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Talkback: Quince for the memory

Gardeners' World Web UserGardeners' World Web User Posts: 17,147
in Talkback
I obtained some windfall quinces last year and took them home to make jelly. I read up in an ancient copy of Cassells Cookery that the quince seeds, when soaked overnight in water, give up about 10 times their weight in pectin. It's worth keeping the seeds in your liquid if you want jelly to set. You will have to add acid to the mix as well, as quinces do not have enough on their own.

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  • Gardeners' World Web UserGardeners' World Web User Posts: 17,147
    I make quince jelly by chopping quinces up into pieces, cooking as for any jelly recipe with a little lemon juice. Strain through a jelly bag or a piece of muslin overnight then boil with sugar, one pound of sugar to each pint of liquid until setting point is reached. Bottle and store. It keeps very well.
  • Gardeners' World Web UserGardeners' World Web User Posts: 17,147
    Mag, you can use ornamental quince for jelly but they are not nearly as good as regular quinces.
  • Gardeners' World Web UserGardeners' World Web User Posts: 17,147
    I do exactly the same as Ann O and we love the jelly with any sort of pork dish, and it is also really good with strong cheeses.
  • Gardeners' World Web UserGardeners' World Web User Posts: 17,147
    There are literally heaps of downy yellow quinces in the green markets at the moment in Serbia. They are called Dunja. Here they are made into a compote, Stew peeled fruit for a long time, it remains quite firm, but extremely tasty, in a very sweet syrup with a hint of lemon.
  • Gardeners' World Web UserGardeners' World Web User Posts: 17,147
    My mature quince tree yields vast crops, but in my garden I have yet to harvest any fruit. Here, by the Potomac river, various plagues devastate the fruit in late spring and early summer - plum cuculio is the enemy, I am told. I am hesitant to resort to harsh chemicals and apparently my dream of making my own quince reserves will remain a dream. Sigh.
  • Gardeners' World Web UserGardeners' World Web User Posts: 17,147
    Can you use the fruit of japanese quince for jelly?
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