Breadfruit Chocolate Truffles ( Breadfruit - Just might be our Saviour )

Breadfruit - More than just Oildown or Boil and Fry. It Takes a Trinidadian to explore the versatility of such a “ Normal Small Island” ingredient that is always overlooked and treated like a banal and jejune after-thought.

If it’s one thing I enjoyed eating when I was young was the popular breadfruit. I would always get the tree mixed up with the chataigne tree (Breadnut Tree ) and ask my cousins in the country to use their monkey skills to climb and pick it for me. Luckily for me, I soon learned the difference in the trees. Breadfruit is one food item that tends to take a back seat to many of the other well known ingredients we use today. It is referred to as a False Fruit and termed to be a flowering plant. However possessing a similar texture to a starchy provision it is classified world wide as a staple. It contains 25 Percent Carbohydrates and over 70 percent water content with small percentages of vitamin C (potassium and zinc) and thiamin. Hard to believe that such a husky fruit actually has a small percentage of carbohydrates as compared to rice which is such a minute grain. 

The breadfruit Tree comes from the Mulberry Family which is all related to the Chataigne Tree and Jackfruit Tree. It can grow to heights well beyond 85Ft.  It is Native to the Malay Peninsula and grows torrentially along the South East Asian Countries, Polynesian states straight down to the Tropical countries in the Caribbean. It thrives on a sunny and warm climate and therefore shuns frost inhibited zones.  Breadfruit is one of the highest-yielding food plants, with a single tree producing up to 200 or more fruits per season. As mentioned before, it is a staple food in many tropical regions. Before eating breadfruit, it is mainly roasted, baked, fried or boiled. When cooked the taste is described as potato-like, or similar to fresh-baked bread (hence the name).

The fruit is available mainly from June to November, but some trees may mature at other times during the year. The fruit itself may look a little daunting at first view but never the less it should not intimidate or ward off one’s intention to get familiarized with it. In the green stage, the fruit is hard and the interior is white, starchy and somewhat fibrous. When fully ripe, the fruit is somewhat soft; the interior is cream colored or yellow and pasty, also sweetly fragrant. The seeds are irregularly oval, rounded at one end, pointed at the other, about ¾’’ long, dull-brown with darker stripes. In the center of the fruit there is a cylindrical or oblong core, in some types covered with hairs bearing flat, brown, abortive seeds about (3 mm) long. The fruit is borne singly or in clusters of 2 or 3 at the branch tips.

One vivid memory I will always remember was the day I was introduced to breadfruit, my father had taken the mammoth green cylinder that he termed to be “ top ah de line ” and peeled, cleaned and cut it up into medium sized chunks to make the famous Trinidadian preparation “ Oil Down with Pig Tail”. To see how it was made and cooked as he believed that it must be prepared on a fire side to deliver that smoky flavor,  he mentioned that the Breadfruit will yield the most creamiest and satisfying taste in your mouth when it absorbs all of the coconut milk liquid in which it was slowly cooked in. From that day forth, I realized that this “less famous” staple possessed so much potential in the kitchen as it related to preparing a vast amount of delicious creations, whether savory, sweet, appetizer –wise or even entrées.

With these ideas, parameters don’t exist with the usage of breadfruit. My Research has stated that Malayans peel firm-ripe fruits, slice the pulp and fry it in syrup or palm sugar until it is crisp and brown. Filipinos enjoy the cooked fruit with coconut and sugar. In Hawaii the fruit is peeled and halved and fermented in deep covered holes in the earth for 3 years then reclaimed and smashed into a paste that produces a cheese like consistency relished by the natives. In some countries, breadfruit flower has been very prominent as it is dried and grounded to produce breads and other starch based products and proves to be scientifically  healthier that wheat flour.  But as a Chef I enjoy mostly slicing the breadfruit thinly and frying them at a moderate oil temperature and making chips, a favorite of mine and others I’m quite sure.

What is another important fact is that the breadfruit does have medicinal use here in Trinidad. A concoction of the breadfruit leaf is believed to lower blood pressure, and is also said to relieve asthma. Crushed leaves are applied on the tongue as a treatment for thrush. The leaf juice is employed as ear-drops. Ashes of burned leaves are used on skin infections. A powder of roasted leaves is employed as a remedy for enlarged spleen. In addition the tree trunk produces a flowing latex liquid that when cut it produces a sticky liquid. The latex is used on skin diseases and is bandaged on the spine to relieve sciatica. Diluted latex is taken internally to overcome diarrhea and of course because of its sticky character, it can be used to catch birds when they land on a (Laglee) trap.

With all this said, Breadfruit should be distinguished as a food item that should be diversified more into our local cooking, rather than the common culinary practices we exhaust everyday in Trinidad. It is because of this mind set and generic thinking I decided to show more a coveted side of breadfruit today where I created a dessert entitled breadfruit Chocolate Truffles.

With an open mind and curious intuition, I ask that you try this unorthodox but delicious spin on a local staple.

Breadfruit Truffle Recipe

1 Cup Breadfruit (Medium Cubed)

2 ½ Cups Water

1 Tsp of Vanilla Essence

3 Tbsp Rose Water.

6 Tbsp Cherry Brandy

¼ Tsp Cinnamon Powder

1 Tbsp Corn Syrup

½ Cup Brown Sugar

Coating

12 Oz Sweet Chocolate

3 Tbsp of Toasted Chopped Peanuts

 Procedure

·        Place all ingredients for the truffle into a small deep pan and mix to distribute throughout the water. Add the chopped breadfruit and Bring to a boil then simmer. Cook covered on a low heat until the breadfruit is cooked through, ensuring not to over boil the breadfruit. It should be soft, tender but still slightly sticky. ( About 20 Mins )

Remove from heat, Strain, discard liquid and crush breadfruit until smooth, removing any strands that may be present. Place crushed breadfruit into a bowl and refrigerate until cold.

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate over a double boiler (A Bowl with the chocolate inside over a pot of simmering water) and ensure the melted chocolate is smooth and semi-runny. Remove from heat and allow the chocolate to come down to room temperature.

Take Breadfruit and make small 1/2 oz size balls rolling the mixture in your hand.

( Some Cocoa powder dusted on your hands will prevent sticky hands )

Take Balls and gently roll into the cool chocolate mixture using a fork.

The Balls should quickly firm up due to their coolness.

Then quickly roll them into the chopped peanuts. Place on a sheet line with parchment and place in the chiller for 2 Hrs.

Serve as a snack or as a plated dessert with a decorative fruit sauce.

#Chefjasonperu / #Breaadfruit/ #Trinidad / Truffles / #Innovation / #Chocolate / #CocoaTrinidad #TheOriginalBubblinStar