Edward & Sons Organic Young Jackfruit - Jackfruit Organic, Vegan Meat, Vegan Fruit, Plant Based Meat, Vegan Meat Substitute, Unseasoned - 4.4 Pounds

Excellent product.Never having ordered this before, I was expecting it to look like canned jackfruit - white and in brine - but this is different. If you too have not used this before, here is what to expect:It is packaged in foil without additional fluids, and it has a dry look with a brown color. But, it is not dry, but nor is it slippery wet. There are no added fluids, and it is the consistency of the freshly pared fruit. The brown color you might assume is a mistake or turned rancid, but it is not. According to company webpages, "Most jackfruit contains preservatives and additives, but ours is 100% jackfuit! Due to oxidation and no preservatives our jackfruit is brown in color, making it even meatier!" That is correct. Think of it like an apple that has browned some. It is not like a browned banana that has gotten mushy, nor an exposed avocado that turns brown and bitter. The taste and freshness of this product are preserved despite the color.Consistent with it being the unripened fruit, the taste is a bit acidic or sour, but also a bit fruity or flowery. Unlike yellow sweet ripened jackfruit, it does not otherwise have a distinctive flavor, just that subtle slightly sour fruitiness. This is why it works well to mimic meats or anything else you might wish, because it will adopt whatever spices and seasonings you add without fighting against its own taste.I used my first 4.4 pound bag to make barbecue. Taste and texture were nearly identical to shredded meat barbecues, which was all a function of the spices and sauces that were added (I made my own, but your favorite bottled barbecue sauce would work just the same). That slightly sour floral taste of the jackfruit came through a bit, but if you do not approach this as "vegan pulled pork", instead just accept it on its own terms as barbecue sauce jackfruit, it is fantastic. Personally for me, I liked it better, and if I were at a picnic or restaurant and was offered a shredded meat barbecue slider versus the same with jackfruit, I would take the jackfruit every time. My first batch using about a pound of the fruit was a big hit, and I soon used the rest of the bag for the same recipe. Now, I am curious to see how it does with other dishes.If you need the jackfruit to be a lighter color for a certain dish, then canned varieties would be better, but for darker dishes or where color is irrelevant, the taste and texture of this is comparable to canned jackfruit (but a bit fresher). This product has the advantage that there is no waste - no brine to discard - you are paying for 4.4 pounds of fully usable product.I was very pleased with the product and the value for the money. I have added it to my Amazon grocery list for easy reordering.