Poached Quince

One caveat: Please don’t cut yourself when slicing or peeling quince. They’re tough little suckers. Tougher than you are. They’ll turn a lovely shade of red on their own without you cutting yourself while slicing them.

3 quince (about 2 pounds)
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 1/2 cups water
1/2 vanilla bean,, split and the seeds scraped into the syrup

1. In a large non-reactive saucepan, bring the sugar, water, and the vanilla bean pod and seeds, to a boil.
2. Peel and quarter the quince using a chef’s knife. With a paring knife, cut out the tough core and any bits of hard matter surrounding it. Take care, as the flesh is very hard (some people suggest poaching the quince with the cores, then remove them later, but I remove them). Cut the quince quarters in half or thirds, making 1-inch slices.
3. Reduce heat to a simmer and add the quince slices to the syrup (they’ll begin to brown quickly once cut, so submerge them into the syrup as they’re sliced). Cover with a round of parchment paper, and simmer gently for about 1 ½ hours, or until they’re rosy and tender (poke them with a paring knife if you need to check.)

Notes

Once poached, the quince in their liquid will keep in the refrigerator for at least 5 days. You can also use these as a base for my Quince tarte Tatin. This recipe was updated, and you can find a variation of it here: Rosy Poached Quince.