The name Maracuja is very often used as a synonym for the passion fruit in this country. The name is actually not quite correct, since strictly speaking there are two types of fruit.

The passion flowers and their fruits

Most of the more than 530 subspecies of the genus Passiflora (Passiflora) grow with climbing tendrils that lignify to varying degrees into shrubs and trees. Most varieties of passion fruit are native to South and North America, although there are some species with ancestry from Australia and from as far afield as Madagascar. The plants, with their characteristic flowers, were given their name, which is reminiscent of the Passions of Christ, at the time of the missionary work in South America, when missionaries believed they saw symbols for the Passion of Christ in the various parts of the flowers. While the fruits of cultivars popular for their flowers, such as those from the subgenus Decaloba, can be inedible or even poisonous, most passion fruit varieties are very popular as fresh fruit and fruit juice.

The passion fruit with purple colored skin

The fruits that are sold commercially in this country, mostly under the name passion fruit, are usually the fruits of the plant genus known as the purple granadilla. This resembles an egg in shape and size, but has a smooth and shiny purple shell. From a botanical point of view, they are actually berries, but what is actually eaten is the content of the cut fruit, which consists of seeds and adhering pulp. It is often said that a severely wrinkled skin of the purple-colored passion fruit would indicate the optimum degree of ripeness. However, you can also consume a passion fruit with a smooth skin without any problems; it will only have a slightly more sour taste than fruits that are very shriveled and therefore more advanced in ripening.

The passion fruit or granadilla

On many juice bottles, a sliced passion fruit with a purple-colored peel has been shown on the label next to the name Maracuja for decades. Actually, that's not quite correct, as Maracuja is usually referred to as the yellow to orange colored passion fruit. Even in the advanced stage of ripening, these have a relatively pressure-resistant shell, but otherwise they are not dissimilar in shape and size to the purple-colored representatives of the species. The yellow granadilla sometimes gets a little bigger and its taste is often not quite comparable to the purple colored fruits of Passiflora edulis. Therefore, these are rarely offered as fresh fruit in the trade and end up in the juicer far more often.

The difference in taste between passion fruit and passion fruit

Basically, the taste difference between the fruits of both subspecies of passion flowers is not very big, even if they are not exactly the same. The principle is the same for both types, that seeds and pulp are eaten together and usually with a spoon. There are other possible uses:

  • as a fruit garnish for sundaes
  • as a topping for cakes like Pavlova
  • as a pureed ingredient for smoothies

tips and tricks

In the trade, passion fruit and maracuja are often offered alternately under both names. Both varieties are basically equally suitable for direct consumption and processing in the kitchen.

WK

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Trees