Homemade Quince Jam

This ruby red quince jam is fragrant, flavorful, and surprisingly easy to make. If you’ve never cooked with quince before, this recipe is the perfect introduction—and it might just make you a lifelong fan of this under appreciated fruit.

I am a huge fan of jam and I make all kinds of fruit jam. Strawberry rhubarb jam, homemade peach jam or blueberry jam, summer jams bring a smile to faces that are shivering in the winter months.

But don’t be sad. Fall fruits make wonderful jams, too! You can make fig jam, pomegranate jelly and my personal favorite, quince jam.

Ingredients you need

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You don’t have a giant shopping list when it comes to making jam. It’s super simple and only requires a handful of ingredients.

• Quince: You want fresh quince, so look for fruit that isn’t bruised or old. Once you buy quince, use it within a week as old quince turns brown inside. You won’t notice anything wrong on the outside. So if you cut into your quince and you see brown meat instead of white, toss the quince. It’s too old.
• Granulated Sugar: Jam making requires sugar. You can use brown sugar or honey, but the amounts will be different and I do not know what color it will turn into as I never made quince jam with any sugar but regular ‘ole sugar.
• Water: Quince does not have a lot of juice inside it so you need to add water for the ruby syrup that will swim along your jammed quince.
• Lemon Juice: Like apples and pears, quince oxidizes and starts turning brown when it is cut and exposed to oxygen. Lemon juice also helps quince’s color component, anthocyanins, to develop its beautiful red color.

Recipe Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Chop the quince. Wash, core and carefully cut quince into small chunks. Quince is very hard so pay extra attention as you try to cut it.
2. Cover with water. As you cut and chop your quince, keep it in a bowl covered with water and lemon juice to keep it from browning. When you are ready to cook the quince, drain out the water.
3. Bring to a boil. In a large stainless or copper pot combine chopped quince, water, sugar and lemon juice. Bring mixture to boil.

4. Simmer. Once boiled, cover lid with a towel, to catch steam, and reduce heat to low and simmer until quince changes color, from light pink to dark red. This takes about 2 hours. Stir every 30 minutes to keep from burning. If low on water, stir in more as needed.

• The more jam you are making, the longer it will take the change color. When fruit is fork tender and ruby red in color, remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

5. Transfer to jars. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Or, if you are canning your jam, click here for hot water canning instructions.

Expert Tips and Recipe FAQS

Quince is a knobby looking apple-pear that is very hard. It doesn’t ripen on the tree and it doesn’t really soften once you pick it.

At first glance, you would think one could just take a bite out of it like an apple or pear, but please don’t. Quince doesn’t soften and they are very bitter in the raw state. That is why you will find that quince is best when cooked, in both savory and sweet dishes

• Because quince are very hard, be very careful when you cut them. You need a very sharp knife and a good grip on the fruit. Be warned, your hand will get a workout while you peel, core and chop the quince.
• Quince oxidizes very quickly when cut, like apples. Lemon juice helps slow this down.
• Old quince fruit may look fine on the outside, but they will have big brown spots when you cut into them. So please make sure your quince is fresh.
• Hot water can your quince jam and give them as gifts.

My family prefers quince jam in chunks, as pictured in this post. You can also shred the quince first and then quick it down for a smoother apple butter consistency. You can also purée the jam chunks once it turns ruby red.

Homemade Quince Jam

Laura Bashar | Family Spice

This ruby red quince jam is fragrant, flavorful, and surprisingly easy to make. If you’ve never cooked with quince before, this recipe is the perfect introduction—and it might just make you a lifelong fan of this under appreciated fruit.

4.67 from 3 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 3 hours hrs

Additional Time 3 hours hrs

Total Time 6 hours hrs 5 minutes mins

Course Breakfast

Cuisine Persian

Servings 16 ounces

Calories 130 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 lb quince
• 1 cup water
• 2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoon lemon juice

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Instructions

 

• Wash, core and cut quince into chunks.
• In a stainless or copper pot whisk together water, sugar and lemon juice.
• Stir in the chopped quince.
• Place pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.
• Cover the lid of the pot with a towel (to catch the steam), reduce heat to low and simmer until quince changes to a dark, ruby red color, approximately 2-3 hours.
• Stir quince every 30 minutes to keep from burning. If low on water, stir in more as needed.
• When jam is fork tender and ruby red in color, remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
• Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Or, if you are canning your jam, click here for hot water canning instructions.

Notes

Cooking Suggestions. You can also add a stick of cinnamon, 4 cardamon pods or a star of anise for added flavor. Just remove after quince jam is done cooking.

The key to your quince jam to changing into a ruby red color is to use a stainless or copper pot. The towel around the lid of the pot is also crucial.

CANNED JAM: Jams that have been canned using hot water canning, can last in a cool dark pantry for up to a year. As long as the seal is intact and mold is not present, the jam is safe to eat past a year.

REFRIGERATED Jam: You can also store jam in the refrigerator. The USDA says that it will last for 10 days, but I have found that it lasts longer than that. Use your best judgement.

FREEZER JAM: There are freezer safe jam containers that can be used to store your jam in the freezer. Again, the USDA says it will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months but I have found that it does last longer. Again, use your best judgement.

Nutrition

Serving: 1TBSCalories: 130kcalCarbohydrates: 34gSodium: 4mgFiber: 1gSugar: 25g

Keyword quince jam

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Nutrition Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.

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This post was originally published November 6, 2012. It has since been rewritten, updated and includes new photographs.