Upton’s Naturals Jackfruit

A few months ago I finished up a recipe development and food photography project for Chicago-based meat alternative company Upton’s Naturals. They manufacture a line of seitan products and recently launched a line of pre-cooked and seasoned jackfruit products. I posted the seitan recipe photos I made for them in an earlier blog post, and here is the second half of the project: jackfruit!

Upton’s jackfruit, which comes in Chili Lime Carnitas and Bar-B-Que flavors, is sustainably harvested, cooked, seasoned, and packaged in Thailand. It’s really easy to cook with, and does not require any prep beyond opening the package and adding to the dish you’re cooking. I used it in a variety of applications for these recipes and photos, either letting the flavor of the jackfruit products shine, or using it to complement other flavors in the dish.

I took a similar approach with the photos as I did with the seitan photos: keeping the visuals simple, using neutral colors, and adding pops of color with fresh ingredients. I brought out one of my favorite backgrounds, the silver plywood that I made with metallic oil-based paint and scratched up with steel wool. It makes a nice alternative neutral background to your standard black, white, and natural wood.

Upton’s has some of the jackfruit recipes up on their website, which can be found by following the recipes with links. The rest are teaser photos, which is a cruel thing to do right around lunch time (sorry!).

Jackfruit Pad Thai

This recipe is your standard Pad Thai, but it utilizes chili lime jackfruit instead of tofu or another meat alternative.
carnitas-jackfruit-pad-thai
Bar-B-Que Jackfruit Mini Pizzas

Tiny pizzas with barbecue sauce, jackfruit, caramelized onions, and two kinds of cheese.
bbq-mini-pizzas
Bar-B-Que Jackfruit Spinach Pies

Tender spinach pies filled with flavor from lemon, sumac, caramelized onions, and Bar-B-Que Jackfruit.
bbq-spinach-pies
Bar-B-Que Jackfruit Slaw Sandwich

This one was kept simple: Bar-B-Que Jackfruit and coleslaw on a bun.
bbq-jackfruit-slaw-sandwich
Bar-B-Que Jackfruit Tacos

Jackfruit, Asian slaw, onions, and fresh herbs on a flour tortilla.
bbq-jackfruit-tacos
Carnitas Jackfruit Kale Salad

This kale salad is massaged with flavorful dressing and includes roasted sweet potatoes, black beans, and tomatoes.
carnitas-jackfruit-kale-salad
Chili Lime Carnitas Quinoa Salad

This slightly sweet and spicy quinoa salad has black beans, corn, red onion, jalapeño, lime, and lots of avocado for good measure.
chili-lime-quinoa

The rest of the recipes and photos will be gradually posted to the Upton’s Naturals website.

Food photography!

I offer similar photography and recipe development services to all kinds of brands, restaurants, and companies, so if you’re looking to refresh your company’s website, blog, or marketing materials with modern, high-quality food photography, please get in touch: kelly@kellypelozaphoto.com. I’m happy to discuss all of the options for your brand’s upcoming campaigns.

Have a good week!

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