Langka: The Jack-Of-All-Trades

Uncover the delightful health benefits of the jackfruit.

02 Jul 2024

3min

The jackfruit, or langka, is a widely grown fruit in the Philippines known for its sweet taste and health benefits. The pulp of the fruit is packed with essential minerals like magnesium, manganese, iron, and potassium, promoting healthy teeth, bones, and heartbeat regulation. It also contains Vitamins A, B2, and C, which are beneficial for eye, hair, skin, mouth, and bone health. Additionally, it has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. The fruit also provides a decent amount of protein, helping to meet daily protein requirements.

Do you enjoy your langka mixed with crushed ice, milk, and beans in a tall glass of halo-halo? Or perhaps as strips rolled together with bananas as a stick of turon? However you choose to enjoy it, you should know that it’s packed with incredible health benefits! The jackfruit is one of the most widely grown fruit crops in the Philippines. Its flesh is sweet and juicy, and it is incorporated in a wide variety of desserts.

But did you know that langka can also be a game-changer for your health? With its sheer number of benefits, it brings so...

A Quick Heads-up About Langka

Or heads down! You don’t want to be hit by this sizable fruit that can weigh up to 15 kilos. The jackfruit has a soft, yellowish pulp and yellowish-green skin with lots of seeds inside.

Langka comes in different types—soft, hard, and butter, each with a different feel. The langka’s peak season in the Philippines is March to May, making it the perfect companion for summer! Known for its sweet taste and smell, Filipinos use langka to make sweets, jams, jellies, drinks, and more.

The pulp is also handy for making vegetarian meats, filling for drumsticks, pies, and tasty snacks, which is a great option for those who don't eat animal products.

The Pulp that’s Plump with Minerals

Now for its sweet, sweet benefits! Did you know that the flesh, or pulp, of the langka is packed with essential minerals like magnesium, manganese, iron, and potassium? These minerals do wonders for our body, such as promoting healthy teeth and bones, collagen production, regulating water levels, and even keeping your heartbeat in check. This means that consuming langka can help you maintain a healthy body.

The fruit also contains moderate amounts of Vitamins A, B2, and C, which are great for the health of your eyes, hair, skin, mouth, and bones. Vitamins A and C also have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, helping your body fight diseases and stopping the harm caused by free radicals and inflammation.

And that's not all! Snacking on this sweet treat can actually keep your blood sugar levels regulated.

The Protein Within

Bet you didn’t know that you could get protein from fruit! Langka has a decent amount of protein, about 1.4g per 100g of fruit. Our daily protein needs are around 0.8g per kilogram of our body weight, so adding this fruit to our balanced diets can help us meet our protein requirements more easily.

Now that you know the benefits of langka, make time to enjoy this fruit however you like it!

More references:

Growing Jackfruit in the Philippines: A guide to varieties, propagation methods, and care. Asia Farming, 2024.

Langka: 10 Health Benefits of Jackfruit, and Side Effects. Pinoy Food Security, 2024.