Get Jacked with Jackfruit!

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Supplement your diet with this spiky wonder.

If you’ve researched vegan recipes to replace the meat in your life lately, odds are good the name “jackfruit” has caught your eye at least once. The notion must sound absolutely bonkers; how can a fruit replace meat? Fruit isn’t meat! But if you’ve ever tried a jackfruit, you’d note a very distinctive, almost meat-like texture to it. While you obviously can’t make it taste identically to meat, the right preparation can create a decent approximation of the likes of pulled pork. Besides that taste, it ain’t half bad for you either.

Jackfruit, like most fresh fruit, is absolutely loaded with clean, soluble fiber, as well as important body-boosting nutrients like vitamin C and potassium. About a half-cup of shredded jackfruit will get you about a quarter of your daily recommended fiber intake, which in turn will do some good for your digestive system. Jackfruit’s vitamin C content also makes it good for keeping your immune system in tip-top shape, not only empowering your white blood cells, but also improving your body’s ability to absorb iron. Proper iron absorption from external sources into your blood improves your body’s ability to take in and circulate oxygen, which empowers just about every major facet of your body’s inner workings, from your immune system to your cognitive capabilities.

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Jackfruit also makes a great workout snack. Its potassium content helps deliver some clean electrolytes into your system, which keeps your fluids balanced and gets rid of waste in your cells. This, in turn, helps to prevent muscular cramping and soreness, as well as empowers every muscle in your body, including your heart. That’s even more healthy blood flow encouragement.

So whether you eat it straight or turn it into a faux-meat slider, you can’t go wrong with a little jackfruit.