Fruit
The flesh of the jackfruit is starchy and fibrous, and is a source of dietary fibre. The flavour is similar to a tart banana. Varieties are distinguished according to the characteristics of the fruits' flesh. In Brazil, three varieties are recognized. These are: jaca-dura, or "hard" variety, which has firm flesh and the largest fruits that can weigh between 15 and 40 kilograms each; jaca-mole, or "soft" variety, which bears smaller fruits, with softer and sweeter flesh; and jaca-manteiga, or "butter" variety, which bears sweet fruits, whose flesh has a consistency intermediate between the "hard" and "soft" varieties.
In Kerala, two varieties of jackfruit predominate: varikka (വരിക്ക) and koozha (കൂഴ). Varikka has slightly hard inner flesh when ripe, while the inner flesh of the ripe koozha fruit is very soft and almost dissolving. A sweet preparation called chakka varattiyathu (jackfruit jam) is made by seasoning the varikka fruit flesh pieces in jaggery, which can be preserved and used for many months. Huge jackfruits up to four feet in length with matching girth are sometimes seen in Kerala.
In West Bengal too two varieties exist - khaja kathal & moja kathal. The kajha kathal has slightly hard flesh when ripe while the moja kathal is very soft. The fruits are either eaten straight or as a side to rice / roti / chira / muri. Sometimes the juice is extacted and either drunk straight or as a side with muri. The extract is sometimes condensed into rubber like delectables and had as candies. The seeds are either boiled or roasted and eaten with salt and hot chillies. They are also used to make spicy side-dishes with rice or roti.
In Mangalore, Karnataka, the varieties are called bakke and imba. The pulp of the imba jackfruit is ground and made into a paste, then spread over a mat and allowed to dry in the sun to create a natural chewy candy.
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
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