There’s always a lot of excitement in the air when you can finally cook something by substituting a key ingredient with an alternative or a healthier option. Eggs and meat majorly fall in this category. You could argue why one uses a substitute when you can use the original. Well, there are a lot of reasons. You might not eat meat, want to go the more healthier route or in many people’s cases (including mine) see how you can put a fun twist to an old classic. Not just because it can be eaten more widely but because it’s exciting and sometimes resourceful and useful.

Using jackfruit to make meatballs isn’t my idea nor is it very uncommon. I have been inquisitive about it since the first time I heard about it. At a first glance, using jackfruit as a meat substitute might seem quirky, if not uninviting. However, if you notice closely, cooked and shredded jackfruit closely resembles pulled pork—in texture and form. This may clear some unwanted fog surrounding jackfruit. Now the question is—how exactly do you use it?

I steamed the jackfruit before using it as the base of the “meatball” mixture. You could use it raw, but you would have to bake the meatballs for it would never cook in time in the pan. I also chose not to rely on a pan to cook the jackfruit since I wanted it to be cooked before that stage so I could simmer the “meatballs” in the tomato sauce. This adds to the taste but also keeps them moist. This was definitely an enjoyable cook; the jackfruit may have taken half an hour to steam but making spaghetti in the afternoon with tomato sauce from scratch is something absolutely incomparable. Oh, and nothing beats the smell of rendered onions and garlic!

Vegan jackfruit "meatballs"!

Tomato sauce:

• 4 large tomatoes
• 1 small onion
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 tbsp. oil
• 1 tsp. paprika
• Salt
• Pepper
• Fresh parsley

Score the tomatoes and boil them until cooked. Once cooked, place them in a bowl of cold water. Skin the tomatoes and blend them in a food processor until smooth. Finely chop the onion and garlic. Render them in some oil until they start to colour. Add the tomato puree and simmer on a low heat for about 10 minutes. Season with paprika, salt and pepper. Add fresh parsley.

Makes 6-7 “meatballs”:

• 7oz jackfruit
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 3 tbsp. milk
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. fresh parsley
• Neutral oil

Using oiled hands, cut the jackfruit into small cubes of equal size. Remove the seeds. Steam the jackfruit for about 30 minutes, until soft and cooked. Meanwhile, soak the breadcrumbs in milk. Cool the cooked jackfruit and shred it with 2 forks. If there are any hard, uncooked pieces, discard them. Add the shredded jackfruit to the soaked breadcrumbs, add garlic and season with Italian seasoning, paprika, salt (use no salt if the Italian seasoning is already salty) and parsley. Combine thoroughly to form a mass. Shape 6-7 equal-sized balls. Add about a tablespoon of oil to a pan. Fry the meatballs, until crisp and golden all around. Simmer the meatballs in the tomato sauce for about 5 minutes, on a low flame.

To finish off:

• 3oz spaghetti
• Parmesan cheese

Cook the spaghetti in salted, boiling water. Remove the simmered meatballs from the tomato sauce and add the spaghetti, coating it with sauce. Serve with the meatballs and grated parmesan.