Buffalo Jackfruit Tacos
While these are not traditional flavors you’d see in a taco, they surely do work! If you love chicken tacos and buffalo chicken, you’ll love the flavors of this buffalo jackfruit.
Jackfruit is a relative of figs and breadfruit (thanks, Google!) and is native to regions like India and Malaysia, although thanks to companies like Native Forest (the brand I buy of canned young jackfruit), we can enjoy it anywhere. Yes, it comes from a can – but it can be transformed into something magical, like “buffalo meat.”
I used buffalo sauce from Primal Kitchen (this one here) and I love it because it’s not too spicy, but just spicy enough, just like a true buffalo sauce. The jackfruit has a thickness like a meat, so it’s hearty enough to fill a taco and fill you up!
How to make pulled jackfruit
- Drain and rinse a can of jackfruit
- Saute sliced onions and garlic in a medium skillet with olive or avocado oil
- Add the jackfruit to the skillet and saute for a few minutes
- Add vegetable broth and cover, letting cook for 10 minutes, mashing with the back of a fork or a potato masher every few minutes
- Once the jackfruit is soft enough to “pull,” take a potato masher or two forks and pull apart the jackfruit until shredded, like a shredded meat!
- Add whatever sauce you’d like to flavor the jackfruit – teriyaki, barbecue, buffalo, etc!
It’s that easy. Once you have the pulled jackfruit meat, it can be used in tacos, quesadillas, in rice bowls, or any other way you’d typically use a pulled meat.
I topped these tacos with avocado, feta, black beans, and some shredded romaine and it was a winning combination. My meat-eating husband even said, “It tastes like chicken!”
And of course, if you wanted to make these vegan, just omit the feta or use a dairy-free cheese alternative.
Buffalo Jackfruit Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 onion sliced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 14oz can young jackfruit, drained and rinsed
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth + more as needed
- 1/3 cup buffalo sauce + more as needed
- to top: black beans corn, romaine lettuce, avocado, feta (to prep while cooking the jackfruit)
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet. Once oil is shimmering, add the onions and garlic and cook until translucent, 3-5 minutes. Add the jackfruit, season with salt and pepper, and cook for a few minutes to warm up the jackfruit and combine with the onions and garlic. Add the vegetable broth, stir, and let cook until jackfruit is soft enough to "pull." If the jackfruit is still hard and broth has evaporated, add more broth. Using two forks or a potato masher, pull the jackfruit until it's shredded. Once shredded, add the buffalo sauce and stir to combine. Add more buffalo sauce per your preference.
- Meanwhile, drain and rinse the beans and heat up the corn (just stir in a hot pan with some water.) Shred the romaine lettuce and cube the avocado.
- Heat your tortillas in a medium pan for a couple of minutes and then assemble your tacos, filling with shredded jackfruit, beans, corn, avocado, and romaine lettuce. Top with feta, if using.
