Gulai nangka (jackfruit curry)

Not yet rated

This delicious Malaysian vegetarian curry from Abby Lee is made from meaty young green jackfruit, coconut milk and gula melaka (Malaysian palm sugar). Make sure to use canned jackfruit that has been packed in water rather than syrup though.

First published in 2023

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

  • 100ml of rapeseed oil
  • 480g of tinned young green jackfruit
  • 280g of water
  • 4g of gula melaka, or another type of palm sugar
  • 1 slice of asam gelugur, or 1 tsp tamarind concentrate, or to taste (preferably a Vietnamese or Thai brand)
  • salt
  • 6 makrut lime leaves
  • 145g of white cabbage, cut into big chunks
  • 40g of green beans, trimmed and halved
  • 280g of coconut milk, preferably Aroy-D

Gulai paste

Curry powder

Method

1

Chop the ingredients for the gulai paste roughly and add them to a food processor. Blend until smooth

2

Mix the ingredients for the curry powder together

3

Heat up the vegetable oil over a medium high heat. Add 120g of the gulai paste and 10g curry powder, stir well and then fry the paste until it is fragrant, about 5 minutes

  • 100ml of rapeseed oil
4

Drain the jackfruit pieces and add them to the pan. Coat each piece well with the paste. Add enough water to the pan so that the jackfruit is nearly covered, and add the gula melaka, asam gelugor and some salt to taste. Simmer for 45 minutes

  • 480g of tinned young green jackfruit
  • 280g of water
  • 4g of gula melaka, or another type of palm sugar
  • 1 slice of asam gelugur, or 1 tsp tamarind concentrate, or to taste (preferably a Vietnamese or Thai brand)
  • salt
5

Towards the last 10 minutes of cooking time, turn the heat down low and add the lime leaves, white cabbage, green beans, and coconut milk. Once the time is up, taste and adjust the levels of sugar, salt and tamarind, before serving

First published in 2023

Abby Lee began her career predominantly cooking Italian food but after moving back to Malaysia during the coronavirus pandemic, began to learn more about the food she grew up eating and decided to pivot towards Malaysian cookery. She has since made a name for herself at her London restaurant Mambow, where her bold modern Malaysian dishes have gone down a storm.

Get in touch

Please sign in or register to send a comment to Great British Chefs.