splash or two of water to the pot whenever it becomes too dry. As the jackfruit cooks, begin pulling the pieces apart with a fork. Remove the skillet from the heat. Remove the bay leaf and season with salt and pepper to taste.
To Finish and Serve
When the beans and jackfruit are almost finished cooking, preheat the oven to 400°. Lightly oil or spray the tortillas with cooking spray, then arrange them directly on the rack of the preheated oven. Bake until crispy and lightly browned around the edges, about 8 minutes.
Slather each tortilla with a thin layer of refried beans, then top with jackfruit tinga and toppings of choice. Serve.
Hi Alissa
In this dish can you use fresh jackfuit opposed to tinned young jackfruit. Reason I ask is I have a large quantity of fresh jackfruit (currently in my freezer) and looking for ways to use it.
Tried ti once as a substitute for young jackfruit and found that it sort of dissolved, or didn’t add much texture, have you played with it before, was it just a case of I Amy of over cooked it last time?
Any suggestions for fresh jackfruit recipes?
Cheers
Mike
I’m afriad I’ve never cooked with fresh jackfruit. I have seen recipes that allow for canned or fresh to use, so I’d think it would work in this one, but since yours didn’t work out I’m not so sure! Here’s a recipe that calls for fresh or canned that I have bookmarked: https://tasty.co/recipe/vegan-pulled-pork-sandwiches. I’d love to hear how eitehr this or that recipe works out if you try with fresh!
Hi Alissa and Mike,
Fresh jack fruit has not the same taste or texture of young jack fruit. I’m Brazilian and jack trees are easy to find all around the country, and we say either you love the fruit, or you hate it! Fresh jack fruit has an intense flavor, a super strong odor (some might say it stinks), so I wouldn’t try to substitute it in this recipe. But I’m talking about the real fresh thing, not the canned version, maybe the canned one it’s not so strong.
The recipe seems to be great, I really want to try it!
Oh wow! I had no idea! Is that the case even when it’s unripe? I always use unripe jackfruit in savory recipes like this – usually labled “young green jackfruit.” Thanks so much for sharing! I’ll have to get my hands on a fresh jackfruit some time!
I just cut up a fresh jack fruit and i am cokking it in an instapot (pressure cooker) but mine did not stink at all it has a mild smell it was a little sweet very good taste. I winder if Maria is getting it mixed up with durian which is smaller than jackfruit but similar and durian does smell very bad.
Fresh very ripe Jackfruit can be cloyingly sweet smelling to the point of inducing nausea. It is after all what the flavor of Juicy Fruit gum was derived from originally. I would guess that for savory dishes, it needs to be used unripe, but it is extremely difficult to cut open when it is unripe. It has an extremely sticky latex that is exuded when you cut into it, which gums up whatever knife you are using. I have increasingly seen it pop up on restaurant menus here in Hawaii, where people do have access to fresh Jackfruit, so there must be a way to successfully cut into one when unripe without ruining your kitchenware.
I actually just use canned! And if it’s labeled young green jackfruit it should be unripe. :) Lately I’ve been seeing fresh jackfruit sold precut in stores, so that’s another option – I’ll have to give it a try soon!