Maracuyá. This popular Colombian fruit can seem almost impossible to pronounce for someone who’s not used to Spanish. (Language tip: The emphasis goes on the last a, as if you’re slowly building up momentum as you pronounce the word and then finish with a boom. Mar-a-cu-YA!)
We’ll make it easier for you – maracuyá is the Colombian word for passion fruit. If you’ve spent some time in other Latin American countries, you’ve run into the passion fruit under other names. In Venezuela it goes by parchita (not to be confused with the parcha in Colombia, which is a different fruit), parcha in Puerto Rico, maracuja in Brazil, or pasionaria in Paraguay.
If you travel to farms or rural areas in Latin America, you may be fortunate enough to see the dangling vines of maracuyá decorated with impressive flowers like the one below.
You’re probably familiar with the taste of passion fruit, but if you’re new to Latin America you might not recognize it if you saw it in a supermarket. Maracuyá is large and sort of egg-shaped. In Colombia, it’s usually yellow and has a distinctive pungent yet pleasant aroma when ripe. The juicy interior has numerous black seeds – they’re edible! – and combines sweet with tart for an unmistakable tropical taste.
Around the world, maracuyá is mostly grown in Brazil, followed by Venezuela, Colombia, and then other tropical countries. Back home, the passion fruit in your supermarket might be from South Africa, Kenya, Australia or Cote d’Ivoire. In Colombia two main varieties are cultivated – yellow and purple maracuyá – and you can find it all year round.
How to buy maracuyá
Maracuyá has to be consumed ripe. How do you know when it’s ripe? It should be completely yellow and slightly wrinkled. Unripe passion fruit is quite sour, so stay clear of it until its ripe. When choosing the fruit you’ll take home with you, try balancing one maracuyá in each hand to compare their weight; the heavier one will have more pulp.
It’s easy to find maracuyá at any supermarket, any local fruver (fruit and vegetable store) or at a large food market like Paloquemao. One maracuyá costs on average 1,800 pesos (US 56 cents). You can also purchase a bag of frozen maracuyá pulp, which is more convenient.
How to cook with maracuyá
The intense flavor of maracuyá goes well in both sweet and savory recipes. In Colombia you’ll find maracuyá in juice (with or without milk), in the Colombian dessert Postre de maracuyá, or in sauces to pair with pork, chicken, or salmon.
The first step to using fresh maracuyá is to get the pulp out. Using a sharp knife, cut the fruit in half and scoop out the juicy pulp with a spoon. Then you’re ready to use it in a number of different ways.
For a tasty smoothie, drop some passion fruit into your blender with ice, water, almond milk, bananas, and your sweetener of choice. Colombians mix passion fruit with milk for a creamy juice. We also love it as a quick cocktail with aguardiente, pisco, or vodka. Or add maracuyá sauce to your savory dishes, such as salmon, pork, or vegetables.
To make an easy dessert, serve friends and family Postre de maracuyá. Blend the pulp of two maracuyá fruits with a can of sweetened condensed milk and a can of heavy whipping cream. Separately, crumble sweet vanilla-flavored cookies (although Colombians use Ducales) and mix with butter. Line a baking pan with a thin layer of cookie mix and cover with a thin layer of the maracuyá cream mixture. Repeat two more times, making sure that the last layer is cream. Refrigerate for a couple hours until it is set.
