It’s very rare I try to imitate meat in a recipe, but this one just turned out so meaty it was impossible not to call it pulled ‘pork’! In tacos with my BBQ sauce (page 169) and pineapple salsa (page 195), it’s seriously impressive, fooling even the most dedicated carnivore. Test it out yourself! The meaty secret lies in two special ingredients: jackfruit and liquid smoke. After a few hours cooking, the jackfruit shreds to the stringy texture of pulled meat, while the liquid smoke makes it taste like it’s been cooked low and slow over hot coals for days. The hardest part about this recipe is finding those two ingredients – the actual method couldn’t be any simpler if you tried. If you’re planning your Mexican banquet in advance, the easiest place to get those ingredients is online. This recipe is a teaser straight from my brand new cookbook ‘Modern Slow Cooker’.
Serves 4
Hands-on time: 10 mins
Total slow cooker time: 2 or 4 hours
+ dairy free
+ vegan
+ vegetarian
+ egg free
+ nut free
+ soy free
+ gluten free
+ freezer friendly
+ one pot wonder
Ingredients
600 g jackfruit in water or brine, drained*
¼ cup (70 g) tomato paste
¼ cup (90 g) golden syrup
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce**
1 ½ tablespoons Mexican spice mix (page 185)
3 teaspoons fine salt
4 garlic cloves, diced
1 ¼ teaspoons liquid smoke***
Method
FIRST
-
Place jackfruit, tomato paste, golden syrup, Worcestershire sauce, Mexican spice mix, salt and garlic in slow cooker. Stir to combine. Cover and cook for 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low.
2 OR 4 HOURS
-
Add liquid smoke, stir to combine. Use two forks to shred jackfruit as you would meat.
Your pulled ‘pork’ is ready! It looks pretty meaty, don’t you think? Serve in tacos, burritos, toasted cheese sandwiches, spring rolls or sliders. Even better when served with my BBQ sauce (page 169), salsa verde (page 197), hot sauce (page 175), raita (page 192) or pineapple salsa (page 195).
*You’ll find jackfruit in cans or cryovac packages from health food stores or online. As it becomes more and more popular, I’ve also recently seen it popping up in supermarkets. Make sure it’s in water or brine, not syrup.
**For this recipe to be vegetarian and vegan, look for an anchovy-free Worcestershire sauce, or better yet, make your own!
***Liquid smoke is essential for this recipe – find it in specialist food stores or click here to buy from me. A 250 ml bottle will last you a lifetime because a little goes a long way! My favourite is hickory-flavoured liquid smoke.
Note: This is a great recipe when entertaining a lot of people – set up a DIY taco station with this pulled ‘pork’ as the base and plenty of fresh and flavoursome toppings. You can make up to four times this recipe in a large slow cooker – scale up the ingredients accordingly and follow exactly the same method and cooking time.
