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Vegan white bean jackfruit stew is loaded with protein-rich beans, vegetables, and tender chunks of jackfruit! This hearty, gluten-free stew is easy to make in one pot and it's ready in less than one hour!

Vegan white bean jackfruit stew is a hearty and satisfying meal that is loaded with vegetables, tender chunks of jackfruit, and protein-packed beans! This stew is so easy to make in one pot and it's ready in less than one hour!

This stew is a veganized version of white bean chicken chili with more vegetables and no heavy cream. Jackfruit is the perfect chicken replacement because it looks just like big, meaty chunks of chicken that are super tender, shreds easily, and tastes absolutely delicious!

What is Jackfruit and What Does it Taste Like?

Jackfruit is a large fruit that tastes like a cross between pineapple and chicken or pork. Green jackfruit is used as a meat replacement, but it doesn't have a distinct flavor so it takes on the flavors that it's seasoned with. Ripe jackfruit tastes very sweet and it can be enjoyed straight from the fruit or used in smoothies or to make dessert.

How To Cook Jackfruit Stew

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, saute the vegetables until they have softened. Next, add all the dry seasonings and the garlic and let it cook for a few minutes. Then add the vegetable broth, beans, and jackfruit to the pot.

Bring the vegan white bean soup to a low simmer and then reduce the heat and let it cook for 20-25 minutes or until the jackfruit is tender. Use a spoon to press the pieces of jackfruit up against the side of the pot to break up the chunks.

Next, you can use a stick blender to pulse the soup a few times, or you can remove 1 cup of the soup and blend it in a blender and then pour it back into the soup. Doing this will help to naturally thicken the soup into a stew without having to add flour or cornstarch.

Lastly, add the frozen spinach and let it cook for a few more minutes or until the spinach has fully defrosted and you can mix it into the stew. Garnish the stew with sliced green onions, black pepper, and red pepper flakes.

I like to make this vegan stew in a dutch oven on the stovetop, but you can make it in a slow cooker too. You can find the vegan jackfruit stew slow cooker instructions below.

Jackfruit Stew Slow Cooker Instructions

If you don't want to make this stew on the stovetop, you can also make it in the slow cooker! Put all of the stew ingredients, except for the spinach, into the slow cooker and then cook it on high for 3-4 hours.

Check the soup after 3 hours to see how tender the jackfruit is, you don't want it to turn to mush by overcooking it. Use a large wooden spoon to press the jackfruit against the side of the slow cooker to break up the chunks. Stir the spinach in 5 minutes before you think it is done.

What Goes With It?

I usually serve a tray of roasted vegetables, baked potatoes, a big salad, or a couple of crusty slices of no-knead bread with the vegan white bean jackfruit soup. If you don't want to make homemade bread, I love this vacuum-sealed organic sourdough bread, it tastes delicious and you bake it in the oven so it tastes just like you made it fresh!

You could also serve:

How Long Does it Last in the Refrigerator?

Store the white bean jackfruit stew in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.

Can You Freeze it?

Yes, you can freeze this jackfruit soup. Store the soup in an airtight, freezer-safe container and then you can freeze it for 3-4 months. It should be safe to eat longer than that but the quality will start to decline.

How to Reheat it

From the Freezer: Take the container of frozen jackfruit soup out of the freezer and put it in the fridge to defrost for 24 hours. Once the soup has defrosted, you can follow the instructions below to reheat the soup from the fridge.

From the Fridge: You can reheat the soup in a bowl in the microwave or in a pot on the stovetop. If the stew is too thick you can add a little bit of water or vegetable broth to the stew to loosen it up.

Ways to Adapt this Recipe

This vegan white bean jackfruit stew is delicious eaten just like this, but you could also enjoy it in the following ways:

Serve it Over Potatoes or Rice: Serve the thick stew over creamy mashed russet potatoes, sweet potatoes, or brown rice to make the stew even more substantial and filling.
Enjoy it as a Dip: Do you ever eat leftover chili with tortilla chips? It's delicious! This thick stew can also be eaten with tortilla chips for a hearty snack.
Add Pasta: Make this stew more kid-friendly by adding 8 ounces of cooked fusilli noodles or orzo pasta to the stew.
Make Jackfruit Chili: Omit the Italian seasonings. Instead, add 2 tbsp of chili powder, 1 tbsp of ground cumin, and (1) 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes to make a flavorful jackfruit chili that's packed with beans and vegetables! You can make the chili with the great northern beans or replace the white beans with black and kidney beans.

Substitutions & FAQ

Bean Substitutions: You could substitute kidney beans, pinto beans, cannellini beans, chickpeas, or black-eyed peas. If you don't want to use beans at all, chopped potatoes would be delicious too.
Jackfruit Substitution: You could use crumbled tempeh, soy curls, artichoke hearts, or slices of vegan sausage (I like the Field Roast sausages) instead of jackfruit.
Spinach Substitutions: Instead of spinach, you can use thinly sliced kale or collard greens.
Mushroom Variations: You can use white button mushrooms, cremini mushrooms, portobello mushrooms, wild mushrooms, or frozen mushrooms. I used cremini because they're affordable, readily available, and they taste delicious.
Can You Use Frozen Vegetables? You can definitely use frozen vegetables in this stew! I've made this soup so many times with different variations of frozen onions, celery, carrots, mushrooms, and spinach depending on what I had on hand. Frozen vegetables work perfectly in this stew!
Can You Use Frozen Jackfruit? Yes, you can use frozen jackfruit as long as it's young green jackfruit, not ripe jackfruit.

Success Tips

Use canned young green jackfruit, not fresh jackfruit for this recipe. Ripe jackfruit is sweet and would not taste good in a savory stew. Rinse the jackfruit for 1-2 minutes to rinse off as much of the brine as possible.
Don't waste time cutting the core off each piece of jackfruit, removing the seeds, or slicing it. If the jackfruit is cooked long enough, it will become tender and soft enough to break up easily with a spoon. The seeds are edible and contain protein, so there's no reason to remove them.
To make the stew broth even thicker, use a stick blender to blend a little bit of the soup to easily thicken the broth and give it a creamy, velvety texture.
Add the spinach to the soup 5-10 minutes before you serve so they stay bright green. If you add the greens too early they will turn a not so pretty dark brown.
Store the leftover jackfruit soup in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days or freeze it for a future meal.