PASSIFLORA EDULIS
OF THE MORE than 450 kinds of Passiflora vine, only a handful produce edible passionfruit. Of these, one species, Passiflora edulis, stands high above the rest in the quality of its concentrated flavor and tantalizing aroma. Floral, musky, with a spicy tang, the passionfruit seems to define the essence of all tropical fruit—although it’s a subtropical rather than a purely tropical plant.
The name of this fruit, incidentally, comes from the composition of the flower, whose elements were used by Spanish missionaries to teach indigenous South American people about the passion of Christ. Three styles for the three nails. Five anthers for the five wounds. The purple corolla for the crown of thorns.
THE ORGANIC FACTOR
Your best bet for finding organic passionfruit would be from a grower offering them at a farmers’ market, most likely in Florida, Texas, California, and Hawaii. There are few, if any, shippers of organic passionfruit, but that can change any time, so you can certainly check with organic produce companies. Most organic passionfruit in mainland American stores comes from Hawaii or New Zealand.
Organic canned passionfruit juice is sold, but it is pasteurized, which reduces the fruit’s lovely aromatics significantly.
Check with the grocer about the fruit’s provenance. It may be grown naturally, without chemicals, even if it’s not organic. Few pests bother this strong-growing vine.
NUTRITION
Passionfruit is high in carotene and niacin, and contains 23 milligrams of vitamin C per 100 grams of fruit pulp. But you’d need a bowl full of fruit to make 100 grams—a little over 3 ounces—so the amount of vitamin C is negligible.
TYPES
The kind we most frequently find in stores is the purple passionfruit. There is a larger, yellowish kind called Passiflora edulis variety flavicarpa, but it’s more acidic and less aromatic. Both types are native to an area stretching from southern Brazil through Paraguay to northern Argentina. Today they are grown in subtropical climates around the world. Many crosses between the purple and yellow sorts have been made, but the purple kind remains superior.
SEASONALITY
Passionfruit appears in some stores in late summer.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
At the store, look for fruit whose tough outer purplish-brown rind is wrinkled or dimpled and slightly shriveled. That’s when it’s at its sweetest. Smooth-skinned fruits aren’t quite ripe and will contain enough of a bitter glucoside (a chemical that makes many unripe fruits bitter) to be unpleasant. When the fruits are ripe, the glucoside virtually disappears.
STORAGE
Passionfruit will store on the kitchen counter until they wrinkle and dimple slightly, indicating ripeness. How long depends on the stage at which they were picked.
USES
Most people simply cut the fruit in half and scoop out the seedy pulp inside. Australians, who are passionfruit fanatics, eat this pulp seeds and all, but the juicy pulp can be separated from the seeds by pressing it through a fine-mesh strainer or two layers of cheesecloth. ....read more
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