Recipe: Jackfruit 'Crab' Salad

If you can get your hands on a can of Young Green Jackfruit in a Brine, try making a mock crab salad. The mayo, spices, and flecks of nori (seaweed) give a wonderful seafood flavor that's boosted by the steamed-crab texture of the jackfruit.

Before I became vegan in 2013, I enjoyed the occasional seafood salad that you'd spread on crackers or eat as part of a sandwich. And, when it was a special occasion, I'd even jump at the chance to order a creamy lobster roll.

Now that I don't eat animals or animal-derived ingredients, I've learned how spices and certain plants can be used to mimic flavors and textures that I thought could only come from meat.

You can purchase cans of Young Green Jackfruit at Indian grocery stores or even at veganessentials.com, here. Be careful not to purchase ripe jackfruit, which is orange, sweet and resembles roasted red bell peppers. Ripe jackfruit is not good in savory dishes. Young green jackfruit has a stronger texture, yet subtle flavor.

Jackfruit is popular among vegetarians and vegans because the fruit has some chew to it and comes apart in chunks and even shreds when cut or pulled apart in certain ways. These characteristics make it a great substitute for meat in dishes. I've tried jackfruit pulled pork, for example, but it didn't really appeal to me. When I came across this recipe for jackfruit "crab" salad, I thought it might be another recipe that sounds good but doesn't taste that great.

I was wrong. Very wrong!

I find young green jackfruit to be juicy, almost like canned artichokes. And the fruit still retains some of that juiciness even if you push out as much liquid from it as possible. Because of this, jackfruit is a wonderful substitute for crab and lobster, which has a tender, juicy flesh when cooked.

When the jackfruit is mixed with mayo and the seasonings used with seafood, you'll think you're biting into a traditional seafood salad sandwich or even a lobster roll. This vegan version is cruelty-free and affordable food at its finest.

Jackfruit “Crab” Salad
Serves 4
(Inspired by this recipe from a blog at Vegetarian Times)

Ingredients:
1 20-oz. can Young Green Jackfruit in Brine, rinsed and squeezed dry as much as possible (about 1 cup)
2-4 tablespoons of Vegenaise or other vegan mayo (start out with 2T and add more if desired)
¼ cup fresh minced onion
2 teaspoons of dried minced onion (what you find in the spice aisle)
¼ tsp. dulse flakes or powder (I used a folded piece of nori [seaweed] -- what you use for sushi -- and grated it for powder/flakes) This ingredient is necessary for a seafood flavor.
1-2 teaspoons of Old Bay Seasoning
½ tsp. curry powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Chop the drained jackfruit with a knife until it resembles lump crab meat. Next, mix the jackfruit and all the other ingredients in a bowl. Before serving, sprinkle on a little paprika, dried parsley (I didn't have fresh), and fresh lemon juice.

The chopped jackfruit. You can see the yellowish seeds of the fruit, which are soft.

The chopped jackfruit mixed with the remaining ingredients.

Before serving, I added a little extra nori powder/flakes, some dried parsley, paprika, and a splash of fresh lemon juice.

This mock crab salad -- that even mimicked the flavor of a lobster roll -- tasted creamy, slightly sweet, salty, fishy (from the seaweed), and just plain awesome.