BREADFRUIT
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Artocarpus altilis
FAMILY: Moraceae
The breadfruit is arguably one of the most useful of the tropical fruits in that it can be used as both a fruit and a staple vegetable, and at different stages of ripeness. Fruits in North Queensland ripen from December to April depending on the variety. The 'Mason' variety is a large fruit, coming off the tree from late January to April. This tree seems to be somewhat more cold tolerant than others.
Other named varieties are: 'Noli', a well-recommended, early fruiting variety (December to February); 'Cricket Ball', a good quality, small-fruited one; 'Rodgers', recommended by the D.P.I.; 'Samoan Gold', a small fruit, a light bearer; 'Limberlost', a large fruit, but the tree is not very cold tolerant.
There are other un-named varieties planted in tropical Australia yet to be assessed.
The tree grows up to 20 metres high and best growth occurs in deep moist soils. It prefers a regular rainfall of between 150-200 cm per year.
The tree produces regular crops. A ten-year-old tree will produce 500-700 fruits per year, each weighing two to five kilograms. Thus the yield potential is 1,000 to 3,500 kg of fruit per tree per year.
Fruits are fully mature when they take on a yellowish or brown tinge, or they bleed white sap over the skin. At this stage of maturity, the surface of the skin feels almost smooth to the touch. Immature fruits are greener and bumpier.
Breadfruit is high in carbohydrates (starch and sugar), starch converting to sugar as the fruit ripens. The firm, dryish flesh ripens in stages to a soft, creamy texture. Then the sweetness and characteristic breadfruit flavour is most strongly developed.
The fruit is a good source of the B Vitamins thiamine and niacin, and fair in riboflavin, vitamin C, calcium and phosphorous.
When still firm, breadfruit can be boiled, baked, fried, sautéed or stir fried. It can be diced and added to a wide variety of main course dishes in the same ways you would use potato, taro, sweet potato and other starches. It can be made into chips, patties, salads, chowder and other savoury dishes.
When half ripe, i. e. softening and beginning to sweeten, but still firm, it is delicious just baked or lightly fried in a little oil.
A soft-ripe breadfruit is quite sweet and can be used at this stage in pies, cakes, biscuits, bread, puddings and other desserts. The ripe breadfruit is also used in main course recipes with vegetables and meats.
Breadfruit can also be dried, made into flour, or frozen (either raw or cooked) to preserve it for later use. There is a useful leaflet on preserving put out by the South Pacific Commission, and also a booklet "Breadfruit" with plenty of recipes (both of which are available at RFCA meetings). Other recipe books dealing with breadfruit include Tropical Fruit Recipes by RFCI Florida and Fruits of Hawaii by Miller, Bazore and Bartow, (Univ.Press of Hawaii, 1980).
Information on the botany and culture of the breadfruit can be found in "A Guide to Artocarpus Fruits" By D. Chandlee (in the RFCA newsletter of Nov. '88), and also in Tropical Crops by J.W. Purseglove (Longmans, '68).
DATE: May 1990
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