![\"\"](\"https:\/\/nosmallthing.net\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/jack-fruit-225x300.jpg\")
In advance of going to the grocery store, I\u2019ll often make a list of things I want to pick up, which can seem like a futile enterprise since I usually leave the hand-written list, scrawled on the back of a return envelope I won\u2019t use, on my kitchen counter.<\/p>\n
I suppose I could view this as wasted energy but just asking myself what I want and letting thoughts surface has a generally positive effect.<\/p>\n
I perform much of my grocery shopping at a small neighborhood place. I like to support local businesses. I\u2019ll go to a more traditional supermarket when I want to re-stock staples, like cases of LaCroix or a gallon tin of olive oil.<\/p>\n
I was at a large market this past week and decided to check out their produce department, something I rarely do, especially during summer months when I enjoy going to farmers markets.<\/p>\n
Just past the avocadoes and rainbow assortment of bell peppers, I spotted a collection of large prickly melons. Most were whole. There was one dissected in what approximated a half. It was wrapped in clear plastic so you could see the flesh and seeds.<\/p>\n
Lighter in color than a cantaloupe and denser, I contemplated that I had never seen, let alone consumed, such a melon before.<\/p>\n
The sign said \u201cJackfruit \u2014 .79\/lb.\u201d<\/p>\n
I had to study the imperfect hemisphere. Its outer rind was green. It wasn\u2019t prickly like a porcupine or cactus, but, between definite fingers that stuck out from its surface and its weight, I immediately understood that it could be painful to carry.<\/p>\n
There were several different shades and textures within the rind. The inner rind seemed to be pale yellow. There was a more delicate web of textures further in, a light core and a moist velvety casing of peach colored flesh around the seeds.<\/p>\n
Was the whole thing edible?\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t even sure\u2026.I went home curious.<\/p>\n
Three days later, I returned to the store. I wanted to know what jackfruit tasted like.<\/p>\n
There were still a few left, but they wanted to sell them whole. I asked one of the clerks in produce to cut me a chunk. I ended up paying quite a premium per pound. I couldn\u2019t help it.<\/p>\n
Jackfruit must be incredibly delicious, I surmised. It has such a protective covering. It so infrequently appears in the store.\u00a0 It\u2019s so expensive.<\/p>\n
Knowing that it had a sharp, outer surface, I carried it in cloth tote, from the check-out to my car, then up my back stairs to my kitchen.<\/p>\n
I looked for my largest cutting board and sharpest knife. I held the fruit with a towel against the bamboo surface so I wouldn\u2019t pierce my skin as I started to make cuts.<\/p>\n
Cutting the first slice was hard. Not only was the outer rind tough. The light yellow ring just inside the rind was also hard. Eventually, I pulled a slice away from the whole. Large, almond shaped seeds in the imperfectly round cross-section seemed to stare at me like the curious eyes of a six year-old. I cut the slice into smaller pieces.<\/p>\n
This inner section was chewy, not especially flavorful. I might have thought I was eating the inside of a tree if I had not cut the damn thing myself. I wondered if I was even supposed to eat this part.<\/p>\n
The fruit had a faint tropical scent. The darker sections, around the seeds, were sort of sweet. Other sections tasted like over-chewed gum. After a few bites, I didn\u2019t have any desire to cut any more slices.<\/p>\n
I started laughing. (Okay, I put the knife down first and then started laughing.)<\/p>\n
The way I figured it, I didn\u2019t know Jack shit about jackfruit, but the only way to find out what it tasted like was to try it.<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t talk myself out of the experience. I could think of this as a lesson for so many areas of my life. Rather than refuse sampling something because it might<\/strong> not end up suiting me, I decided to be open to try. I decided that learning about what I don\u2019t like is a valuable experience.<\/p>\n Bringing an open mind to trying something new is no small thing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In advance of going to the grocery store, I\u2019ll often make a list of things…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7045,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[603,600,601,54,602],"class_list":["post-7044","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-hemisphere","tag-jack-shit","tag-jackfruit","tag-no-small-thing","tag-rind","grateful-dozen-something-new","grateful-dozen-surprise"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n