By: Klinsa Kurien, Bureau Chief ICN-Kerala
Jack Fruit- the very name itself starts producing saliva in the mouth of many a malayalee. Quintessentially found in almost all homes in Kerala, this fruit is huge and heavy and the pulp is of a sweet nature.
The regional name for jackfruit is ‘chakka’ and history records that several Portuguese people who came to the coast of Kerala in the year 1498, officially acknowledged its Malayalam name.
The fruit is named after a Welsh botanist named William Jack who was employed in the East India Company in Bengal. It is a very popular food item.It is also found in countries like China, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Brazil and Africa.
In Kerala, the most mouthwatering of dishes is the ‘chakkaravaratti’ or jackfruit jam made out of seasoning jackfruit pulp in a mixture of jaggery and preserved for months together. It is eaten as a candy or drunk as a juice.
This fruit is starchy in nature and a generous source of dietary fibre too. It is classified based on its properties of being ripe and raw. In the regional tongue, the raw jackfruit is known as ‘varikka’ and the ripe one is called as ‘koozha’.
The ripe ‘koozha’ pulp is jelly like and soft, whereas the raw variety, the varikka is made as a cereal replacing rice. This fruit belongs to the family of figs and mulberries. It grows in low lands and is highly nutritious. Most often in Kerala it is replaced for cereals like rice and on the flip side it is prepared as a sweetened dish called ‘kumbul appam’.
Jackfruit kernels have a sweet taste and when four or five of them are consumed, it is very filling. Jackfruit is a rich source of Vitamin ‘C’ and Potassium and Vitamin B6.
It bears a slight resemblance to pineapple and mango due to its sweet taste. Not only found in Kerala, but these jackfruit trees are found in West Bengal, Orissa and in some parts of Gujarat.
In West Bengal the raw jackfruit is prepared as a vegetable called ‘aechor’ which in turn is used to make spicy preparations. In Orissa too, a raw jackfruit curry is prepared which is called gacch-patha (tree mutton). The wooden bark of the jackfruit tree is used to make musical instruments like mridangam, thimila and kanjira.
A wooden plank called the ‘Avani palaka’ is made from the wood of the jackfruit tree. This is used as the Priest’s seat during traditional Hindu ceremonies.
Jackfruit chips are prepared from the pulp of the fruit. It is relished equally by the young and the old alike in Kerala. A full grown jackfruit tree weighs almost forty kilograms. The flesh based petals are edible in nature. It is also a natural cure to many diseases like Diabetes, Blood Pressure, skin disorders, cancer, eye diseases, digestion problems, anti-ageing problems, asthma, bone problems, low calcium levels, prevention of anemia and many more.
Due to the fruit’s immense use and benefits to mankind, the Government of Kerala has declared Jackfruit as the Official State Fruit on March 21st 2018. Hail the Jack of All Fruits!
