Quince jam

November 7, 2012  •  Category:

 

It is quince season now and while waiting for the fruits to ripen a few weeks on the trees, I was plotting ways to use them.


First off, jam is in order. Here is a recipe inspired by the Persian tradition and Najmieh Batmanglij’s Food of Life. 

If you have never tried quince, it is a delicious sweet and sour fruit, gives out a beautiful orange color when cooked, and can be used in thousands of ways (just like apples). Pick fat, yellow quince and avoid the ones with brown spots.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 big quinces (about 1 1/2 lbs)
  • 2 1/2 cups of sugar
  • 5 cardamom pods (green)
  • 1 large lime, juiced
METHOD:
  1. Scrub the fuzz on the fruit well to get it nice and smooth. Core then shred the fruit and transfer to a large pot  filled with 3 cups of water and a teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar. Collect the seeds from inside the fruit and place in a small piece of cheesecloth; tie the cheesecloth. You can use a mesh  tea ball instead to enclose the cardamom pods. Place the seeds in the pot along with 1/2 cup of sugar. Cover, bring to a boil and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. 
  2. Discard the seeds; add the remaining 1 1/2 cups of sugar, the cardamom pods, the lime juice and simmer some more for about one hour or longer until the water has evaporated and the quince is pasty and shiny.  Remove the cardamom pods. Cool and serve.
NOTE: Coring quince is not fun, so you can skip that; just cut the fruit into thick slices and shred them and when done, split the quince in half and collect the seeds. Much easier.

Comments

27 Comments  •  Comments Feed

  1. Rosa says:

    Divine! I love that you flavored your jam with cardamom pods.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  2. Tom Tall Clover Farm says:

    Joumana, love your new profile photo. Such a welcoming smile! I love quince and have a few left to try out your recipe. I love pairing quince jam with soft cheese on pita or rustic bread.

  3. Erica says:

    A few ingredients for a wonderful dish! It looks delicious!

  4. leaf says:

    That ruby-red colour is just stunning!

  5. Joy (My Turkish Joys says:

    We have quince everywhere now here in Turkey it seems. I will finally have to try something with them….like your wonderful jam. Thanks for sharing!

  6. twbarritt says:

    I don’t think I’ve every held a quince in my hand. It is such a lovely looking fruit.

  7. Jennifer RiceEpstein says:

    Lovely. I can’t wait to try it!

  8. Nadji says:

    Une confiture délicieuse.
    J’en fais aussi mais je n’ai jamais pensé à rajouter de la cardamome.
    Je note.
    A bientôt

  9. Diane says:

    I have never used cardamom in my jam, have made a note to try it next year. Keep well Diane

  10. Oui, Chef says:

    I’ve never had quince before, in fact, I don’t think I’ve even ever seen one till now. Love the color of the cooked flesh, and it sounds delicious.

  11. Ozlem's Turkish Tabl says:

    Dear Joumana, this quice jam has brought many happy childhood memories back, my granma used to make it, packed with flavor – your version looks so delicious!
    Ozlem

  12. Susan says:

    If I could only find quince! It’s not something that our local grocers stock but if I get into a specialty shop I will look for it. Your jam with cardmom looks delightful!

  13. Ahmad Halaby says:

    You should really make Kibbeh Safarjaliyeh (Quince and Kibbeh Stew), it’s the best combination of flavors you will ever indulge yourself in.It is Haleby and is by far one of the best dishes in the region. This is a pretty close recipe that I found http://www.marlenematar.com/Recipes/kibbeh_safarjaliyeh.html

    But the stuffing for the kibbeh should be a half Leeyeh (sheep fat butt-flap) half lamb with walnuts, the sauce should also have walnuts, lamb shanks and even more Leeyah!! No dried mint as stated and fresh Pomegranate for the sauce…..my mouth is having a spasm attack as I type. Haleby cuisine is the crusader of adventure food!

  14. Elena says:

    Such tasty and delicious jam! Unfortunately, the quinces are very expensive in our region- so I can’t make it!
    It’s a traditional way in Spain – to serve quince jam with cheeses, Membrillo con Queso.

  15. sare says:

    My husband loves all the things made quince… I love it with cheese.Cardamom pots give different flavour the jam.
    Thanks for sharing…

  16. sare says:

    and also I love your photo with quinces.

  17. Mon Petit Chou says:

    My Iraqi mom just made a similar Quince-Cardamom Maraba for me this weekend! So happy to find a site with Middle Eastern recipes!

    Cheers,
    Sara

  18. Mon Petit Chou says:

    btw: this is GREAT with lebneh! 🙂

  19. Alicia (foodycat) says:

    I know exactly what you mean about coring them! Such a chore. Worth it for that fragrance and the colour though. I also want to agree with the others who have said it’s lovely with cheese. It really is! Gorgeous with a soft blue like gorgonzola.

  20. Gary says:

    Wow! Just making this now. It’s almost done! I have a small quince tree in a large half wine barrel pot in my yard. It bore 10 fruit this summer which became huge with a week of solid rain a few weeks befor picking. It’s a vrajna type. Easy to grow.

  21. Marie says:

    This looks very nice I remember the jam quince add to it cloves I will try it with cardamom thanks for posting.

  22. sameera says:

    hi
    i just want to know , can seeds be used in jam ? i dont understand we have to wrap seeds n then put them in boiling together ?? i heard quince seeds are poisonous ? ill mak ethi sjam for my 5 year old i heard its a remedy for respiratory ailments

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