Learn how to make tempting barbecue nachos using jackfruit, a versatile vegan and gluten-free ingredient. With a delicious mix of smoky and sweet, this easy recipe is perfect for your next game day or party snack!
If you love smoky barbecue flavors with creamy avocado, sweet bell pepper and corn, and a flourish of garlicky ranch dressing, you will love these barbecue jackfruit nachos!
With a variety of tastes and textures in every bite, this satisfying appetizer recipe keeps you coming back – bite after mouthwatering bite.
These tantalizing BBQ nachos are ideal for movie or game nights. Quickly throw these nachos in the oven for a guaranteed crowdpleaser. They’re sure to delight any dinner guest!
(Looking for a more standard variety of nachos? Check out this recipe for vegan nachos with cashew queso.)
Living Vegan
This vegan pulled pork nachos recipe is from my new book, Living Vegan For Dummies, 2nd edition.
As part of the “For Dummies” line, this book breaks down everything you need to know about navigating a vegan lifestyle in simple & doable steps.
This information-packed guide includes:
- The reasons people choose to go vegan & how to adopt the lifestyle for yourself
- Helpful tips on navigating holidays, social gatherings, vacations, and work dinners on a plant-based diet
- Detailed guidance on veganizing family favorites, stocking your pantry, creating vegan grocery lists, and meal planning
Plus, Living Vegan includes 38 delicious vegan recipes like this one! All of the recipes are easy to prepare and ideal for those who are new to a meat-free lifestyle!
Grab your own copy of Living Vegan For Dummies here!
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you will need to make this recipe.
Jackfruit: Choose canned jackfruit packed in water or brine. Fresh ripe jackfruit or canned jackfruit packed in syrup are much too sweet for this recipe.
Look for canned young green jackfruit at natural grocery stores, Asian grocery stores, or online.
Oil: Choose a neutral-flavored cooking oil. Avocado oil is my go-to.
Produce: Onions, garlic, corn, scallions, bell pepper, and avocado. If you can find it, frozen fire roasted corn adds an extra layer of smoky flavor. Ripe bell peppers (red, yellow, or orange) offer the sweetest taste.
Seasonings: Cumin, ancho chili powder, coriander, and salt. Ancho chili powder is made with one ingredient – dried ancho chilies. It’s flavorful but not hot.
(Ancho chili powder can be replaced with standard chili powder. But be aware that chili powder blends vary in heat levels because of the addition of cayenne.)
Tahini: This sesame seed paste is similar to peanut butter in viscosity. It adds protein, fat, and stickiness to the jackfruit, which makes it more like pulled pork. It also tempers any remaining tinny flavor from the can.
Look for tahini in the center aisles of the grocery store near Mediterranean foods or in the health section. My favorite brands are Soom and Seed + Mill.
Barbecue sauce: Make your own barbecue sauce or use bottled store-bought BBQ sauce. Check the label for any non-vegan ingredients like honey or Worcestershire, which can include anchovies. To keep this recipe gluten-free, choose gluten-free barbecue sauce.
Tortilla chips: For the best nachos, choose full-sized chips that can stand up to a lot of toppings.
Vegan cheese: Shredded vegan cheddar works great here. My current go-to option is Mexican-style dairy-free shreds from Trader Joe’s.
Vegan ranch dressing: Finishing the nachos with drizzles of vegan ranch dressing adds a pop of garlicky deliciousness. I recommend making your own homemade dressing, but store-bought works in a pinch.
Step by step instructions
Here’s how to make this recipe at a glance. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.
1. Drain canned jackfruit and rinse well in a colander.
2. Place the drained jackfruit on a clean kitchen towel.
3. Wrap it up like a Tootsie Roll and wring dry.
4. Move the jackfruit to a food processor. Pulse several times until it’s shredded.
5. Brown jackfruit in an oiled skillet.
6. Add onions and garlic. Saute until fragrant.
7. Add the following seasonings:
- Cumin
- Ancho chili powder
- Coriander
- Salt
Once combined, add tahini.
8. Add barbecue sauce and cook until warmed.
9. Put tortilla chips on baking sheet. Top with spoonfuls of barbecued jackfruit, corn, and drizzles of barbecue sauce. Then bake.
10. Remove from oven. Then top with the following:
- Scallions
- Bell pepper
- Avocado
- Vegan ranch dressing (optional)
Serve nachos from the baking sheet while hot.
Make it your own
You can make this mouthwatering appetizer your own by varying the ingredients.
- For more protein, replace barbecued jackfruit with pulled pork-style Soy Curls.
- For extra color and nutrients, add a shredded carrot to the jackfruit mixture right after adding the spices.
- If you don’t like or don’t have tahini, you can easily omit it.
- For an extra kick of heat, add a dash of hot sauce along with the barbecue sauce.
- For even more heat, finish the nachos with quick pickled jalapenos.
- For more tang, replace scallions with pickled red onions.
- For fully loaded nachos, add more toppings like fresh cilantro, shredded cabbage mix, vegan sour cream, black or pinto beans, sliced olives, sliced radishes, and/or halved cherry tomatoes.
- For an even more filling platter, make a double batch of barbecued jackfruit.
- Instead of drizzling with vegan ranch dressing, finish the nachos with creamy onion & garlic dressing.
Storage and reheating
Obviously, nachos are best when made and served fresh. So if you’re making the individual components ahead of time, I recommend storing each of them separately.
Barbecued jackfruit will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about 4 days. If it looks a little dry after its time in the fridge, stir in more barbecue sauce before adding it to the nachos.
Then compile the nachos, and bake in the oven as directed below.
Have leftovers?
If you have already made the whole platter of nachos, store them in a covered container (like Pyrex) in the fridge. They will keep for 3 or 4 days.
When you’re ready to eat them, reheat in the air fryer. (They come out surprisingly crispy and fresh!) Line your air fryer basket with parchment paper. Then pour in the leftover nachos. If you like, you can add a few more handfuls of shredded vegan cheese on top.
Air fry at 375 degrees for about 5 minutes. Using the parchment paper, carefully lift the nachos from the air fryer basket, move them to a plate, and finish with a few fresh drizzles of vegan ranch dressing.
(Although, you could air fry the nachos the first time you prepare them, the initial cheese melt is better in the oven.)
FAQ
Yes! All parts of canned jackfruit are edible – even the pods and firmer core. For easiest eating, I recommend pulsing canned jackfruit in a food processor several times to break it up. That helps the jackfruit to look uniform, and smaller pieces absorb the seasonings and sauce better.
Barbecued jackfruit is reminiscent of pulled pork, which has a sticky texture. Adding tahini to jackfruit helps emulate that quality. Plus, green jackfruit is low in calories and protein. Tahini adds some protein and fat, which helps with satiety.
Finally, canned jackfruit often has a briny flavor, even after fully rinsing. Tahini mitigates any remaining brine flavor.
If you don’t have tahini or aren’t a fan, you can add less or omit it completely.
Definitely! After you wring out the jackfruit in a towel, instead of pulsing it in a food processor, give it a rough chop or pull it apart with your fingers. As you cook the jackfruit in an oiled skillet, further break it up with your spatula.
Yes! To make this dish gluten-free, simply use gluten-free barbecue sauce.
More jackfruit recipes
Keep the jackfruit love going with these tempting jackfruit recipes:
If you try this recipe and love it, let me know! Leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It truly makes my day and is such a help!
📖 Recipe
Sheet pan barbecue jackfruit nachos
Ingredients
- 1 (20-ounce) can green jackfruit canned in water or brine
- 2 teaspoons avocado oil or your preferred oil, divided
- ½ cup chopped onions
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon ancho chili powder
- ½ teaspoon coriander
- ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
- 2 teaspoons tahini
- ½ cup barbecue sauce divided
- 8 to 10 ounces tortilla chips
- ½ cup corn thawed from frozen or drained from a can
- 1 cup shredded vegan cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup sliced scallions
- ¼ cup chopped bell peppers red, orange, or yellow
- 1 avocado diced in chunks
- Drizzles of vegan ranch dressing optional but recommended
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Drain the canned green or young jackfruit in a colander. Rinse well with water.
- Place the rinsed jackfruit on a clean, dry kitchen towel. Dry the jackfruit with the towel, and then wrap it like a Tootsie Roll and wring it dry until all of the water or brine comes out.
- Move the dried-off jackfruit to a food processor. Pulse several times until it's fully broken up and shredded.(All parts of the canned jackfruit are edible – including any pods or firmer pieces. The food processor completely breaks those up, so that they're easy and pleasant to chew. If you don't have a food processor, just chop the jackfruit with a knife. See the note below.)
- Put one teaspoon of oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Spread the jackfruit across the skillet. Allow it to brown for 4 to 5 minutes. Flip it once it has browned on one side.
- Move the jackfruit to one side of the skillet. Then put the remaining teaspoon of oil on the empty side of the skillet. Add the chopped onions and minced garlic. Saute for a minute or two, until fragrant. Then incorporate it with the jackfruit using a spatula.
- Season the jackfruit with the cumin, ancho chili powder, coriander, and salt. Fully incorporate the seasonings with the jackfruit, and cook for about a minute. Then add the tahini. It makes the jackfruit stickier (like pulled pork), and adds protein and fat.
- Add 6 Tablespoons of the barbecue sauce to the jackfruit mixture, and fully incorporate it. Cook about a minute longer, until the barbecue sauce is warmed.
- Line a baking sheet with tortilla chips. Top with spoonfuls of barbecue jackfruit and corn. Sprinkle on the vegan cheddar cheese. Drizzle the 2 remaining Tablespoons of barbecue sauce over the chips.
- Place the nachos in the oven and bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. (Be careful not to overbake and burn the chips.)
- Remove from the oven. Finish with sliced scallions, bell pepper, avocado, and a few drizzles of vegan ranch dressing, if you like. Pass around plates and serve the warm nachos from the baking sheet.
Notes
- If you like, add one shredded carrot to the jackfruit mixture in the skillet right after adding the spices. You’ll likely need to add more barbecue sauce. Continue cooking until the carrot has reached your preferred level of softness.
- If you like a spicier filling, add a dash of hot sauce along with the barbecue sauce.
- You can also add pickled jalapenos to the finished nachos.
- If you can find frozen fire roasted corn, it’s especially delicious on these nachos.
- The nachos are also tasty topped with a sprinkling of cilantro.
- For an even more filling platter, consider making a double batch of the barbecued jackfruit.
Shell
I love this recipe for a quick snack and it is also easy to turn into a week-night meal! This is one of the many great receipes from your book!
Cadry Nelson
Thanks for the great feedback! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the nachos recipe, as well as others from my book!