Jackfruit seeds get a fresh twist

Fried, roasted, milked or boiled, jackfruit seeds are being used extensively in fusion dishes in Indian restaurants and cafes

How do you like your jackfruit seeds: roasted, boiled, in a curry, or as a chutney? Difficult choice? Here’s what you can try instead — hummus made of jackfruit seeds, jackfruit seed crackers, jackfruit seeds falafel or cookies made with jackfruit seeds.

Jackfruit seeds as chakhna (spicy, fried finger food) is a good idea, says Odisha-based chef Rachit Kirteeman . He has seen the seeds being enjoyed as a spicy fried dish. Rachit says, “In Koraput and Keonjhar districts of Odisha, the seeds are also dried and ground into a flour, which is used to make steamed cakes called pitha; it reportedly has medicinal values. In my house, we make panasa manji bora using seeds; boiled seeds are made into a paste with turmeric,chilli and cumin powder and then deep fried as small dumplings.” Rachit is positive that most modern recipes with jackfruit seeds are inspired from traditional ones.

Using jackfruit seed in well known dishes doesn’t alter the dish drastically. For instance in falafel the texture remains almost the same when a paste of the seeds is used in it The neutral taste of the seeds also blends beautifully with a lot of other flavours. The fine texture of the paste inspired Delhi-based chef Radhika Khandelwal of Fig & Maple to make hummus out of the jackfruit seeds. When steamed and boiled, the seeds soften to make a paste that is as smooth as that obtained by mashing chickpeas.