Quince Jam Recipe: 6 Uses for Quince Jam

Quince jam is a jam made from quince fruit, an edible product of flowering quince trees. The jam contains chopped quince instead of just quince juice, which would make the food quince jelly instead. A quince fruit resembles a pear, but fresh quince is usually too hard or sour to eat raw. Quince is high in pectin, a natural thickening substance that helps set jam, so quince is a common ingredient in jams, jellies, preserves, and marmalades. Quince jam is naturally vegan and gluten-free. Raw quince is mostly water and carbohydrates with a moderate amount of vitamin C. It’s a low-calorie fruit and a source of potassium and dietary fiber.

Quince jam has a unique taste that takes on a flavor you might find similar to apples, pears, plums, or pineapples. The variety of flavors in just one jam means you can use it in many different ways, such as for a:

1. 1. Charcuterie board: Use quince jam as a condiment on a charcuterie board with meat and cheese. The sweetness of the jam complements the savoriness of cured meats and the creaminess of cheese.
2. 2. Crostini spread: Toast slices of baguette and spread them with a creamy cheese like ricotta or Brie. Then top them with quince jam and a sprinkle of coarse sea salt to make an appetizer.
3. 3. Frosting: For vanilla-flavored or almond-flavored cakes, mix some quince jam into the buttercream frosting. It will add a nice color and a sweet, fruity flavor to go with the sweet cake.
4. 4. Pie filling layer: You can spread a layer of quince jam on the bottom of a pie crust before you add the pie filling to prevent the crust from becoming soggy and to add a surprise flavor to a fruit pie.
5. 5. Sandwich spread: Switch up a classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich by using quince jam instead of grape jelly. It has more texture than grape jelly and can add a complex flavor profile to the sandwich.
6. 6. Yogurt parfait layer: Try adding quince jam to a yogurt parfait, which consist of layers of yogurt, jam, and granola (or another crunchy food).

Making quince jam can be an art form and is a process that might be tricky for first-time jam makers. Use the tips below when making homemade jam from quince fruits to achieve the best results possible:

1. 1. Add membrillo. For a stronger quince flavor, add membrillo, or quince paste. It’s not a traditional ingredient in quince jam, but you can mash it in with the other fruit solids and cook it down with the rest of the ingredients.
2. 2. Grate the quince. Raw quince is a hard fruit that requires a sharp knife, although grating it is usually safer and can be just as convenient. Cut the quince in half, then remove the core. Leaving the skin on, grate the quince on the large-holed side of a traditional box grater for small pieces that are already jam-ready.
3. 3. Know the general ratio of fruit to sugar. Traditional jam makers use the kilo for kilo ratio, meaning one kilogram of sugar per kilogram of fruit. This produces a very sweet jam. Modern recipes adjust this ratio to produce less sweet jam, but it’s a good starting point for first-time jam makers.
4. 4. Spice up the jam. Quince has plenty of flavor on its own, but other flavorings will still come through in the mix. Use warm spices like cinnamon or cardamom to warm up the jam’s flavor. Vanilla is another flavoring that works well with quince.
5. 5. Use almost the whole fruit. Use everything but the core of the quince in the final jam. The skin cooks down with the fruit and sugar, making the fruit compote thick and chunky. The core won’t cook down, so you should discard it.