Barbecued brisket is probably the national meat of Texas and if tacos aren’t the official dish, they certainly should be. I am thrilled to now have an amazing recipe for both. My friend Molly, who wrote this recipe to help Sunny Day Farms, is a native Texan and chili contest star. She is my favorite kind of Texan, one of those people that isn’t afraid to speak up about her beliefs but in such a logical and polite way that everyone feels good about it. She also does a lot to help our vegan community here in Texas. It isn’t always as easy as we sometimes make it sound in the lonestar state. On the one hand, we have a vegan firehouse right here in Austin. On the other hand, the Texas cattle industry (you might remember them from when they tried to sue Oprah for saying she didn’t want to eat another burger) once, allegedly, sent these same vegan firefighters a frozen chopped up cow..
Maybe the reason that they are so threatened is because of amazing recipes like this. Using jackfruit and a little vegan magic Molly’s recipe would make a believer out of anybody. The recipe was simple weeknight fare, even after I realized I was out of barbecue sauce and that I would have to make some. I think I might make a ridiculously large batch for our next work potluck and put it right next to whatever big ole tray of barbecue the bosses contribute. Or maybe I won’t because then I will have to spend the whole party telling everyone what jackfruit is and why barbecuing a fruit they probably never heard of isn’t nearly as scary as what happens to most cows in Texas.
The recipe for the brisket has a lot of different uses which is another reason I’m excited to have it in the zine. You could make a side of barbecue, have the traditional Texas white bread sandwich, the taco like I made here, or it could even go into the realm of extreme tex-mex. I’m thinking stuffed into truck-stop style enchiladas and covered in queso.
NOTE- there is a typo in early versions of the zine, it should be a 20oz can of jackfruit, not 10oz. Write it down right now! Or better yet, buy a new copy 😉
Every post this month for Veganmofo will be celebrating the recipes in the zine Sunny Days in Texas, a fundraiser cookzine to help Sunny Day Farms Animal Sanctuary.