If there is a tropical fruit you need to try at least once that would be passion fruit. You may already know passion fruit from the smell of many candles or body lotions, or maybe you even had a passion fruit concentrated juice in a can or carton. There is nothing like having and enjoying the real fruit! Parchita (Venezuela), Maracuya (Colombia) or Passion Fruit is one of those fruits that cannot be compared with any other. It is very aromatic and its yellow pulp with black seeds has a sweet tartness that is hard to describe. Passion Fruit grows in a climbing vine that was all over the fence between our yard and our aunt’s, forming some sort of curtain. We were never allowed to pull it from the vine, we could only pick it up from the ground. The fruit grows green, depending on the variety it starts changing to a light yellow or dark purple color and wrinkles as it ripens; then it falls off the vine when is ripe and ready to be eaten.
Passion Fruit is hard to come by in the Midwest, which is why I was super thrilled when Melissa’s sent me fresh passion fruit. I immediately cut one open, and ate the juicy flesh with a spoon right off the hard shell, just like I used to do when I was a kid. Oh that sweet tartness!!! The pulp of the fruit has edible black seeds although the seeds are usually removed to use the pulp for juices or jams. The way my mom removed the seeds was by allowing the pulp to sit in water for few hours, then she used a whisk to beat the seeds out and strain them. I cheat that process and use a blender, sorry mom! 🙂
It is common to think dessert or drink with passion fruit, but I wanted to make something savory. This sauce is sweet and tart and it has a hint of heat from the jalapeño. I grilled shrimp for its mild flavor, to let the sauce be the main flavor of the dish. This passion fruit sauce however goes really well with pork or chicken as well. For a variation brush a tablespoon of this passion fruit sauce over chicken and grill it to obtain a perfect crust, serve with more sauce on the side for dipping. Super Yum! Let’s get cooking!
Ingredients:
For the sauce: 
(yields 1 cup)
6 Passion Fruits from Melissa’s (about 1/2 cup)
1 Cup water
1 Garlic clove, smashed
1/2 Jalapeno, with seeds
Fresh oregano
1 Tablespoon organic soy sauce
2 Tablespoon organic sugar
For the shrimp:
24 Raw shrimp, peeled & deveined with tail on
Salt & Pepper
Spring onion, thinly sliced for garnish (optional)
Cut the passion fruit in halves, spoon the pulp out. Add the pulp and water to a blender and blend quickly on low. Strain the juice and discard the seeds. In a small sauce pan add the passion fruit juice, garlic, halved jalapeno, oregano, soy sauce and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce thickens and reduce by half, about 25 minutes. Strain the sauce and discard all the solids. 
Pre-heat a grill pan over medium heat. Season the shrimp to taste with salt and pepper. Cook in the grill pan until pink and juicy about 2 minutes per side.
To serve, spoon the Passion Fruit sauce onto a plate and serve the shrimp over the sauce, garnish with spring onions if using. Enjoy!
This post was sponsored by Melissa’s – you can find Melissa’s produce on the organic section of your local supermarkets throughout the U.S. or you can place an order online and get it delivered to your door. Visit their website, to see the array of fresh produce they offer.
