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Years ago, backyard quince trees were common. People would cultivate them to harvest the fruit for cooking in pies or preserves.
Inedible raw, and looking like a cross between a pear and a golden apple, quince cook up sweet, with a vibrant rose color and a floral aroma and flavor.
These days you can still find an odd tree here and there in backyards of older houses, though chances are the owners don’t know the culinary delights available in these hard yellow fruit.
(I had a quince tree in the yard of my rented home in San Francisco for 4 years and never once cooked a quince. Now that I know better, just to think of it makes me want to bang my head on the wall.)
Here is an easy recipe for a simple quince jam. Feel free to spice it up a little with nutmeg, cardamom, or vanilla.
More jams to try:
Quince Jam Recipe
Quince are available in October, November in the Northern Hemisphere.
When choosing what quince to pick or buy, smell the bottom of the fruit. It should have a strong floral fragrance. If not, it's not fully ripe.
If the fruit comes from an organically grown tree, it may easily have worms in the cores. No problem for jam making, just cut the wormy pieces away from the rest and discard.
Ingredients
- 6 cups (packed) of quince, rinsed, grated (discard cores, leave peel on), from about 2 pounds of quince (about 5 quince)
- 4 1/4 cups water
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 4 cups sugar
Method
1 Prep and grate the quince: Prepare the quince by washing and cutting in half. Working around the core, grate the quince flesh (including the peel) with a cheese grater, until you have about 6 cups of grated quince.
2 Simmer grated quince in water with lemon juice and zest until soft: Put 4 1/4 cups of water in a large (6-8 quart), wide, thick-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the grated quince, lemon juice and lemon zest. Reduce heat and simmer until the quince is soft, about 10 minutes.
3 Add sugar and simmer until thickened: Add the sugar and bring to a boil again. Stir to dissolve all of the sugar. Lower the heat to medium high.
Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally until quince jam turns pink and thickens to desired consistency, about 30-50 minutes. (If the jam has thickened but hasn't turn pink, add a little more water and cook a little longer.)
4 Ladle into jars and seal: Ladle into hot, sterilized canning jars* and seal. Before applying the lids, sterilize the lids by placing them in a bowl and pouring boiling water over them. Wipe the rims of the jars clean before applying the lids.
* To sterilize the jars, rinse out the jars, dry them, and place them, without lids, in a 200°F oven for 10 minutes.
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Elise Bauer is the founder of Simply Recipes. Elise launched Simply Recipes in 2003 as a way to keep track of her family's recipes, and along the way grew it into one of the most popular cooking websites in the world. Elise is dedicated to helping home cooks be successful in the kitchen. Elise is a graduate of Stanford University, and lives in Sacramento, California.
Quince Jam
Has this been tested for canning using water bath?
Hi Gen, this recipe has sufficient sugar and acid that you don’t need to water bath can it to prevent harmful bacteria from growing in it. That said, water bath canning will help prevent any mold from developing.
What can you do to fix bitter quince jam? Is it more or less of the lemon juice?
Hi Eloise,
I assume it’s already in the jars, yes? Is it too sour (tart), or too bitter (astringent)? I’ve preserved quince for years, and this is a problem I’ve not run into. It could be the quince themselves, though bitterness is their nature.
Easy to make. Tastes lovely. My Down Under quinces turned a light pink, not as dark as yours. I use the saucer in the freezer method to test – when it thickens in the pot, place a sample on the saucer & leave it in the freezer for 2 mins. It should wrinkle on the surface when pushed to show it will set. Cheers
xxxxxyyyyy
Greetings, Mary. Glad to hear your fall down there has brought you quince. I like the wrinkle test, too. I have a special white saucer I keep around just for that.
Gorgeous! Easy to make.Thank you
xxxxxyyyyy
First time making quince jam. It’s good! I am giving it away to my family & friends for a gift. Do I need to refrigerate since there wasn’t any processing? Thank you!
Hi Denise, if you do not process, the only issue you may encounter is mold. There is sufficient sugar and acid in this jam (as in most jams and jellies with a high amount of sugar) to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria, even not refrigerated. I usually only process my jams and jellies when giving them as gifts because that way I’ll get a better seal.