I can't even begin to tell you how good these jicama tacos were. And I want to throw out that term "life changing" but it's sooo overused and I don't want you to think these are overhyped because they're not. I was talking about them for days after I ate them and I knew I had to blog this recipe. It may seem a little odd to use jicama as the base but it works. Trust in the process friends and make these jicama tacos because they are legit PERFECT for spring and summer.

Using Jackfruit

This was the first time I made jackfruit myself. I've had it out at restaurants and love the taste and texture, but hadn't yet made it myself. I'm so happy I did because not only are they tasty, they are beyond easy to throw together too. Much easier than making pulled pork or chicken in my opinion. And if you're wondering how it holds up compared to a meat option, just know they HOLD UP SO WELL! So if you want to freak people out, don't tell them until after and then just whisper to them "that wasn't meat..." and watch the panic set in. Ok, it's kinda mean, but also funny and I think you should try it. Of course, after that you can share that the secret ingredient is jackfruit. But keep the suspense going for just a few moments. 

What is Jackfruit? 

So what exactly is jackfruit? It may just be my personal favourite meat alternative, in terms of taste. Jackfruit is a species of tree native to Southwest India. As such it's commonly used in South and Southeast Asian cuisines, both the ripe and unripe fruit is used as are the seeds. For this recipe, we are using unripe jackfruit as this is the one that would typically be used in a meat type dish. The ripe version is much sweeter and is traditionally used in breakfast type dishes. See below for what it looks like once you shred it a bit after opening up a can.

What About The Protein?

The only potential downside of jackfruit is that it doesn't contain much protein. But unlike most of the population, I'm not obsessed with this macro (or any macro) in particular. Obviously, protein is important. But if you're combining this with other sources of protein or you had protein in another meal that day, I'm not worried. It does contain other vitamins (such as vitamin C), minerals (especially high in magnesium) and a decent amount of fibre. When you combine this with jicama as I do in these jicama tacos, HELLO FIBRE! The seeds from jackfruit are actually where you will find most of the fibre, so don't discard those.

Jicama Tacos: Full of Prebiotics!

Jicama in particular is full of prebiotic fibre and is mainly water, which means it's great for increasing hydration and for your skin. Although jicama is a root veggie, it is very low in dietary starch, sugar and carbs. Because it contains that prebiotic fibre, it's amazing at helping to feed the probiotics in our body. This also means that it helps with stabilizing your blood sugar as well. I loved using raw jicama as the base for these jicama tacos in this recipe. I had it similar to this when I was on vacation in December in the Caribbean and it was a game changer. Who ever thought to make jicama as the taco shell is a freakin' GENIUS. If you want them super thin (which is ideal), slice very thinly or use a mandolin.

You can find jicama at a well-stocked grocery store, like Whole Foods or other South American grocers (as these are popular in Mexico). 

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Let me know, have you used jackfruit or jicama before? Are you going to try jicama tacos now?