# Has anyone eaten breadfruit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 5, 2014, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384 "2014-12-05T05:59:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/21 "2014-12-06T16:47:40Z")
I’ve seen breadfruit and jackfruit in Toronto supermarkets (jackfruit is pretty common in Asian supermarkets, sold in wedge-shaped chunks). So why don’t I buy them? If I’m in the mood for something starchy, rice and potatoes are much, much cheaper than breadfruit. And if I’m in the mood for something that tastes like an apple or a pineapple (the jackfruit I’ve eaten didn’t seem to have much mango or banana flavour), then apples and pineapples are less than half the price and are less fibrous than a jackfruit. ---
**Author:** ![Marlonius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Marlonius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marlonius)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/22 "2014-12-06T16:57:37Z")
I had some in Fiji. The texture really was like bread. It was relatively tasteless, but went well with sauces, kind of like rice. We had it pretty fresh off the tree so to speak. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/23 "2014-12-06T17:19:11Z")
Our local “international” market carries it. We’ve never dared tried it. After our experiments with jackfruit and winter melon, we sort of lost interest in trying such things without doing some research first that they actually taste good. ---
**Author:** ![vontsira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/51bf81/32.png) [@vontsira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vontsira)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/24 "2014-12-06T18:18:58Z")
> [@Idilia\_Dubb](#): > > I remember reading that the goal of taking breadfruit to the Caribbean was to produce a cheap crop to feed the slaves on the sugar plantations. IIRC, breadfruit wasn’t considered a fit food for Europeans, unlike pineapples, mangoes, bananas and other tropical fruits. This view of breadfruit could be why it never became popular in Europe and continental North America. > > (I’m sorry I don’t have a cite for this - I read it in a book about the Triangular Trade that I have on my shelves back home, but I’m away from home now.) I’ve read likewise, of the plan by the powers-that-were, to use breadfruit as Caribbean-slave-fodder. Recall reading also, that when it got there, the slaves were not at all keen on it – though their opportunities for choice were probably limited. ---
**Author:** ![Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ac8455/32.png) [@Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Your_Great_Darsh_Face)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/25 "2014-12-06T19:49:47Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I had read Jules Verne’s description of Ned Land preparing breadfruit in _20,000 Leagues Under the Sea_ when I was a kid, and thought it sounded interesting, but I never saw any breadfruit. A few years ago I mentioned to a co-worker about bringing durian to a party (as I’ve described it on this Board), and mentioned that I’d wanted to try breadfruit as well. > > When my birthday came around, I was amazed to find that he’d put a box on my desk. Opening it, I found a breadfruit inside, about the size of a smallish soccer ball. He admitted that he got it for me because of my story. I still don’t know where he found it. > > I looked up cooking instructions on the internet. It turned out to be very different from Verne’s description. You basically have to bake it first, then cut it into slices and fry it. There was considerably more “grain” inside than I expected. The end product was not the homogenous pastry-like confection Verne described, but a more plantain-like structured thing. It also didn’t have much flavor. I can see why it never caught on among most Europeans or North Americans. Verne was a tad inaccurate as to the technical feasibility of a round-the-world submarine trip (or aerial flight) on battery power too, and as to his notion of space travel…! Elsewhere in _20,000 Leagues_ he makes the claim that whale’s milk is much the same as cow’s milk, which again I’ve recently read is not exactly the truth. Verne told a ripping yarn or two, but it seems he wasn’t above making shit up. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/26 "2014-12-06T23:58:34Z")
You can sometimes find freeze-dried jackfruit in Asian markets (sold as snacks in little bags, like potato chips). Trader Joe’s has also carried this, although theirs is inferior (it’s more starchy than sweet - I suspect they use underripe fruit). The stuff sold in Asian markets tastes pretty similar to fresh jackfruit. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/27 "2014-12-07T16:41:27Z")
> [@Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](#): > > Verne was a tad inaccurate as to the technical feasibility of a round-the-world submarine trip (or aerial flight) on battery power too, and as to his notion of space travel…! > > Elsewhere in _20,000 Leagues_ he makes the claim that whale’s milk is much the same as cow’s milk, which again I’ve recently read is not exactly the truth. > > Verne told a ripping yarn or two, but it seems he wasn’t above making shit up. 🆒 I understand the need for stretching when necessary, but this isn’t that – this is a case of bad research. In another writer, I might let it slide. But Verne bragged about the research he did, and had pretty impressive library. His description of breadfruit and its preparation is way off-base, and it wasn’t necessary to advance the story or anything. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/28 "2014-12-07T17:30:28Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > Poi is a bit sour because it’s fermented. Unfermented taro is a little like potato. > > I’m talking about taro root, by the way. Taro leaves are also edible, and taste something like spinach. I like taro leaves a lot better than spinach, although the texture is similar when cooked in something like callaloo(well if you through the stems in they have a different texture, why waste). [Callaloo - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Callaloo) I’m talking about the one with coconut milk and okra, so that might be the texture issue. I’ll have to make some plain to try. I’ve had the root under the name eddoes, it tastes like a sort of gamey or earthy potato, texture almost the same. I’ve never tried breadfruit even though it is sold locally because my wife tells me it is hard to prepare and tasteless starch that can be had much cheaper in other stuff. No one else has a high opinion of it either. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/29 "2014-12-07T17:50:54Z")
> [@grude](#): > > I’ve never tried breadfruit even though it is sold locally because my wife tells me it is hard to prepare and tasteless starch that can be had much cheaper in other stuff. No one else has a high opinion of it either. It’s the major component of oiled down (or similar spelling), one of the typical dishes in Trinidad. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/30 "2014-12-07T17:58:50Z")
> [@KarlGrenze](#): > > It’s the major component of oiled down (or similar spelling), one of the typical dishes in Trinidad. Do you happen to live in an area with Grenadians? I’ve never had it, or even seen it for sale, I’m honestly curious. > **[Oil down](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_Down)** > > Oil down is a salted meat and vegetable stew that is the national dish of Grenada. > Oil down is a stew of breadfruit, salted meat, chicken, dumplings, callaloo, and other vegetables stewed in coconut milk, herbs, and spices. The name refers to the fact that the oil from the coconut milk used in cooking is either absorbed by the ingredients or settles to the bottom of the cooking pot. All of the liquid is cooked down (dried out), hence the name oil down. > The term "oil down" is also used for a tra... And I like cowheel soup so I have weird taste. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/31 "2014-12-07T21:38:46Z")
> [@grude](#): > > Do you happen to live in an area with Grenadians? I’ve never had it, or even seen it for sale, I’m honestly curious. > > [Oil down - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_Down) > > And I like cowheel soup so I have weird taste. I’ve had it on two different occasions. One was a fancy version at a dinner event that specifically was making fancy twists on typical Trinidad and Tobago cuisine, and the other one was after a UWI hike event thing. PS.: Got your message. It may be mostly Tobago dish(and hence it was included with the Trinidad and Tobago food), but I’ve spoken with a few other Trinis who’ve had it (including the other people at the food event and at the hiking event). I don’t see it as often as other meals, you’re right about that. I do have a craving now for some _tostones de pana_… Mmm… ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2025, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384/32 "2025-11-06T18:17:00Z")
A decade later, here’s the update you’ve all been waiting for. I have eaten breadfruit. I was in a local grocery store this weekend and I was surprised to see they had a tray of breadfruit on sale in their produce department. This was surprising because this was a bland suburban supermarket - not the kind of store where you would expect to find anything exotic. But given the opportunity, I bought a breadfruit. (Reasonably priced too.) I took it home and watched some YouTube videos to figure out how I should prepare it. I ended up steaming it whole in my Insta-pot and then coring, peeling, and slicing it up when it was done. It had a somewhat strange spongy texture, softer on the outside. The taste, as has been described, is pretty bland. Like potato with a hint of something else. I ate some of it plain but I also added some salt and seasoning to the rest. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-eaten-breadfruit/706384.md?page=1)