How to cut Jackfruit

This guide on how to cut jackfruit will help you in the process of cutting a jackfruit.

Learn our simple technique, and you will succeed cutting up your first jackfruit all alone, the right way, of course.

I filmed the cutting of our jackfruit with my jackfruit expert, Gauri. She hails from the forests in the Western Ghats in Karnataka, in India.

She was so kind to share all her knowledge. Thanks to Gauri for teaching us to cut up a Jackfruit the right way!

Jump to:

• 📕 What's a Jackfruit?
• 🍶 Things you will need
• 🔪 How to cut a Jackfruit?
• 💡 Tips
• ❗️ How do you know when a jackfruit is ripe?
• 🥣 Uses
• 🍱 Storing
• 💭 FAQs
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

📕 What's a Jackfruit?

The jackfruit is a large spiky green-yellow tropical fruit. In fact, it's the largest fruit in the world with fruits getting to mind-boggling weights of up to 77 pounds (ca. 35 kilogram).

We have a tree in our tropical fruit garden and jackfruit grow from December/January to May.

On the inside, between fibrous parts and sections, grow almost fist-sized pale yellow fruit pulps with an edible brown seed.

These monstrous fruits resemble other fruits in the same family, and therefore jackfruit get confused with breadfruits, breadnut and the cempedak fruit.

Yet, the jackfruit is not related to Durian!

Learn more about tropical fruits, what they are and where they grow and once you are done with that, go through my comprehensive list of tropical fruits with pictures.

🍶 Things you will need

I strongly recommend that you go in prepared cutting up a whole jackfruit. It's a large tropical fruit and it's sticky as hell!

The sap oozes out, and I had a friend once tell me that she opened up a jackfruit without equipment and during the difficult process and sticky mess, she cried. lol

Here is what you will need:

• A large knife – the larger, the better and it should be sharp.
• Oil – you need to oil your hands and knife so that the sap doesn't get a chance to stick on you and your utensils. Coconut oil is preferred. Do not skip oiling your hands and your knife!
• Clean kitchen towel – to wipe off your knife and hands. The stick substance is a natural glue.
• A solid cutting surface – a small cutting board won't do it here! We use newspaper under the jackfruit so that the sap doesn't damage furniture. We also prefer cutting the large chunks outdoors.
• Bowls – to collect your fruit pulp and seeds.
• Kitchen Gloves (very much optional, we don't use them)

🔪 How to cut a Jackfruit?

Here is a quick guide on how to cut a jackfruit with pictures. This will help you understand the process.

I recommend watching my instructional short jackfruit cutting video too, which is located in the recipe card further below.

Step 1

Pick your jackfruit from the tree or buy it in stores.

Leave it to ripen for some days. It will get slightly soft to the touch and the jackfruit will smell nice and fruity.

Step 2

Prepare your working space and keep all the tools ready.

Oil your hands well and your knife.

Step 3

Make the first major cut across the center of the fruit to cut open your massive jackfruit.

Clean off some of the excess gum, the sticky sap.

Step 4

Cut the jackfruit further into quarters. Keep on oiling your fingers and your knife.

Cut off and discard the white core.

Step 5

Take out the fruit pods and separate the soft fruit flesh from the fibrous parts from the jackfruit pieces.

Step 6

Remove the seeds from the edible soft fruit flesh and keep them separate.

The seeds are also edible and should be prepared separately.

Step 7

Repeat the process until you are done picking out all fruit pods, separating edible fruit flesh and seeds. Keep on oiling your hands and knife!

Eat ripe jackfruit as is or store in your fridge.

💡 Tips

• Don't skip oiling your hands and utensils. There is no way to cut your jackfruit without oiling tools and hands first. The sticky sap makes it difficult otherwise and oiling tools helps keep thing smooth.
• Wipe your knife and hands periodically on a disposable kitchen towel or tissue paper. The sticky sap makes it otherwise impossible to continue.
• Some jackfruit average 33 pounds (ca. 15 kilogram) in weight and smaller jackfruit are as big as a newborn baby. Cutting large jackfruits is better done outdoors because it can get very messy.

❗️ How do you know when a jackfruit is ripe?

A jackfruit has to be left to ripen for some days after picking. The ripening process depends on the environment.

Hot and humid tropical places get jackfruit to ripen within 3 to 5 days, while a cold place will extend the ripening process of a jackfruit.

Here are some ways to know when your jackfruit is ready:

• Color – A freshly picked jackfruit is lightly green and yellow. It turns all the more yellow when it's about to get ready to open it up.
• Spikes – The jackfruit is a spiky fruit and when it's raw and unripe, the spikes are closed and tight. The more it ripens, the more the spikes “open” up.
• Softness – The outer skin will get softer every day, and it feels as if the inner pods are getting detached from the hard poky skin when you press it from the outside.
• Hollow – When the inner pods detach on the inside, it gets a bit hollow. Knock on your jackfruit and when it's ripe, it will sound more hollow than when you got it the first day.
• Fruity smell and flavor – A ripe jackfruit smells like a basket of freshly cut open tropical fruits. Just imagine a freshly prepared banana mango pineapple smoothie and that's what a ripe fruit will smell like, even in its closed and unopened state. This is the most obvious indication that it's time to cut open your jackfruit.

If you are still not sure if your jackfruit is ripe and ready to be cut open, leave it out for another day or two.

Jackfruit are good for some days in their ripe uncut state and won't spoil that fast.

Once you get a hint of a vinegar smell, I'd recommend cutting it up asap because your jackfruit is about to get spoiled.

When jackfruit spoil, they smell like a bucket of vinegar was thrown at the fruit.

🥣 Uses

You can consume the fruit pulp and the seeds in a jackfruit. The pulp is consumed either raw and unripe, sold as young jackfruit, or ripe.

What you most commonly get in cans commercially, is the raw unripe fruit pulp.

The seeds taste mealy a bit like chestnuts, and they even look a bit like chestnuts.

You can roast your jackfruit seeds in the oven or over an open fire. We like them boiled too, and we even drink the water that was used to boil the jackfruit seeds.

The fruit pulp is frequently eaten ripe in its most natural state, right after having it plucked out of the jackfruit. Add it to a fruit salad or use it in an upside down cake.

You can also use unripe pulp pieces chopped into salads or try incorporating them into desserts.

Then there is the option to cook your young jackfruit pulps. Recent health fads have turned jackfruit into a vegan alternative and super food.

The fruit takes in other flavors and the texture makes it appear like meat. Instead of shredded chicken, it's shredded jackfruit now!

You can use it as a pork, chicken, or turkey meat substitute, which can then be turned into a filling for sandwiches and tacos.

I have compiled a handy collection of ways to prepare and cook jackfruit pulp.

🍱 Storing

Store your freshly plucked jackfruit pulp pieces in your fridge for up to 3 days. They turn a bit dark yellow in some spots when they are over their consumption point.

Excess and large quantities are best rinsed, pat dried and placed into freezer-friendly bags. Freeze them in your freezer in batches for up to 6 months tops.

Keep the fruits to thaw in your fridge overnight or throw the frozen fruit pieces into your soups and curries.

💭 FAQs

📖 Recipe