Fruit hunters, part 2

I told you toward the end of my Fruit Hunters post that Fred and McKenzie told me recently about a savory discovery they had made. They found a can of barbequed jackfruit at Trader Joe's in the twin cities. They said it was very good. That it was meat-like. 

Now, If they tell me that a bbq'd product is good, I'm going to believe it. Fred makes gallons of a bbq sauce every year that is second to none. And if anyone knows meat, it's Fred. The steak he cooked me at their summer place last year proves it. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4RmnxmR6XI

I decided that I would like to try the bbq jackfruit idea myself. I have never seen bbq'd jackfruit in cans. I found this jackfruit easily enough though and I used Jeanne's bbq sauce. I think that it also is world-class, especially because it uses Suka Pinakurat, my favorite spiced vinegar.

This is the contents of the can in a little oil. I'm going to fry it a bit.

This is made from fermented coconut nectar. Amazing stuff. 
Yeah, I know the best before date is long past. This is a bottle I had put away in our pantry. Jeanne used some current stuff for the sauce. Besides, I think that most 'best by' or 'use by' dates are mostly bogus anyway. And this is Vinegar. There aren't going to be bugs growing in this stuff. 

In this shot I'm pulling the jackfruit apart. It has been cooking in the sauce for about 10 minutes now and I'm going to return the pulled jf to the sauce and let it simmer.

Low in calories, but tasty. It was very acceptable as a meat substitute sandwich filling. Thank you Fred and Mckenzie.  

As you can see, I also bought some frozen jackfruit. I made a batch with these ingredients as well. It was sweeter than the canned-in-brine variety and I didn't like the finished product nearly as well. 

If you want to taste jackfruit though, and you see the frozen product somewhere, it's not a bad way to sample it.  

The sauce I bought to go with it was okay, but barely. We do not find many good bbq sauces over here. Thank goodness for Jeanne's. 

Now,  lets look at another new fruit that I came across recently.  This one wins a prize! It's rather nice to look at, right? Great color. 

 This is a monkey apple tree, Syzygium smithii, also called a lilly pilly, that I found on Sturges Road. I was taking this picture when a couple of ladies, who looked like mother and daughter, came walking along. I asked them if they knew what it was. They told me, and added that the fruit is not poisonous, but that no one eats them. I soon learned why. When I tried one, I found that they have the consistancy of light styrofoam and have no taste, whatsoever. They win, in my estimation, the award for the 'most boring fruit in the world.'  They are actually berries, not quite ping pong ball in size. They are classed as being 'an unwanted organism' in New Zealand. 

And now, here are a few fruits from our local markets...

A tamarillo. Relative to a tomato. I'm giving this one a pass from now on...Weird taste.

They call them paw-paws here. They are actually papayas. Not my favorite. Bland and fibrous. It can stay on the shelf with the tamarillo. I suppose I should try a few more to make sure it's not just this one. 

When you get a good one of these drinking coconuts, you have a real treat. 

These are young coconuts. The 'meat' of the nut hasn't turned hard yet. After you drink the water, you can scrape the insides with a spoon and eat a sort of thick coconut pudding. One of these days, I might have to do a post on just coconuts. 

(Some of you may remember when first discovered 'gelatinous mutant coconut' for sale.)

Those are pineapple cookies and something, as you see, called a love letter. which reminds me of a very thin pizzelle folded up.

What I really wanted you to see in this picture was the durian paste. It has a fairly strong flavor. 

This is a choko, a member, believe it or not, of the pumpkin familly. It is a fruit that is often thought of as a vegetable. I just might give it a try with bbq sauce and see how it does against the jackfruit. We have used it in stir fries. We like it. 

(Mangoes are on the counter)

There are full-sized bananas, the next size down, known as Bobby-bananas, and then these little finger-sized ones. They have a more concentrated banana flavor and seem a little denser in texture to me as well. 

Rambutan fruits stuffed with pineapple chunks, all in a light syrup. 

Figs are amazing. A fig is not a true fruit. The round hollow outside portion is called the syconium and it is lined with flowers that bloom inside. I have often cut them in half as you see and scooped out the flowers to eat with a spoon. Crunchy and sweet. When you eat a fig, you have a mouth full of flowers. 
Those are guavas with the fig. 

I showed you a picture of feijoas in the last fruit post. This is our favorite way to eat them. I call it a feijoa party popper. It has a handy holder. Easy to pop into your mouth. I think they have a texture similar to a pear but with some softer bits too. I've heard the taste compared to all sorts of combinations of fruits. I don't agree. They have a taste I've never tasted before. 

I've talked for sometime now about this new fruit and that new fruit. I guess that it's natural that the new and unusual and exotic and sometimes bizarre fruits should attract me. All are worthy of knowing, all are interesting and some are positively amazing, and delicious. I intend to redouble my efforts to seek them out and try them. 

BUT, I can't forget old, old friends that I grew up with and who have gladdened my heart and taste buds for so much of my life. Therefore, I leave you with pictures of these old, dear friends of mine. 

I photographed these chokecherries on one of my walks during the summer of 2016 from our house on 551 down to the bridge by the church. 

Like purple pearls



And speaking of pearls...

I admit this is not a fruit, but it Is the fruiting body of a fungus. Close enough in my book.  This has been a treasure that I have sometimes found in amazing abundance. As much as I have enjoyed and continue to enjoy meeting, greeting and eating new fruits, finding such 'pearls of great price' has been a joy I've known for a large part of my life and remains the highpoint of my fruit hunting career.