Produce Guide - J

Jackfruit

The jackfruit is the largest tree-borne fruit in the world, weighing up to 90 pounds. Apart from its extraordinary size, this fruit is hard to mistake for anything else. Looking more like a medieval weapon than anything edible, the jackfruit is encased in a hard, green, spiky shell that grows directly out of the tree trunk and branches. Closely related to the breadfruit, and more distantly to the fig, the jackfruit is subtropical, cultivated most extensively in India and Sri Lanka.

There are both soft and hard jackfruits, the latter being more popular and frequently exported. We see jackfruit in Canada off and on throughout the year, but the main season is from November to March. Imported from Malaysia, jackfruit is sold primarily in specialty markets, and it is commonly sold by the piece rather than whole. Each jackfruit contains large, edible seeds - up to 500 of them - known as breadnuts. The seeds are starchy, like chestnuts, and are similarly roasted, processed for flour, and candied. The seeds are wrapped in bulbs of yellow or pink flesh. When ripe, the flesh takes on a thick, chewy texture, and is candy-sweet. The taste reminds me of pear drops, an English sweet I used to enjoy as a kid. Unripe jackfruit flesh can be cooked as a starchy vegetable.

If you do come across a whole jackfruit, there are several ways to tell if it's ripe and ready to eat. Its pale green skin will turn yellow or brown, and as the fruit expands, the skin stretches, causing its spikes to stand apart from each other. The smell of a ripe jackfruit is another dead giveaway. Many people say it just plain stinks. However, once cut, the inside of the jackfruit smells delicious, like bananas and pineapple. Once ripe, the jackfruit will keep for a week at room temperature.

Jícama

Every country has its potato, and jícama is standard fare in Mexico, where this nutty-sweet tuber originated. Unlike the potato, jícama is often eaten raw as well as cooked. Similar in flavour and texture to water chestnut, in Asia and the South Pacific it is a popular addition to everything from stir-fries to soups and is equally at home in a fruit salad.

Despite its role as the Mexican potato, jícama looks a bit more like a large turnip. Make that a very large turnip - it can range in weight from one to six pounds (.5-2.5 kg). It has thin brown skin and white, crunchy flesh, which, if you're lucky, can be as moist and crisp as an apple. Larger ones will be drier, and very large jícama can be too fibrous for my liking. Choose small to midsize, well-shaped tubers, and make sure their skin is smooth and unblemished. As with other tubers, weigh jícama in your hand - a good one will feel heavy for its size.

Available off and on all year, jícama is easiest to find between December and June. Most of our jícama comes from Mexico, where it is sold on every street corner and at beach stands along with melons and other snack food. In fact, my first taste of this delicious vegetable occurred when I was lying on a beach in Acapulco, and someone offered me a bag of jícama cut in neat shapes and sprinkled with lime juice and chili powder. Delicious! However, jícama does have a short shelf life, and you're best to use it ASAP, since it shrivels and grows mouldy in the cupboard and turns slimy when kept too long in the refrigerator. I wouldn't keep it chilled for more than two or three days at most. If you don't plan to use peeled jícama right away, you should submerge it in cold water with a little lemon juice to keep it from discolouring.

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