My niece Raya very capably and efficiently conjured up these delicious jackfruit tacos, based on a recipe by Jocelyn Ramirez, in a basic Airbnb kitchen we were staying at in the lovely San Ynez vineyard country.

In this recipe I have slightly altered the ingredients for the Indian palate.

Raya's Jackfruit Tacos

Ingredients

• 600 gm jackfruit, canned (1½ cans, available online)
• 8-9 pods garlic, minced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• Oil
• Juice of 1 orange
• 1 tsp jeera or cumin powder
• ½ tsp hing or asafetida
• 1 tsp chilly flakes or more
• ½ tsp oregano powder
• Pinch black pepper powder
• 1 tsp dhania or coriander powder
• Salt to taste
• Cheese, grated
• Salsa (please see recipe below)
• Chopped onions, for garnish
• Shredded lettuce for serving
• Corn or flour tortillas

For the salsa

• 3 large ripe tomatoes
• 2 onions chopped
• 4 tbsp chopped green dhania or coriander or cilantro
• Salt
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Pinch jeera or cumin powder
• 2-3 chipotle chiles, available online

Method

For the salsa

• Roast the tomatoes over a grill or in the oven till done and slightly charred.
• Grind roasted tomatoes with the lemon juice, cumin, chiles and salt in a blender.
• Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the ground tomato for 5 minutes or so till the colour changes.
• Take off heat.
  Season with cilantro and onions.

For the jackfruit stuffing

• Drain the water from the jackfruit tin.
• In a bowl, mince the drained jackfruit with a fork and remove any hard portions.
  Season with the spices and half of the orange juice.
• In a frying pan, heat the oil and saute the garlic, onions and jackfruit for 25-30 minutes till lightly browned.
  Take off heat and add the remaining orange juice and mix.
• Warm the tortilla for a minute or two on a tava.
  Place 3-4 tbsp of the jackfruit filling in the centre of the tortilla and add a dollop or two of salsa and garnish with onions, cheese, lettuce and additional cilantro.

Note: For vegan tacos, omit the cheese.

For Jain tacos, omit the onions and garlic.

Meat eaters might enjoy adding fried strips of ¼ kg chicken breasts to the stuffing.

Those on a diabetic diet might consider swapping the tortillas for rotis or millet rotis.

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