Here is a salad that we had in Viet Nam on our last trip. It’s a nice change from the usual Gỏi of either cabbage, cucumbers, lotus root, mango, and papaya, – which I love all the same. Green, unripe jackfruit is something I didn’t grow up eating but have come to really enjoy since trying it in Viet Nam. Until fairly recently, the only types of jackfruit available in the States were the canned version that was packed in syrup, dried or perhaps frozen in plastic packages — all of ripened fruit. Nowadays, fresh and ripened jackfruit has become available, though still quite dear. To see what the inside of a fresh jackfruit looks like and watch a video on how to harvest a ripened fruit, head over to WhiteOnRiceCouple‘s post here.
Outside of Southeast Asia (as well as parts of South America, Australia and Africa), young and unripe (green) jackfruit (Mít Non) is mainly available packed in water or brine and canned. Unlike ripe (yellow) jackfruit, unripe jackfruit can be eaten whole – that is, flesh and seeds, as both are still tender. It has a fairly neutral taste that seems to absorb whatever dressing you give it and serves as a textural contrast to the shrimp, pork, sesame seeds (or peanuts) and crunchy fried shallots. My favorite brand for green jackfruit is Richin – I’ve found that the fruit is never discolored but is white and unblemished and the texture tender without being mushy.
GỞI MÍT TÔM THỊT – VIETNAMESE GREEN JACKFRUIT SALAD WITH SHRIMP AND PORK
INGREDIENTS: (4 main-dish servings)
- Three (3) cans – 10 oz. (280 grams) of green (unripe) jackfruit
- juice of 1 small-medium lime
- 1 Tbl. (15g) sugar
- 1 (5g) tsp. salt
- 1/2 lb. (225g) poached pork tenderloin or pork belly [chicken breast can also be substituted]
- 1/2 lb. (225g) fresh unpeeled, de-veined shrimp
- large handful of Viet. coriander (rau răm) and spearmint (rau húng)
- 1 Tbl. (15g) lightly toasted white sesame seeds
- 3 Tbl. (45g) Crispy Fried Shallots (hành phi)
- sweet-sour dressing – (nước chấm)
- lightly crushed, freshly roasted peanuts (optional)
- shrimp chips (bánh phồng tôm) or Viet sesame rice crackers (bánh tráng mè)
In a skillet, dry-fry the shrimp for several minutes until opaque in color. Allow to cool before removing shells – leaving the tails intact. Set aside.
Poach the pork until cooked through. The internal temperature should reach 160F. Allow to cool before thinly slicing into 1/4 inch (.5cm) strips. Soak the jackfruit in clean water for about 15 minutes. Drain and (using your hands or a potato ricer) squeeze the jackfruit segments to remove excess liquid. Cut the jackfruit segments into thin strips, similar in size to the pork. In a small bowl, dissolve the sugar, lime and salt. Once dissolved, add the jackfruit along with the pork and toss to combine. Set aside.
In a large bowl combine the marinated jackfruit and pork with the shrimp and herbs (I leave the herbs whole, but you can roughly chop them if you prefer). Just before serving, toss the ingredients with 2-3 Tbl. of Nước Chấm (add more or less depending on your taste). Transfer to a serving plate. Scatter sesame seeds, fried shallots and crushed peanuts (optional) over the top of the dish. Serve with shrimp chips or sesame rice crackers.
Bon appétit!
June 17, 2008 at '7:10'
This looks great! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a jackfruit, ripe or green.
June 18, 2008 at '5:07'
I am fascinated with your use of so many green fruits in salads. That blows my mind!! 🙂 But this one… this one has that maaaaaagical ingredient – namely COLD SEAFOOD! You really know how to make a fine looking salad, woman. I feel like such a slug with my lettuce, tomatoes (yeah, the ones that gave me salmonella poisoning – ha ha ha), and garbanzo beans 😉
June 18, 2008 at '5:09'
I have looked at Jackfruit at Randazzos many times but until I saw WORC’s video last week was afraid to try my had at it one reason was because I was not sure how to tell if it was ripe, now I don’t have to worry because I can use it no matter what.
June 18, 2008 at '6:55'
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR CHRISTINE!
We are all thinking of you!
Congratulations for your blog which is so original! We would love to be able to taste your recipies soon!
love from all at home.
Suzanne and Jayantha
June 20, 2008 at '13:48'
It’s you’re birthday?! Happy birthday! 🙂
I love green jackfruit salad. The first time I had it, I couldn’t tell what they were. I like mam nem or mam ruoc with this to really absorb into the green jackfruit.
June 21, 2008 at '19:20'
Birthday? How perfect! We were just about to ship something to you, now I’ll be a belated B-Day present too! How convenient! 😉
We had this salad last week for dinner too! It looks so good and thank you so much for having the “large handful of rau ram” in the recipe! Rau ram makes the dish!
June 24, 2008 at '14:21'
What a great salad!
June 25, 2008 at '14:22'
I’m Sophie, Key Ingredient’s Chief Blogger. We would like to feature this recipe on our blog. Please email sophiekiblogger@gmail.com if interested. Thanks 🙂
Sophie
June 25, 2008 at '17:26'
Well, happy belated birthday! I love jackfruit, but I don’t think I’ve ever had mít non. I’ll have to see if I can find it at my local Asian markets. Thanks!
June 26, 2008 at '4:09'
I’ve never had jackfruit, but am really interested in trying some! I’m assuming it will be hard to find around here though… your salad looks great, exactly what you want to eat when’s it’s hot and humid out!
June 26, 2008 at '16:23'
HAPPY BELATED BDAY TO YOU! cha cha cha HAPPY BELATED BDAY TO YOU!! cha cha cha!
I have been so busy that I have not had much time to graze over to all my favorite foodies, to look for new and exciting things – this is exciting!!! Sounds wonderful, even though I have not tried Jackfruit before. I did just buy mangos, due to the mental note in my head, to try your mango salad, maybe this weekend.
Hope you are well!!!
July 20, 2008 at '13:20'
Hi Christine! Where have you been lately, I miss you and your beautiful food! Hope all is well. XO
August 17, 2008 at '13:55'
Hi … I just made this today for lunch and it was YUM-O! thanks for the recipe.. I’ve been meaning to make this for along time and your picture looked so good that i just had to make it!
October 9, 2008 at '6:02'
Informative post on the jackfruit! The colors and ingredients of this dish sound fresh and delicious. The photo is edible! I would love to feature this recipe on our blog and the first and only digital recipe reader. Please email sophiekiblogger@gmail.com if you’re interested. Thanks!
July 1, 2009 at '7:48'
beautiful recipe..we both went to school in ann arbor so enjoy the perspective from there…may we ask how come no recent posts? 😦
November 3, 2009 at '1:30'
what a refreshing looking dish! bookmarked!