Here's my easy Vegan Jackfruit Curry in Indian style! This simple and healthy plant-based recipe takes just about 30 minutes to make. Serve over white basmati rice or with roti / plain naan for a delicious family-favourite Indian meal.
I love making this easy jackfruit curry and brown lentils dal — one of my go-to plant-based meals when I’m craving something hearty and full of flavour. It's a very simple recipe that takes just 20 minutes of cooking time. So you can still make a proper curry for dinner without much planning on a weeknight!
Jump to:
- Never Cooked a Jackfruit Curry Before? You’re in for a Surprise!
- Why you'll love this recipe?
- Ingredients & Substitutions
- How to Make Jackfruit Curry?
- 👩🏻🍳Sandhya's Top Tips
- 🍽 What to Serve With Jackfruit Curry?
- Storing Jackfruit Curry
- Recipe FAQ's
- More Easy UK Takeaway-Style Indian Curries
- Easy Vegan Jackfruit curry recipe below
- Vegan Jackfruit Curry
Never Cooked a Jackfruit Curry Before? You’re in for a Surprise!
I use young jackfruit from the can, which is a brilliant meat alternative. It has a lovely, tender texture and soaks up the spices beautifully. If you’ve never tried it before, this is such a great place to start!
The curry sauce is made with a classic bhuna sauce (onion-tomato masala). I usually keep it light, without any coconut milk. But when I'm in mood for a creamy jackfruit curry, I just add a splash of coconut milk/ cream —it makes a lovely difference!
Why you'll love this recipe?
- It’s really quick and easy to make — perfect for when you want a proper curry without the fuss.
- The steps are simple, and you won’t need any weird or hard-to-find ingredients like my simple Chana masala.
- You can make it as spicy or mild as you like, plus add whatever veggies you want.
- It’s a one pot vegan curry, so cleanup is a breeze! That is why I tend to make them on weeknights specially!
Ingredients & Substitutions
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Yellow onion – adds a nice mild sweetness. Red or brown onions work too.
- Chillies – I use two birds eye green chilli to give a bit of heat. Skip if you don’t want it spicy.
- Ginger garlic – classic flavour base. Use fresh or store-bought paste, whatever’s easiest.
- Tomato – I use fresh plus tomato paste, but canned tomatoes are fine.
- Spices – Just basic Indian spices like turmeric, chilli powder, cumin, black pepper, garam masala. I sometimes add cardamom and cinnamon for a touch of sweetness. Always adjust to your taste.
- Young Jackfruit – I use canned unripe jackfruit in brine for great texture. You can swap raw jackfruit for tofu, quorn pieces(like I use in Vegetarian Rogan Josh) or seitan if you like.
- Fresh Coriander – Always a great addition for Indian Curries.
- Red pepper – adds colour and sweetness.
- Spinach or kale – for some greens.
- Oil – any neutral oil like sunflower or olive oil works.
How to Make Jackfruit Curry?
Saute Aromatics: Heat some oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter. Then, add diced onion, green chillies, minced garlic, and ginger. Sauté them until the onion turns translucent.
Tomatoes and Spices: Add tomato paste, diced tomatoes, and spices to the pan. Stir everything together for a few more minutes. If the masala starts sticking to the pan, add a splash of water as you cook.
Red Pepper: Toss in diced red pepper and continue cooking until the tomatoes break down and blend well with the onion, creating a flavourful masala.
Add Jackfruit and Simmer: Add the young jackfruit to the pan and stir to coat it in the sauce. Pour in 1 cup of water and bring the mixture to a simmer. Let the curry simmer for about 10-12 minutes or until the jackfruit becomes tender.
Stir Spinach, Cover, and Cook: Stir in chopped spinach, ensuring it's well incorporated into the curry. Cover the pan and allow the curry to rest for 5 minutes.
Garnish and Serve: Squeeze some lemon juice over the curry and garnish with fresh coriander. Serve this delicious jackfruit curry with a roti or rice.
👩🏻🍳Sandhya's Top Tips
- Use young jackfruit in brine – It’s easy to find in most supermarkets and perfect when you want to make a quick curry. You can slice and cook fresh jackfruit if you fancy, but honestly, the canned version works just as well.
- Make your own bhuna sauce – The flavour is so much better when it’s homemade. If you’re in the mood for something different, you can swap it out for a korma cooking sauce or balti sauce instead.
- Don’t rush the onion-tomato base – This part really makes or breaks the curry. Cook it down properly until it’s rich and jammy. It might take a few extra minutes, but it’s totally worth it.
🍽 What to Serve With Jackfruit Curry?
I love to serve this easy Jackfruit curry over brown basmati rice (I usually cook this while I making the curry), white basmati rice or Indian cauliflower rice for a quick meal.
For an Indian feast, any of these Indian sides are delicious
- Garlic Naan bread or Chapatis to scoop the curry
- Split peas yellow dal or Green lentils dal
- Vegan cucumber raita, Mixed vegetable raita or Onion raita to balance the spiciness.
Storing Jackfruit Curry
- Fridge: Once cooled, store the leftover jackfruit curry in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. I usually just reheat it in the microwave before serving.
- Freezer: I freeze this curry in single-serve portions or in freezer-safe containers for up to 6 months. To reheat, thaw it in the fridge overnight (if you're organised) or just warm it up on the stove or in the microwave.
No-fuss dinner sorted after a holiday or on a busy night!
Recipe FAQ's
You’ll find canned jackfruit in most big supermarkets like Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, or Waitrose — usually in the world foods or tinned veg aisle. Asian grocery stores often stock it too, and you can easily get it online from places like Amazon.
It usually comes in 400g tins, with a drained weight of around 225g. I always go for young green jackfruit in brine, not syrup — and definitely not the ripe kind! Fresh jackfruit is hard to find here and a bit of a hassle to prep, so canned is just way more convenient.
For quicker curries, it's best to use young green jackfruit in brine, which is available in tins at most UK Supermarkets or Asian grocery stores.This type of jackfruit has a neutral flavour and meaty texture that works perfectly in savoury dishes.
Just drain, rinse, and add it straight to your curry—no need to deal with the mess of cutting, cleaning, or deseeding a fresh jackfruit. It's a huge time-saver and gives great results!
Yes! Jackfruit is a great meat alternative because of its texture and how well it soaks up flavour. It works really well in curries, stews, tacos, or even as a veggie version of pulled pork in sandwiches.
It depends on the ripeness! Ripe jackfruit is sweet and tropical — kind of like a mix of pineapple, banana, and mango. It’s usually eaten raw or used in desserts and smoothies.
Young unripe jackfruit, which is what I use in savoury recipes, has a neutral flavour and a fibrous, meaty texture. It soaks up spices really well like in this curry and makes a great alternative to pulled pork or chicken.
More Easy UK Takeaway-Style Indian Curries
Easy Vegan Jackfruit curry recipe below
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 1 inch ginger grated
- 4 cloves garlic minced,
- 2 green chillies diced (adjust to your spice preference)
- 2 medium tomatoes diced (approximately 280g)
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 medium red pepper cut into chunks (approximately 120g)
- 2 tins young jackfruit drained weight 500g (total 1000g with liquid)
- 1 cup water
- 2 cups spinach approximately 60g
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ - 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder adjust to your spice preference
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom (make your own at home)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- salt to taste
- ½ lemon juiced
- 2 tablespoon fresh coriander chopped
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter.
- Add diced onion, green chillies, minced garlic, and grated ginger. Saute until the onion is translucent.
- Stir in tomato paste and diced tomatoes. Cook for a few minutes until the tomatoes break down into a masala.
- Add turmeric, Kashmiri chilli powder, black pepper, garam masala, ground cardamom, and ground cinnamon. Mix well.
- Add drained young jackfruit to the pan and coat it in the sauce.
- Pour in 1 cup of water, Salt and Pepper and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cook for 12-15 minutes until jackfruit is tender.
- Stir in chopped spinach, cover, and let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Squeeze the juice of half a lemon into the curry and give it a final stir. Garnish with fresh coriander.
- Serve hot with rice, naan, or your favourite flatbread.
Notes
Top Tips
- Use young jackfruit in brine – Quick and easy! Canned works just as well as fresh.
- Make your own bhuna sauce – So much more flavour. Try korma curry cooking sauce or balti sauce for a twist.
- Cook the base well – Take your time with the onion-tomato masala. It’s what makes the curry!
- Have you got Onion Tomato Masala ready in your freezer? Use 1 cube in the recipe instead of using onion, tomato, ginger and garlic. This will also save you time and speed up the recipe.
Storing Indian Jackfruit Curry
- Fridge: Once cooled, keep leftover Indian vegan jackfruit curry in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. I usually reheat it quickly in the microwave before serving.
- Freezer: Freeze the curry in single-serve portions or freezer-safe containers for up to 6 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge or warm it up on the stove or microwave.
Eeb says
Hi there, it looks like your photos are showing trimmed jackfruit.. Do you cut off the tough bits and remove the scary weird seeds? I do, and it adds a bit of time to any recipe, worth mentioning.
I ask because you don't mention this step.
Thanks!
Sandhya's Kitchen says
Hi Eeb, thank you for your message. I use Young Jackfruit from the can for curries now. So they come already trimmed without the tough bits. And less work too.
Growing up in India, my mum used to remove the tough bits and it was quite an elaborate affair.