Jackfruit could save millions from starvation • Hacker News Board

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#51

Post by msandford » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:20 PM UTC

djrogers wrote: post #45

AnimalMuppet wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Most of the United States is uninhabited I'm going to disagree with that statement (or perhaps with your wording). Less than half of the land area is urban, sure. But more than half is rural rather than uninhabited.

I guess it depends on how you define uninhabited - if I've got a 50,000 acre ranch with a 2800 sq ft house on it, most people are going to call the bulk of that land uninhabited. Even if you're going to be really picky about the definition, Almost 45% of the census blocks in the US have a population of zero, which is pretty stunning if you think about it. http://theconcourse.deadspin.com/nobody-lives-here-a-beautif..…

> I guess it depends on how you define uninhabited - if I've got a 50,000 acre ranch with a 2800 sq ft house on it, most people are going to call the bulk of that land uninhabited.

Okay, but then then suburbs are uninhabited too. The neighborhood I'm in has 1500-2000 sqft houses on 10ksqft lots. That's 80-85% uninhabited, especially once you start to add up the amount of extra land for streets, ditches, canals, parks, etc. I bet most suburban landscapes are 90% uninhabited.

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#52

Post by shlant » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:25 PM UTC

vivin wrote: post #11

Not popular in India? News to me. Maybe not all over India. But in Kerala, the state I am from, Jackfruit is pretty popular there and is used to make a wide variety of dishes. My grandparents house has many jackfruit trees and we always had jackfruit to eat. It tastes nothing like pulled pork to me though. It's mainly sweet and very slightly tangy/sour. Fresh jackfruit has a kind of "crunch" to it. I can't really des…

the flavor of jackfruit is juicy fruit gum. Haven't had unripe jackfruit, but it most certainly does not TASTE like pulled pork. Maybe the texture.

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#53

Post by yumraj » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:31 PM UTC

vivin wrote: post #11

Not popular in India? News to me. Maybe not all over India. But in Kerala, the state I am from, Jackfruit is pretty popular there and is used to make a wide variety of dishes. My grandparents house has many jackfruit trees and we always had jackfruit to eat. It tastes nothing like pulled pork to me though. It's mainly sweet and very slightly tangy/sour. Fresh jackfruit has a kind of "crunch" to it. I can't really des…

Ditto. I'm from the north, U.P., and growing up unripe jackfruit (कटहल) was actually my absolute favorite dish, dry stir fried not the one with curry. Even in the U.S. we occasionally get the canned version which is generally Thai in origin.

It is extremely sticky, so the trick to cut it is to apply cooking oil in your hands and then cut it. :)

Interestingly I have never had ripe jackfruit.

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#54

Post by phaemon » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:39 PM UTC

danharaj wrote: post #29

louhike wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "Not popular in India? News to me." Yeah, you could find them everywhere in Karnataka and most of the states I went to in the South.

I think western writers have a silly perspective on India. It's more diverse than the European Union, really! How can one say anything at all about all of India at once?

What do you mean by "more diverse than the European Union"? In what way?

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#55

Post by sprokolopolis » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:49 PM UTC

seivan wrote: post #47

vivin wrote: post #11

Not popular in India? News to me. Maybe not all over India. But in Kerala, the state I am from, Jackfruit is pretty popular there and is used to make a wide variety of dishes. My grandparents house has many jackfruit trees and we always had jackfruit to eat. It tastes nothing like pulled pork to me though. It's mainly sweet and very slightly tangy/sour. Fresh jackfruit has a kind of "crunch" to it. I can't really des…

Haha, it actually looks like durian and I thought "fat chance, cockroaches or grasshopper smell less"

While they might look similar, jackfruit is much less offensive to most people. Jackfruit has a sweet and floral aroma that will leave your hands smelling quite nice for a while.

Ripe jackfruit tastes a bit like a mix between cantaloupe, pineapple and mango, plus some floral notes. I absolutely love it and wish I could find it in my neighborhood more often.

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#56

Post by AndyNemmity » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:52 PM UTC

shas3 wrote: post #25

chriskanan wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The pulled pork reference is referring to unripe jack fruit, which has a very meaty mouthfeel. It is not sweet and has a different taste. I tried some in a Nepalese restaurant in Madison, WI, and it was very good: http://www.yelp.com/biz/himal-chuli-madison http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/himal-chuli-madison?select=vh...

Unripe jackfruit is totally like pork in texture - pulled or cubed. Only, as is typical of plant-based food, it is not as juicy. You can use it in all the ways that you can use pork - stews, jambalayas, with rice - except in a sandwich. I'm pretty sure jackfruit is too dry for sandwiches. Though, if it lends itself to pickling like cabbage, that may be a good way to incorporate it into a sandwich.

Here in Phoenix there's a place that does pulled pork sandwhiches with jackfruit, so clearly they are making it work somehow :)

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#57

Post by personjerry » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:54 PM UTC

I was recently informed that the popularity of Ethiopian food in North America has driven the price of their bread up to a level where Ethiopian people can't really afford it anymore. While publicity is good, I hope such a pattern doesn't emerge for the jackfruit, so that it can be maintained as a cheap food.

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#58

Post by Rexxar » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:55 PM UTC

phaemon wrote: post #54

danharaj wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think western writers have a silly perspective on India. It's more diverse than the European Union, really! How can one say anything at all about all of India at once?

What do you mean by "more diverse than the European Union"? In what way?

He means probably more different languages and religions.

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#59

Post by pmorici » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:55 PM UTC

Seems to be a close relative of the Breadfruit which is similarly thought to be a good way to feed people or so the tour guide told us when I visited the National Botanical Garden.

http://ntbg.org/breadfruit/breadfruit/

Re: Jackfruit could save millions from starvation

#60

Post by manishsharan » Mon, Sep 21, 2015, 9:56 PM UTC

This article presumes that India has one cuisine, where Jackfruit is avoided. This is false as India has several cuisines and Jackfruit is used in several of those cuisines.

But if the article writer was looking for Tandoori Jackfruit, then yes, that is true -- there is not tandoori jackfruit!