The recipe today is an exotic one. Jackfruit seed curry. I am very fond of jackfruit seeds. But, being based in North India, it is very difficult to find them. I had an elderly lady who used to supply me this every week. Since the Covid lockdowns began in February 2020, I have not seen her. I have often enquired about her – and have been told that she is fine. It seems that she no longer sells her products since it involves a lot of labour and she attracts very little customers. I can well believe that as almost all of North India do not consume jackfruit seeds. So it’s the rare madman like who goes hunting for it! Thankfully, I discovered that one can order it from Amazon. So, I should re-introduce jackfruit seeds in my cuisine,

Ingredients
10 jackfruit seeds
A lemon sized ball of tamarind (soaked and juice extracted)
1 1/2 tsp sambar powder (see section “Chutneys & Powders” for recipe)
A pinch of asafoetida
1 tbsp rice flour
1 tsp mustard seeds (sarson, kadugu)
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi dhana, venthiyam)
1/2 tsp carom seeds (ajwain, omam)
1 sprig curry leaves
Unrefined salt to taste
Method
Heat a wok and add the jackfruit seeds
Remove from flame when they become warm
Remove the outer, inedible skin of the jackfruit seeds
Chop the seeds into half lengthwise
Transfer the seeds to a pressure cooker and add 1 cup of water
Pressure cook for 3 whistles
Let the steam release naturally and open the lid
Set the cooked jackfruit seeds aside
Heat a wok and add mustard seeds
When they begin to splutter, add the fenugreek and carom seeds
Roast till the fenugreek seeds turn a dark brown colour
Add the sprig of curry leaves
Add sambar powder, tamarind juice, salt and asafoetida
Mix well
Boil the tamarind juice for about 8 minutes (adding more water if necessary)
Add the cooked jackfruit seeds
While the jackfruit seeds are cooking, add the rice flour to a bowl
Add 1/4 cup water and mix well to form a lump-free liquid
Add this to the boiling curry and mix well
Switch off the flame
Serve hot with red/brown/millet rice
Enjoy!