Quince is one of my most favorite fruits, even though it’s not the kind of fruit you can just grab and eat as it. A fairly lengthy cooking is required in order to turn this tough and astringent fruit into a delicacy. However, the result is always worth it, as while cooking, the fruit produces a wonderful aroma, changes its tough texture to soft and its color into pinkish-red.
In the recipe here I’ve decided to cook it in spiced red wine, which deepened the red color even more, and added some other layers of spiced aroma.
Kept in the syrup, in an airtight container in the fridge, the cooked segments can keep for up to two months. They can be served on their own (or with a vanilla ice cream scoop on the side), as a side or a topping for cakes, or with sharp cheeses. I’m sure you’ll enjoy this wonderful fruit in any way you’ll choose to serve it.
Notes:
* With the exception of the cinnamon sticks, don’t be tempted to leave the spices in the syrup, as otherwise their aroma will become too dominant and disguise the subtle aroma of the quince itself.
* For more recipes with quince, check under THIS LINK.
Makes: 12
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour
Ingredients:
3 large quince
1 cup sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
2 star anise
5-6 cardamom pods, slightly cracked
5-6 whole cloves
½ tsp cracked black pepper
1 cup red wine (I used Pinot Noir)
1 cup water
2 Tbs honey (preferably orange blossom)
Dash salt
1. Cut the quince into quarters and then cut each quarter into 2-3 fairly thick segments. With a small sharp knife, carefully remove the seeds and the hard core around them. (Do not peel, so that the slices will keep their shape while cooking). Place in a medium size deep pot.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and cover the pot. Place on medium-high heat and bring to the boil. Lower the heat to medium and cook for 30 minutes, tilting the pot occasionally, to prevent sticking to the bottom.
3. Uncover the pot, lower the heat to low and cook for 30 minutes, tilting the pot occasionally, or until the quince softens but still keeps its shape, and the color changes to orange-red (the color will deepen with time).
4. Carefully transfer the quince to a container and strain the hot syrup on top. (I like to keep the cinnamon sticks and star anise for garnish). Let cool to room temperature before serving.
You keep tantalizing me with these fruits . . . must keep my eyes open for them.
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They are so wonderful and in season now, so hopefully you can get them.
I’ve already cooked enough to keep me for a while, but I plan to buy a few more, as I want to experiment with freezing them. We’ll see how this will work, if at all! 🙂
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I’ve never seen them around here (Arizona), but hopefully we will be in New Mexico sometime soon, so maybe I will find them there.
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I was about to write that if you have a Latino store around, they may have it. It’s called “membrillo” in Spanish. So New Mexico sounds like a good place to look for it! 🙂
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A lot of the produce that is in our local ethnic store is from Mexico, so there is that possibility. They have papayas once in a while, but that is about the most exotic fruit they have. Not even any persimmons or dragon fruits! 😦
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Dragon fruit I wouldn’t mourn much about, as it’s quite tasteless, but persimmons are so tasty! 🙂
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Looks good……..love to taste it 🙂
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Thank you Priyabrataa. It’s very tasty. Hope you’ll enjoy it too. 🙂
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I agree looks good! 🙂
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Thank you Sophie. 🙂
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Your welcome 🙂
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Looks so yummy Ronit! Love quince (jelly for example), but it’s pretty difficult to find here. 😋😍
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Thank you Ursula! Here too I can mostly find quince in specialty stores, but at least they’re available. I’m very grateful for it. Love this fruit! 🙂
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Wow this is wonderful!
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Thank you Lyn, I’m glad you liked it. 🙂
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I love your creativity!
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Thank you! 🙂
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I’ve cooked pears in red wine and spices but never quince. I love how the spices enhance and not overpower the fruit (like you said as long as you remove them after cooking). Must give it a try – quince is now on my grocery list. I’m sure to find it around here…
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I love quince so much, so I try to cook it in different ways whenever I can get it. This was the first time I’ve cooked it with spiced red wine, but it turned out so good, so it definitely will not be the last! Hope you’ll enjoy it as well. 🙂
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I know the spiced red wine was very tasty with pears so I am sure it is great with quince too 🙂
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What a beautiful line up of spices you’ve used here, Ronit. Such a gorgeous dish. And I love the idea of serving it with sharp cheese.
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Thank you Tracey, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Serving the cooked quince with cheeses is so wonderful. Besides sharp cheeses, I also like to pair it with fresh goat cheese. So good! 🙂
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This is such an interesting recipe. I’ve eaten quince because they sell it in Spain cooked, in blocks and they eat it with cheese for instance. But I’ve never cooked them. Thank you for the recipe Ronit.
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Thank you Myra, I’m glad you liked the recipe. I love the quince pate, and even make it from time to time. (check this link for the recipe if interested: https://ronitpenso.wordpress.com/2013/12/15/sweet-and-tasty-quince-squares/). I also like to add quince to savory dishes. It’s such a wonderful fruit. 🙂
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This looks great! I have always wanted to know how to make things with quince. My aunt used to make a quince and turnip casserole, but, unfortunately, I never got her recipe. So creative!
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Thank you Carol, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Quince is such a wonderful fruit and I love to use it for both sweet and savory dishes. I like the idea of using it with turnips. I’ll give it a try once I get both. 🙂
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Please do! I would love to learn how to cook them.
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I’ll investigate and report! 🙂
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Sounds like a plan.🍏🍐
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Looks so yummy 😋!!
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Thank you Deepti! 🙂
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These look very flavourful, simple and delicious!
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Thank you Krešo, I’m glad you liked it. It is indeed quite delicious. 🙂
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I’ve heard of quince, but don’t think I’ve had the pleasure of trying them yet. It sounds interesting though. 🙂
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It is an amazing fruit, very popular around the Mediterranean and the Caucasus region. Well worth looking for! 🙂
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Shall try to hunt it down. 🙂
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this brings back memories from Jerusalem.. =)
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Glad to hear. Hope you’re well. שנה טובה! 🙂
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This looks delicious! Love the color the wine gives!
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Thank you Sue Ellen, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Quince naturally turn orange-pink when cooked, but the red wine enhances the color even more. Not to mention the flavor! 🙂
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Well this looks fabulous! I can’t get my hands on quinces, so I’m out of luck, but wow that looks good!
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Thank you Mimi, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Quince is such an amazing and versatile fruit. A shame you can’t get it…
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Yum!!!
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Thank you! 🙂
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Such an amazing and yummilicious recipe ✌✌
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Thank you Jyo! 🙂
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Sometimes, after a large meal, the simplest of dishes with quality ingredients fit the bill. This is one of those.
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Thank you Neil, I’m glad you liked the recipe. It is indeed so perfect after a large meal. I also like to serve it with yogurt for brunch, or with sponge cakes, or… 🙂
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This looks so tempting and am sure tastes yum! wonderful share!!
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Thank you Nisha, I’m glad you liked the recipe. It’s always a pleasure to share tasty foods! 🙂
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Oh, I love quince cooked like this! I notice you have left the skin on which I never do but it’s such a pain to remove. I will be trying it your way next time. Quince season here in Australia is over until about March next year.
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Thank you Marcella, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Quince cooked this way is one of my favorites too. I deliberately leave the skin on, as this way the segments keep their shape better when cooked. I also like the slight contrast of color and texture it creates. I hope you’ll enjoy it too. 🙂
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We used to have a quince growing in our orchard in New Hampshire. When I brought the fruit into my kitchen and placed them in a bowl, their fragrance filled the room with wonderful aromas. Since we’ve moved to Florida, I’ve never seen them in the markets.
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Oh wow, fresh quince from your own orchard. What a treat. Interesting to learn that you can’t find them in Florida. I was under the impression that it’s just the opposite. Live and learn! 🙂
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It seems to go well with blue cheese! What a shame that the fruit is difficult to find here…. I saw and tried it for the first time in my life when in Croatia, and loved it very much!
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It indeed goes very well with blue cheese, or any other mature cheese.
It is indeed such a shame it’s hard for you to get this wonderful fruit. I’m glad you at least had a chance to enjoy it in Croatia. 🙂
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Mmmm mouthwatering! I will probably write about the fruit sometime later.
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Bumped into quince here!! How lucky me! Made compote and paste, which really went well with manchego and parmigiano! Still some, so I will try your recipe and blue cheese together!
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I’m so glad for you that you’ve managed to get this tasty fruit. I just made another batch of this. I hope you’ll enjoy it too.
I’m now preparing another batch of my quince squares. They need a couple of weeks to dry, so I’m waiting patiently… 🙂
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Oh I didn’t know it needs to be dried. Just googled… what if baked in an oven? Naturally dried one is better?
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Sorry I got you confused, I was referring to this recipe: https://ronitpenso.wordpress.com/2013/12/15/sweet-and-tasty-quince-squares/
But It’s not a must. You can have them without drying. 🙂
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to dry, so I wondered. Thank you for the recipe. Uhmmmmm we need to be patient to complete…. but looks really good. And candied one with rosemary seems nice too!
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I love quince in all ways of preparations. It’s great to have different options. 🙂
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Love quince!! The most under-utilized fruit there is 🙂 Our parents used to make a quince spoon sweet dessert. Will be seeing them about the recipe soon 🙂
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Thank you, I’m glad to have found more quince aficionados!
As for the spoon dessert, I’m guessing it could be something similar to the post in the attached link. In any case, I’m very curious about your version as well. 🙂
https://ronitpenso.wordpress.com/2013/12/15/sweet-and-tasty-quince-squares/
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It’s similar in terms of some of the ingredients! We are hoping to make this dessert with our parents, and if we do we will certainly share the recipe 🙂
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It will be interesting to see your parents’ version.:)
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Yum~! This goes on my list of things to do with this weekends batch of quinces, right next to my grandma’s quince jelly, a lamb and quince stew and a goat’s cheese-filo pastry number I’ve been experimenting with 🙂 I have a cinnamon ice cream in the freezer which will go well with these I think~
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Thank you Diana, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Cinnamon ice cream would indeed go so well with it.
I’m drooling at the thought of the dishes you’re planing to make! Looking forward to your posts about it. 🙂
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Quitte ist eine wunderbare Frucht,ein herrlicher Duft und ein einmaliger Geschmack
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Couldn’t agree more. it’s really a wonderful fruit. Danke for commenting. 🙂
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Reblogged this on Ajo Negro.
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