Eat it Raw: Allow the fruit to wrinkle - that increases its sugar level. The photograph (above) was taken in Ecuador, not far from where the fruit came off of the tree. At that location, passionfruit was served on a fruit plate along with bananas and apples.
With Alcohol: Passionfruit is sometimes used instead of lime in making Caipirinha (the “national cocktail” of Brazil).
- 50 ml (about 1 and 2/3 ounces) of cachaça a liquor made from fermented sugarcane (38-54% alcohol by volume)
- 1 passionfruit (adjust to taste)
- 2 teaspoons of sugar
- Crush the sugar and passionfruit innards together (using a wood implement) in a serving glass, fill the glass with crushed ice, add the cachaça.
- If vodka is used instead of cachaça, the drink is called a caipiroska.
Juices, Jams, and Syrups: Yes
Medicine: Passionfruit is sometimes used as a mild sedative. It contains harmala alkaloids which have a number of medical uses. It is a great source of beta carotene, potassium, ascorbic acid, and dietary fiber.
Passiflora edulis
Australia: Passionfruit
Brazil: Maracujá
Colombia: Maracuyá
Dominican Rep.: Chinola
Ecuador: Maracujá
French Guiana: Maracudja
Hawaiian: Lilikoi
Indonesia: Markisa
New Zealand: Passionfruit
Paraguay: Maracujá
Panama: Maracuyá
Peru: Maracujá or Maracuyá
Puerto Rico: Parcha
South America: Granadilla
United Kingdom: Passion Fruit
United States (USA): Passion Fruit
Venezuela: Parchita
Vietnam: Lạc tiẽn, Chanh dȃy, or Chanh loe
Zimbabwe: Magrandera
And it has a beautiful flower, as do all of the plants of the Passiflora genus.
Note: A Mango Tart with passionfruit sauce and toasted passionfruit seeds was a food highlight of a trip I made to the Yucatán Peninsula.