This vegan smoky jackfruit stew is brimming with good-for-you ingredients yet you’d never know it based on taste. Its savory, rich, and oh-so-creamy base is made with a combination of nourishing cauliflower-cashew cream and vegetable broth. Best yet? The Jackfruit Company's Smoked Jackfruit is stirred in at the end to add a meaty, hearty bite to this completely plant-powered dish!
⅔cupraw cashews, soaked for two hours (unless using a high-speed blender)
¼cupnutritional yeast
2tablespoonsfresh lemon juice
1 ½teaspoonssea salt, plus more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2(10-ounce packages)The Jackfruit Company Smoked Jackfruit (see note*)
1bunchlacinato kale, thoroughly washed, stemmed, and chopped
Instructions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the cauliflower florets and boil for 7 to 10 minutes, or until fork-tender. Drain and set aside.
While the cauliflower boils, heat the olive oil in a large stockpot or dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the scallions, carrots, and smoked paprika. Sauté for about 5 minutes, or until the vegetables just begin to soften, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and continue to cook for another minute, or until it begins to soften.
Stir in 3 cups of the vegetable broth, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, add the boiled cauliflower to a high-speed blender along with the remaining 1 cup vegetable broth, and the filtered water, cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, sea salt, and black pepper. Blend on high for two minutes, or until completely smooth and creamy.
Add the cauliflower mixture to the pot of soup and stir to incorporate. Then, stir in the jackfruit and kale. Increase the heat to medium and continue to simmer for just 5 to 8 minutes to thicken and reduce. Generously season with more sea salt and black pepper to taste. (I usually add another ½ teaspoon of sea salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper.)
Serve warm.
Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 1 month.
If the soup is thicker than desired after refrigerating and reheating, simply whisk in a bit more vegetable broth or filtered water and adjust seasonings as needed.
Notes
*Pick through the jackfruit to ensure there are no tough pieces. If there are, discard them.