Caipirinha de Maracuja - Brazilian Passion Fruit co*cktail (2024)

If you love the Brazilian national drink—the classic lime Caipirinha—you’ll love this passion fruit version. This 3-ingredient passion fruit co*cktail, called a Caipirinha de Maracuja in Portuguese, is sweet, tart and perfect for any time of the year. Like any other flavor of caipirinha, just pair this Passion Fruit Caipirinha with churrasco, grilled dishes, friends and fun, and you’re all set for a memorable day full of the best tropical vibes. Recipe makes 2 servings, but is easily doubled.

Caipirinha de Maracuja – Another Classic Brazilian co*cktail You’ll Love!

Oi gente!

Caipirinha de maracuja is a whole vibe!

And if you’re new here, or you’re new to Brazilian food culture, Bem vindo! Ahem, I mean welcome!

Let’s start you off on how to say this whole thing, yeah? kai-pee-reen-ya de ma-ɾa-ku-ˈʒa – See? It’s fun to say! Wait ’til you’ve had a few of these because it gets even more fun!

Anyway, the caipirinha is the mother of all Brazilian co*cktails and can be made with essentially any fruit you want. Today, I’m showing you how to make it with passion fruit!

If you don’t already know, the classic caipirinha recipe is made with limes, lime juice and cachaça, a Brazilian distilled liquor made by fermenting raw sugarcane juice. Of course, I have that recipe for you here! Try that, too!

If you love summer vibes or drinks that make you feel like you’re on vacation, you’ll fall deeply in love with this simple tropical drink.

Cheers, amigos! Or as we say in Portuguese,saúde!

Where to Find Passion Fruit

Passion fruit is thought to be native to Brazil, coming from the Amazon. In the United States, passion fruit is grown in California, Florida and Hawaii, and globally, it’s also grown in Australia, South Africa, and other countries in South America, like Venezuela, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador…

Generally speaking, you should be able to find passion fruit close to year-round in countries where it grows. But depending on where you live, you may only find it imported, and the availability and price can vary greatly.

In California, I’ve found it often in places like Whole Foods or in Latin supermarkets. Here in Texas, I can find them at Central Market and HEB, but ooofff, they can cost up to five dollars for each small fruit. Yikes! Luckily, they are well worth the price!

There are two varieties of passion fruit—the smaller, less acidic purple variety, which is what I usually find here in the US, and the bigger yellow passion fruit, which is the variety I grew up with in Brazil.

You can learn more about passion fruit in this Food Network article.

How to pick passion fruit at the store

You want the passion fruit to look wrinkly and bright in color. If it looks like it’s browning, it’s been there a while and it’s turning, so don’t pick that.

Hold it, give it a shake to feel for the contents inside and then, you just “feel” for weight.

How do you do this? Pick up a few that look right on the outside and compare them to each other. If it’s too light, it may be hollow and might not have as much pulp. The more it weighs, the more fruit the passion fruit has inside.

Caipirinha de Maracuja Ingredients

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• Fresh passion fruit pulp—you’ll need about 5-6 (or maybe a couple more) small purple fruits or about two large yellow ones to get the right amount of pulp for this recipe. I’ve attempted this recipe from frozen pulp, and it’s just not the same, so please seek out the fresh passion fruit.
• Cachaça—a Brazilian distilled liquor made from the fermentation of raw sugarcane juice. If you cannot find it, use the same amount of vodka to make a Caipiroska. No one will be upset—this is a very common thing to do, even in Brazil!
• Granulated white sugar—this is our sweetener in this co*cktail. There is no substitute.
• Ice

In addition to these ingredients, you will need a few tools to make this passion fruit co*cktail, too:

• Liquid measuring cup
• Measuring spoons
• co*cktail mixing glass
• co*cktail spoon

How to make a Passion Fruit Caipirinha

Measure your fruit. Slice the passion fruits in half, then, scoop out the pulp with a spoon, seeds and all, into a measuring cup. You want about 3/4 of a cup of the pulp total to make this drink.

While frozen passion fruit is more readily available and cheaper than fresh passion fruit, I really DO NOT recommend it to make this passion fruit co*cktail.

Make it sweet. Measure the sugar into a co*cktail mixing glass, or mason jar and add in the passion fruit pulp. Stir gently until the sugar has dissolved.

Bring in the booze. Pour the cachaça into the passion fruit mixture, and stir gently, a good two minutes, to combine.

Serve. Fill two glasses with ice and add the Passion Fruit Caipirinha on top of them. Garnish with mint sprigs, if you want some color, and enjoy immediately!

Frequently Asked Questions

Other cachaça co*cktails:

• Quentão – Brazilian Grog co*cktail
• Pineapple Rum Punch Recipe
• How to Make Caipirinha

Other Passion Fruit co*cktails You’ll Love:

• Passion Fruit Daiquiri

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