Monday, April 7, 2014

Passion fruit juice (maracuyá)


One of my favorite juices here in Ecuador is passion fruit juice.

As a fruit the passion fruit is too tart and sour.

It just is not enjoyable to eat.

But when you make a juice from it, it's just perfect.
Yellow maracuyá or passion fruits in the front and behind them granadillas.

The Ecuadorian passion fruit is usually yellow, not brownish purple like the Brazilian variety.

You can sometimes find the darker ones that are a bit sweeter but generally it is as yellow and tart as they come.

Inside the fruit the flesh is a bit like frog spawn where each seed is inside a small gelatinous pouch.

Passiflora edulis or passion fruit is a vine species of passion flower.

There are many different passion flower fruits here in Ecuador.
Different kind of fruit and vegetables at the farmer's market.

Passion flower of maracuyá, as it’s called here is just one of them.

Besides it there are granadilla and taxo both that I enjoy very much.

Granadilla is an orange, sweet passion fruit, very delicious eaten ripe.

Taxo is yellow, elongated passion fruit that also has a tart and sour taste and is better in juices.
Different kind of fruit at the farmer's market.

Fresh passion fruits are very healthy and contain provitamin A beta carotene, vitamin C, dietary fiber and iron in significant quantities as percent of the Daily Value.

The vitamin A content alone converted from provitamin A sources is 25%.

Passion fruit juice is also a good source of potassium, and it also helps to lover the risk of high blood pressure.

There are also preliminary research results that indicate that consuming passion fruit peel may relieve asthma symptoms.
Three yellow passion fruit fruits.
Passiflora ligularis, or sweet granadilla, or just granadilla as it’s known in Ecuador is another fruit of Passiflora family.

The fruit is a lot sweeter than the passion fruit and can be eaten fresh.

It contains vitamins A, C, and K, phosphorus, iron, and calcium.

To make the juice you need three passion fruit fruits.

Granadilla fruit and seeds.
According to Ecuadorians using more than three will make the juice too strong and you will get drunk on it.

Open the fruit in the middle and pour the flesh in the blender with seeds and all.

Mix them in the blender with a cup of water.

After liquefying the fruit you need to pass it through a sieve so no trace of the seeds is left in the juice.

Mix the concentrated juice with as much water as you want to and the sweetener of your choice.

Enjoy fresh and cold!

* A tip, more wrinkled and shriveled the fruit, the more mature it is and better the juice! 

11 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  2. My youngest loves fruit markets....she would LOVE that one!!

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  3. That looks so yummy! i gotta try this!

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  4. I love the smell of passion fruit! I best this juice taste great!

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  5. This sounds so good. I'll have to introduce my boys to Passion Fruit. We have passion flowers growing in our yard, but they haven't been producing fruit. I'll get them from the grocer!

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  6. I would love to have that much fresh fruit available like that. The juice sound interesting to try!!

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  7. This is my favorite fruit ever. Besides loving the flavor, it brings me lovely memories of growing up in the Dominican Republic. Thank you!

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  8. We also have this fruit in the Philippines. The ones I have seen were yellow and small. I forgot what our local name for it. But it's good fruit. :)

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  9. I don't have I have had some Passion Fruit or Juice before, but that looks delicious. What a treat! Ecuador reminds me of my country the Philippines. And I miss the market, the fresh veggies, fruits, seafood and everything about it. Never been to Ecuador, but sure would be nice to explore the country if given the chance. Thanks for sharing!

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  10. Awesome pictures of fruits! Your blog is full of nice posts. Juicing benefits additionally include fighting current illnesses and chronic health conditions. In fact, many believe that juicing is an effective treatment for diabetes, cancer, heart disease, obesity, and other conditions. Thanks
    Goji berry juice

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  11. this is a great fruit with great benefits. if you happen to be from the west, i recommend Markizza Passion Fruit Juice that I found on Amazon, the taste is just perfect!

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