Akebia

There are five species:[1][2]

Flower	Name	Common Name	Distribution
	Akebia apetala (Quan Xia, J.Z.Sun & Z.X.Peng) Christenh.		China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan
	Akebia chingshuiensis T. Shimizu		Taiwan
	Akebia longeracemosa Matsumura		China and Taiwan
	Akebia quinata (Houttuyn) Decaisne	Chocolate vine or five-leaf akebia	China, Korea and Japan
	Akebia trifoliata (Thunberg) Koidzumi	Three-leaf akebia	China, Korea and Japan

• Akebia ×pentaphylla (Makino) Makino (A. quinata × A. trifoliata)

Akebia quinata and Akebia trifoliata both bear edible fruit, containing a sweet white flesh.[3] Flavor varies greatly in akebias, even within the same species, with some individuals displaying a complex flavor profile resembling a mixture of banana, passionfruit and litchi, with others being mild, or even insipid.[4]

Akebia is often mentioned in Japanese literature, where it is evocative of pastoral settings.[5] Although the akebi commonly refers to the five-leafed species, the three-leafed species is used in much the same way for novelty food, medicine, and for vine material.

While only a minor food eaten while foraging in the past, akebia is considered a specialty crop today, only available when in season. The pods contain a white, semi-translucent gelatinous pulp that is mildly sweet and full of seeds.[6] The taste is described as sweet but rather "insipid".[6] Some people recollect in idyllic terms how they foraged for it in the hills as children.[7]

The purple-colored, slightly bitter rind has been used as a vegetable in Yamagata Prefecture[7][8] or in those northern areas, where the typical recipe calls for stuffing the rind with minced chicken (or pork) flavored with miso.[8] Minor quantities of akebia are shipped to the urban market as a novelty vegetable.

In addition to consuming the fruit, akebia leaves are also made into a tea infusion.[5] Outside of food and drinks, akebia vines are used for basket-weaving crafts. An old source lists Minakuchi, Shiga and Tsugaru (now Aomori Prefecture) as localities that produced baskets from the vines of trifoliate variety.[9]

• 
  Ripe Akebia trifoliata fruit
• 
  Akebia quinata leaves and flowers
• 
  Female flowers of Akebia quinata (large) and male (small)
• 
  Early fruit of Akebia quinata
• 
  Akebia quinata flower
• 
  Early fruit of Akebia quinata

• Bailey, L. H. (2005). Manual of Gardening (Second Edition). Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.

• Akebia: Three Varieties including photographs by Paghat's Garden
• Akebia: Edible Fruits including photographs by Paghat's Garden