Langka (aka Jack fruit)

ARTOCARPUS HETEROPHYLLUS Lam.

Local names:
Langka (Ilk., Bis., Tag.);
lanka (Tag., Bis.);
nangka (Tag., Ibn., Bis., Sul.);
nanka (Tag., Bis.);
jack fruit (Engl.).

Origin:

The jackfruit or Langka, is cultivated throughout the Philippines at low and medium altitudes, and some regions is spontaneous. It is not a native of the archipelago but is of prehistoric introduction from Malaya or tropical Asia. It also occurs in India to Malaya, and is now cultivated in most tropical countries.

Uses:

• The young fruits are eaten as vegetables (ginataang-langka-with-turmeric)
  
• The pulp or flesh (lamukot) surrounding the seeds, is rich yellow sweet and aromatic, and when ripe, is eaten straight or cooked and preserved. It makes good preserves or other sweets.
  
• The seeds are eaten boiled or roasted.
  
• The latex of the tree is used as birdlime, and if heated makes an excellent cement for broken China.
  
• The bark is sometimes made into rope and cloth. The wood is used locally to a limited extent as a yellow dye. The unripe fruit, according to Nadkarni, is generally used in the preparation of pickles in India.

Health Benefits:

• High carbohydrate content, and indicate that it is nutritious. It is, however, deficient in calcium and iron.
  
• The seeds are very rich in starch, but for us sources of calcium and iron.
• In the Philippines the ash of the leaves, after burning, is applied on wounds and ulcers as a dried or cicatrizant. It is sometimes mixed with coconut oil as an ointment for the same purpose. Kirtikar and Basu, Chopra, Nadkarni, and Dey reports that the leaves are used in skin disease.
• The decoction of the root is used in diarrhea and for fever. The root is also useful in skin diseases. Daruty say that the roots are antiasthmatic.
• The milky juice of the tree is used in glandular swelling, and in snakebite. Mixed with vinegar and applied to these swellings and to abscesses, it promotes absorption or suppuration.
• the ripe fruit is demulcent, nutritive, and laxative.
  
• unripe fruit is astringent.
  
• Stuart reports that the pulp envelops or arils of the seeds are considered by the Chinese to be cooling, tonic, and nutritious.
  
• The starch of the seeds is given in billions colic
• The roasted seeds have an aphrodisiac action.
• Jack-fruit is rich in dietary fiber, which makes it a good bulk laxative. The fiber content helps to protect the colon mucous membrane by decreasing exposure time and as well as binding to cancer causing chemicals in the colon.
• Fresh fruit is an excellent source of Vitamin-A, which has powerful antioxidant properties and is essential for vision. Vitamin A is also required for maintaining integrity of mucus membranes and skin and to boost immunity. Consumption of natural fruits rich in vitamin-A known to protect from lung and oral cavity cancers.

Tip:
If you're going to cook the seeds in the microwave oven poke them with a knife first else they will explode like a popcorn... See for yourself ;)

The seeds taste like castañas or chestnuts.










Sources:

http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/jack_fruit.html

http://www.bpi.da.gov.ph/Publications/mp/html/l/langka.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langka

Video thanks to marshman