If you are lucky enough to find quince in your market, you must make this three-ingredient dulce de membrillo or quince paste. It is great with crackers, manchego cheese, as a pastry filling, and can also be used instead of jelly.
Membrillo means quince in Spanish. Dulce de membrillo or a sweet of quince is a sweet quince paste very popular in Spain. Dulce de membrillo is often served in Spain as a tapa (small plate) and is usually served with sharp manchego cheese or just plain with crackers. Are you interested in tapas from Spain? Check out some of our favorite tapas:
HOW TO MAKE DULCE DE MEMBRILLO AT HOME
- Peel and cut each quince in half
- Remove seeds and place them in a cheesecloth. Create a pouch and tie it with cooking twine. This is our grandmother's trick, the pectin in the seeds will help the dulce de membrillo firm up. Our father told us how our grandmother used to make quince paste (dulce de membrillo) and used to wrap the seeds in cheesecloth to thicken it. We wanted to stay true to our grandmother's recipe and use the quince seeds as our thickener.
- Combine quince, sugar, water, and seed pouch in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer for 45-60 minutes. The quince will turn from a white color to a reddish pinkish color.
- Let it cool slightly, take the seed pouch out, and puree the quince with an immersion blender or in the food processor until smooth.
- Place cooked quince paste in a small glass container and let it cool and set in the fridge for at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Slice and enjoy with a sharp manchego or cheddar cheese, with soft creamy cheese ( for a smoother contrast), over yogurt, on crackers or as a filling for pastries or pie.
Step by Step Images On How to Make Dulce de Membrillo at Home
- Find quince at your farmer's or Asian market or ask the produce manager at your supermarket if he can get you some quince
2. Peel and cut the quince in half
3. Remove seeds and place on a piece of cheesecloth
4. Cut quince into chunks
5. Wrap seeds in the cheesecloth and tie with kitchen twine
6. Place quince, sugar, lemon juice and wrapped seeds in a large saucepan
7. Cook quince with sugar, water, lemon and wrapped seeds for 45-60 minutes or until very soft and it becomes a pinkish color
8. Once cooked and soft the quince turns from a white color to a reddish pinkish color
About Quince ( Membrillo in Spanish)
- Quince is a fruit that looks like a cross between an apple and a pear.
- If the quince is very green it will have a light furry layer, that will come off by washing the fruit. A more yellowish quince means that is riper, it will take less time to cook, but it can still not be eaten raw.
- Quince must always be cooked, it cannot be eaten raw. Raw quince has a rough grainy texture even though it has a slightly floral aroma.
- It is not easy to find, the season is short from October until December. If you are lucky enough to find it, you must try this membrillo recipe.
- Try asking the produce manager of your local supermarket for quince or look for it in farmer's markets, Asian or Middle Eastern markets or specialty stores. We have also found online stores selling quince but in large quantities.
- Dulce de membrillo looks like is guava like paste, but tastes very different.
- Dulce de membrillo is made, by cooking the fruit in sugar and a little bit of lemon. Because of its pectin content, dulce de membrillo holds its shape like guava paste and can be cut with a knife.
- When cooked the creamy white quince turns a beautiful reddish-pinkish color
- You can find already made dulce membrillo made in Spain specialty supermarkets, gourmet food shops and online.
- In Spain, membrillo is eaten with Manchego cheese. The sharpness of the Manchego cheese and the sweetness of the membrillo complement each other beautifully.
- Membrillo can also be added to soft creamy cheese, to yogurt or as a pastry or pie filling.
Quince Paste
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: 16 tablespoons 1x
Description
If you are lucky enough to find quince in your market, you must make this two-ingredient quince paste. It is great with crackers, manchego cheese, as a pastry filling and can also be used instead of jelly.
Ingredients
- 2 large quince
- 1 ½ cups of sugar
- 1 tbsp plus two teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3 cups of water
Instructions
- Peel quince and cut in half. See Note 1.
- Remove seeds and place them in a small piece of cheesecloth. Create a pouch and tie it with cooking twine. See note 2
- Cut quince into 1.5" chunks
- In a large saucepan combine quince, sugar, lemon, water, and seed pouch.
- Bring to a boil, lower the heat until it comes to a low boil (where small bubbles come rapidly to the water surface) for 45 - 60 minutes or until all the water has evaporated and the quince has turned into an orangy color and the quince is very soft.
- Let it cool, take out the seed pouch, and puree the quince with an immersion blender or in the food processor until smooth.
- Spread the paste into a rectangular, square or round shallow dish have ( preferably with a lid, if your dish doesn't have a lid you can cover it with plastic wrap).
- Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours or more until the dulce de membrillo is set and you can cut it with a knife.
- Serve over crackers, plain, with Manchego or sharp cheddar cheese or use it as a pastry filling
Notes
- Quince is hard, it may be easier to use a vegetable peeler to peel it.
- The quince seeds are high in pectin which helps the membrillo come together as a paste. This is how our grandmother used to make quince paste. Make sure you put the seeds in cheesecloth so you don't have to fish them later.
- Prep Time: 3 hours 15 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Stove top
- Cuisine: Spanish
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 tbsp
- Calories: 67
- Sugar: 15.6
- Sodium: .5
- Fat: 0
- Saturated Fat: 0
- Unsaturated Fat: 0
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 17.4
- Fiber: .2
- Protein: 0
- Cholesterol: 0
Keywords: Dulce de membrillo, quince, membrillo, Spain, gluten free, vegan, kosher
Juliana says
I have never seen quince, but sure heard a lot about it...this paste looks delicious on the crackers and so easy to make...when I find quince I will try to make this paste.
Thanks for the recipe and hope you both are having a great week 😀
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you very much Juliana. Quince is hard to find and the season is short, but we manage to find quince usually at our local Asian markets. You may want to give them a try if you have some in your area.
Consuelo @ Honey & Figs says
La verdad es que a mí no me gusta nada el membrillo comprado, pero el vuestro os ha quedado de miedo. ¡Tiene una pinta riquísima! x
Vicky & Ruth says
Gracias consuelo. Ya sabes que las cosas hechas es casa siempre están más buenas !
Raquel says
This truly looks delicious! I know your grandmother is smiling down on both of you for your amazing job and fantastic recipes. Keep up the great work!! 🙂
★★★★★
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you so much for your kind words.
[email protected] says
I sometimes see quince in the stores, but not often. Now I know what to do with them! This is a wonderful recipe. Good stuff - thanks.
Vicky & Ruth says
You can also cook quince in a sweet savory dish and add it to your favorite protein.
sippitysup says
I am always amazed by the transformation when cooking quince. Raw they are inedible. But cooked in some manner they are sweet. GREG
Vicky & Ruth says
Totally agree, isn't that amazing ? The color change is also fantastic !
[email protected] says
I must try quince! This looks decadent!
Ronnie Fein says
I've never made my own quince paste but I do so love it with cheese! I just saw quince at Fairway. I will try this after the holiday; too much going on now.
★★★★★
Jenny @ BAKE says
this looks delicious, and it's all the more special for being able to use some family cooking wisdom!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you. We are always looking for those old tricks, we wish we had more...
Whitney @ Jewhungry says
I just went to the market, looked at some quince and thought to myself, "What could I do with these?" and then walked away! I should have known you guys would have the answer!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you, that is so sweet of you...
Tamar Genger @joyofkosher says
I have yet to try quince, but you keep making want to finally do it.
Vicky & Ruth says
Give it a try it is really delicious, but hurry up quince is only available in the market for a short period of time.
Cass @foodmyfriend says
I made microwaved quince paste ages ago and it lasted me for a few months. i'll have to make it again soon. I love it with a good cheddar 🙂
Vicky & Ruth says
Interesting quince paste made in the microwave, we would be interested to know how you did that.
Sarah Klinkowitz says
On of the things I love about old-world cooking is the ability to use EVERYTHING. Using the seeds to thicken the jelly just brings that point home for me and helps me reaffirm what I love most about cooking.
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you Sarah, we wish we had more old world cooking wisdom...
diega says
My mother also used to make quince jam (membrillo) and never also used the seeds that are very high in pectin. Her quince paste was very velvety and sweet
★★★★★
diek says
I tasted membrillo on my last trip to Spain, now I can make it at home. Thank you
★★★★★
Cindy says
I wanted to leave a comment about the delicious apple honey challah and because I am technology challenged as well as cooking I am posting it here. The challah recipe was easy to follow, the dough was perfect and was easy to handle and tasted amazing!! A definite winner!
Thanks
Cindy
Sean Sutcliffe says
A lovely, luscious pink delight!
I made this paste today with locally grown quince, superb! My thanks to grandma for the
seed tip, though, I used a mesh ball to hold them rather than the muslin. 5 stars guys!
★★★★★
Vicky and Ruth says
Thank you so much. Grandma's tips are always the best!
Keep Cooking!
Reb says
Thanks for the recipe. Can you tell me how long the paste can be stored? And does it have to be kept in the fridge?
Vicky and Ruth says
The quince paste has to be kept in the fridge in an air-tight container and it lasts for months. As long as you always use a clean utensil to cut it, it should last. You don't want any crumbs or any food residue to contaminate the membrillo because it will spoil. If you see any white spots or mold, and the membrillo doesn't smell or taste right, it's time to make another batch.