Meatless Monday this week had me trying out a couple new products. First and most importantly, Crispy Jack Patties from jack & annie’s. These are breaded patties made from jackfruit to be an alternative to chicken. I picked these up from Imperfect Foods. My local supermarket didn’t have my normal GF hamburger buns so I had to try a different brand, Ener-G.
For the jack patties, I chose to grill them on my Traeger, which I have named the Midnight Meat Train. Per the directions on the box, you keep them frozen until time to cook. I set the grill to 425 degrees and cooked for 10 minutes on each side. I then add my cheese while they’re still on the grill. I wanted to go with a spicy flair so added a slice of Pepperjack cheese with American. Leave on only long enough to melt the cheese, otherwise too long and it will melt completely off, speaking from experience.
While the patties were grilling, I through some frozen seasoned fries in my airfryer. They usually take about 10-13 minutes, in the rotating basket. I find this gets them the most crispy.
I perfer to toast my buns a little too. I only like to toast the inside, leaving the outside soft and fluffy still. I used to put them on the grill but they would go from soft to burnt in the blink of an eye. Just like making smores, you turn away for a second and its on fire, lol. So, I just spead a tiny bit of butter and put them inside down in a frying pan just until browned.
Sliced up some tomatoes and lettuce and topped with my fav vegan soy free mayo. Added the fries and a little fry sauce and it was off the dinner table, aka my bed, to dig in.
I am very happy to report that I was extremely satisfied! Who knew jackfruit made such a tasty alternative to meat, lol. I dont know if I would say that they taste like “chicken” but they were good non the less. The texture was that of breaded chicken nuggets. The pepperjack added the perfect amount of kick. The GF bun was not as good as my normal brand but they were still a hell of a lot better than those frozen pucks most places sell. With most glutten free breads, my biggest complaint is the density, like a brick, a bad brand will be so grainy from the rice flour too. These were a little dense for my liking but did not have that grainess. I used just your average pub bun for the hubs sandwhich, we perfer Seattle International Baking Company Sourdough Pub Buns. He declined the GF bun, can’t say that I blame him. I am just thrilled I got him to go along with no meat on Mondays, my “meat and pototes Montana man”. He is such a trooper, always open to being my culinary guinnea pig. I will say though that he loved this sandwhich! Definitely would make these again!
