Why Jackfruit is a nutritional, tasty meat-replacement meal

Interesting interview with Gursharan Singh, and Binu Varghese, co-founders of Jacked-Up who explain more about Jackfruit 

What are your own backgrounds briefly?

My background is in hotel management and restaurants. I studied hotel management originally I Ireland back in 2001 and worked in various F&B roles in Dublin hotels including the Jurys Doyle Group.

Then, in 2008, we set up a restaurant called Punjabi By Nature family run business in Ranelagh. I’ve always loved food and particularly Indian food so it was natural for me to set up a restaurant.

Then, while running Punjabi By Nature, we realised there was a market for real Asian food products in Ireland as I couldn’t get all the ones my chefs wanted. So that’s when we set up the Eurasia Supermarket Irelands largest Ethnic Supermarket. From scratch! It was really challenging but I loved it! That was in 2010 (recession) so, it’s now celebrating it’s 10th birthday.

Back then we realised that there were people from all over the world in Ireland who wanted to use ingredients from their own home countries. Ireland is such a multicultural place now and we have foods in Eurasia from India, Pakistan, China, South-East Asia, the Philippines, South Africa, the Middle East and lots from Eastern European countries. We love the fact that our shop is like this One stop shop. And, of course, lots of Irish people, chefs and food bloggers come too to explore new ingredients.

Binu also has a background in food. For a start, he is an amazing cook and is really creative with jackfruit.  Secondly, the concept for jackfruit came from him because he would have eaten a lot jackfruit growing in southern India where it’s mainly grown and most popular.

He is a main supplier to supply eggs and distributer of one of India’s Big Brand Daily Delight which supplies Indian products to more than 150 shops in Ireland.

Does it seem like a logical background to what you do now?

It’s been a very strange few months alright. First there was Brexit for us. It was always going to cause problems as we get ingredient from India and all around the world through a supply chain for Eurasia & Top In Town. Considering this we decided to enter in manufacturing and develop Asian products have gap in market and that too Made in Ireland, Local produce which is definitely positive itself.

These are problems we are solving now and grabbing opportunities.

We have to. That’s part of being in business.

Then came Covid which is also a problem but which we are dealing with. The market has changed for food in Ireland and everywhere else and we are simply having to change with it.

Jackfruit tastes good but it's also a wonderful natural product. It's related to figs and breadfruit and grows in the tropical parts of India and south-east Asia.
And guess what else? It's coming to Ireland in the form of our supertasty Jacked-Up meals . . .
WATCH. THIS. SPACE. pic.twitter.com/ezQj66I7vG

— Jacked-Up Ireland (@JackedUpIreland) September 25, 2020

How was the last 12 months?

It has been hectic! No other word for it. No holidays, working all the time, solving problems. Seeing opportunities. Changing what we do and how we do it. And then the new jackfruit product on top of everything else.

What were your big wins?

For a Distributer Managing Supply Chain was a big win and for retailer become more of an online operation. That’s the way things are now and demand has grown because of that.

Getting a place to manufacture our Jacked-Up meals was a win too. It means we control how the food is made and where and when. That’s really important to me and Binu.

SPICED UP & JACKED-UP! We will have three flavours of our healthy jackfruit meals when we launch: Pulled BBQ, Tex Mex and Indian Curry.
But we'll also have our Naked one, so you can choose your own spice level!!!
Coming soon to a palate near you . . . ? pic.twitter.com/OKrSFQmATN

— Jacked-Up Ireland (@JackedUpIreland) September 24, 2020

1 min pitch for what you are doing now / how are you managing during these corona times?

Jacked-Up was born from a desire to provide a nutritional, tasty meat-replacement meal that could be enjoyed by vegans and vegetarians as well as everybody else. We wanted to be the ones to introduce this super-tasty superfood to Ireland as we couldn’t believe it wasn’t popular here.

So, we set out to create a new vision, a new way for Irish people to enjoy meals. And not only does jackfruit taste good, it’s packed full of nutritional benefits and is the ideal meat replacement. It has a texture like pulled pork and it’s packed with nutrients. All we’ve done is add the best flavours: Pulled BBQ, Tex Mex and Indian Curry. And we also have our Naked flavour which you can spice up yourself!

Why did you decide to launch the jackfruit products?

Binu first came up with the concept as he grew up with jackfruit in southern India. It’s so popular there, he knew it would also be popular here. We both grew up eating it in our families, particularly Binu in the south. My mother would have cooked it for us but it was even more popular for his family. In North India, it’s also considered very special to serve jackfruit at your wedding!

Why did you get involved with vegan & vegetarianism, how can it help the planet?

Me and Binu have both worked in food for over 20 years and it’s our passion. So we follow what’s happening. The trend worldwide is towards healthier food and making the way food is produced less harmful to the planet.

So that’s when Binu realised that jackfruit was the perfect alternative for the Irish market. It’s healthy and nutritious but also has a texture like meat which people like. Binu then got creative and worked on the flavours.

How can people find out more about you personally & your work?

Like most people these days, I’m on social media. I love Instagram and the way it works. Binu and I both use it to explore new food ideas and trends from around the world and attend trade shows. Jacked-Up also has its own Instagram account which will be where we will promote the meals and recipes and cooking tips.

Binu and I also have lots of other ideas we’re working on. Future projects centred around Indian food, Asian brands, International cuisine. There’s a whole world out there for Irish people to explore. We realised that in the Eurasia Supermarket where Irish people come to buy food from all over the world. We have food from more than 25 countries!

Who and where do you get inspiration from?

For a start, Binu! He is my friend and my partner. He has a passion for food that I love and he has inspired this project from the beginning.

My wife and my mother are also huge inspirations for me. Both are great cooks!

And Binu and me are also inspired by our kids – who have loved tasting our jackfruit samples. They’ve been the best food critics we could have had.

I’m also inspired by change, by the tech world. There are so many exciting things happening all the time in technology – changing, developing, moving forward – and I think food is the same. We love traditional food but we also want to try new things and get other people to experience new things, new tastes and flavours. I love watching people trying our jackfruit meals for the first time. Apprehension followed by curiosity followed by ‘not bad’. And then: ‘That’s really really good!’ That’s very satisfying for me and Binu!

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