Breadfruit
Breadfruit is a tropical tree which is mainly related to Jackfruit family. Plants bestow demeanor fruits from 2-3 years after planting and remains productive for decades. Breadfruit can also be used like a vegetable. It can be baked, boiled, fried, or roasted. Breadfruit has been an important crop in the Pacific for more than 3,000 years. They also provide construction materials, medicines, fabric, glue, insect repellent, animal feed, and more. There are two varieties of breadfruit, one is the seeded variety known as the breadnut, scientific name - Artocarpus camansi and the other one is the seedless one. The seeds are boiled, steamed, roasted over fire and eaten with salt. Sometimes they are made in the form of a puree. Breadfruits play a vital role in animal feeding.
Most breadfruit varieties also produce a small number of fruits throughout the year, so fresh breadfruit is always available, but somewhat rare when not in season.
Culinary Uses
Breadfruit can be cooked and eaten at all stages of development. It is typically consumed when mature, but still firm, and is a delicious substitute for any starchy root crop, vegetable, pasta, salad, potato, or rice. Mature breadfruit can be boiled, steamed, or baked and replace potatoes in many recipes. Small, immature fruit can be boiled, pickled or marinated, and have a flavor similar to that of artichoke hearts. Sliced breadfruit can be fried to make chips or 'French fries' or candied. Ripe fruit are creamy and sweet and can be eaten raw or used to make pies ( also see ), cakes, and other desserts. Breadfruit made into a cereal or pureed ripe fruit is good food for babies. The nutritious seeds resemble chestnuts in flavor and texture. They are boiled, roasted, or ground into meal. Immature fruit can be sliced, seeds and all, and cooked as a vegetable. Male flowers are candied and eaten as a sweet.
Nutritional Value of Breadfruit :
Breadfruit is roughly 25% carbohydrates and 70% water. It has an average amount of vitamin C, small amounts of minerals (potassium and zinc) and thiamin.
Not only is breadfruit a rich source of energy, breadfruit also contains significantly
high amounts of fiber. According to the American Heart Association
fiber decreases bad cholesterol and triglycerides which increases heart attack risks. An increased intake of fiber lowers LDL (bad) cholesterol levels in the body, while elevating HDL (good) cholesterol levels in the body. Breadfruit protects the body against heart disease and heart attacks.
Additionally, the fiber found in breadfruit can
help those with diabetes to control the disease. Research shows that fiber can control diabetes by reducing the absorption of glucose from the food we eat.
Another health benefit of breadfruit is that
breadfruit helps to make our intestines and bowels work properly. Fiber regulates bowel movements and clears out the buildup of junk from our intestines; eating breadfruit on a regular basis can reduce the risk of developing colon cancer.
Breadfruit benefits the body as it contains
favorable amounts of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids. These essential fatty acids help the body and mind to develop normally. Fatty acids also stimulate skin and hair growth, regulate our metabolism, promote reproduction and stimulate bone health.
In addition to these health benefits
breadfruit also contains Vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, iron and phosphorus. Further research is being done to uncover even more health benefits of breadfruit. But in the meantime, you can start eating more breadfruit and take advantage of the many health benefits we know it has now.
Read More at
Wikipedia.
Recipes Using BreadFruit see
Here and
Here, Here, Here.
