Jackfruit, or Kathal as it is called in Bengali, is a big fruit. It grows abundantly in the eastern and southern regions of India. A ripe Jackfruit has a sweet and strong aroma, almost like the Durian. The ripe fruit has many golden yellow pods inside a rough and bumpy thick skin. But, when the fruit is young it does not have a sweet taste, in fact it is rather bland. The texture is such that after cooking it looks like meat. Jackfruit is slowly becoming popular in western countries. It looks like meat and absorbs the flavors and spices very well.
My mother used to cook it exactly like Mutton curry. My mother in law on the other hand cooked it in a different way. We call it Echoder Dalna .This dalna is cooked with Cumin ( Jeera) , Coriander (Dhania), Tumeric ( haldi), chilii ( mirchi) powders. We have to cut the Jackfruit before cooking it. I have tried to show how to cut it in the photos below.
Prepping
Young Raw jackfruit is called Enchor in Bengali. When I buy it in the market the seller usually will cut the thick green skin off for me. They will also cut it into pieces if you want. I usually just get the skin removed. I cut it myself just before cooking.
This is a piece that I bought, probably one fourth of a raw small jackfruit.
I cut a small piece to make it easier to see. This is what it looks like with the thick green skin removed.
You can make small portions of the Jackfruit. Then cut out the portion that will be made into a curry. Most people usually remove the skin and the center stalk. They cut the rest of the fruit into chunks and then make the curry. BUT in our house we use only the top part and discard the part that look like fibers. We do use some of the soft young seeds though. This is how we cut.
This recipe is from my mother in law. She used to make the best Bengali dishes I have eaten. She would spend a long time cutting the vegetables herself. She used a traditional knife called Boti. She was very particular about the shape and size of the pieces.
To make this Enchor dalna you need potatoes, and they are peeled and diced like the photo.
RECIPE
- Cut and cleaned Enchod ( raw jackfruit) 2&1/2 cups approximately*
- Peeled and diced potatoes 1 cup approximately*
- Mustard oil 2 tablespoons
- salt 1 teaspoon
- Haldi (turmeric ) 1/2 teaspoon
- Dhania ( coriander) powder 1&1/2 teaspoon
- Jeera ( cumin) powder 1 teaspoon
- Garam Masala 1/2 teaspoon
- Mirchi ( chili ) powder 1/2 teaspoon or less
- Ghee 1 Tablespoon
- Water 1 cup
- For Tarka or seasoning the oil
- Hing a pinch
- Jeera seeds 1/4 teaspoon
Method
- In a small bowl mix the Dhania powder, jeera powder, salt, Haldi, Mirchi, powders with a little water to make a spice paste
- Heat the mustard oil in a pan or wok. Saute the potatoes first. Remove them from the oil and keep aside. Then saute the Enchor pieces and keep aside.
- In the same oil add the Hing first then the Jeera seeds
- When the Cumin (Jeera )seeds turn a little brown, add Masala (spices) paste to the oil. Stir fry it until the oil starts to separate at the edges.
- Return the sauteed (aloo) potatoes and ( Echod ) Jackfruit to the wok. Stir fry them well. This ensures the vegetables get coated with the masalas.
- Add the water and bring it to a boil. Then cover the pan and let it simmer on medium heat. Continue simmering until the potatoes and the enchor are cooked. They are done when they can be cut with a spoon.
- Add the Ghee and garam masala. Let it boil a little before taking it off the flame.
- Pour it into a serving dish. There should be a little gravy, but it should not be watery.
Serve with hot steamed rice.