Easy quince cheese recipe (membrillo)
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Fruit, Jam Jelly and Preserves, Vegetarian | 156 comments
I’m back at the helm and it’s marvellous to be feeling well and chirpy and slimmer. Forget Champneys. A week in bed with a bug does wonders for the figure.
Danny put on his sensible parent hat this morning. He instructed me not to go to work, reasoning that more recuperation was required. He was right. I did feel weak.
This afternoon, he relented slightly.
“Why not go out foraging for an hour. You could do with some fresh air.”
He passed me the foraging stick, tossed me his car keys and disappeared upstairs.
I found some plump sloes and with the help of the walking stick accessed branches that only a seven foot giant could reach. The crab apple tree had a small final harvest. Being north facing its fruit had not spoiled. I tootled home and simmered the crab apples with chillies to make a hot jelly (recipe later this week if it turns out well).
My main aim today was to make some quince cheese. The quinces had been cooked and strained for jelly the week before last. The juice and flesh keep well in the fridge for up to two weeks. Today was the last day.
When I discovered membrillo at the Spanish Deli in Portobello Road I was delighted. I love the combination of membrillo and Manchego. Danny wasn’t impressed. His face crumpled when he tasted it.
“It’s so sweet. How can you like it?”
I was pretty sure that membrillo needn’t be so sweet. I looked at various recipes on the internet. The amount of sugar varied enormously. In the end I decided to plump for an equal volume of quince pulp to sugar. This has produced a membrillo that is sweet but tastes of quince. I reckon that one could get away with even less sugar in fact when I looked in my copy of Oded Schwartz, his recipe uses slightly less – 50g less. Adding the lemon juice made a difference too.
They key to this recipe is time. I simmered the quinces for at least three hours until they became a deep pink colour. The final stage is a long process too. The quince pulp and sugar was simmered gently (lowest setting) for a good 2-3 hours to intensify the colour and thicken the pulp to the right consistency. There is no need to bring the mixture to a rolling boil. This is a recipe that is spread over two evenings. One evening simmer the quinces and strain overnight. The next evening make the membrillo.
Danny tasted it gave the recipe the thumbs up, especially when he realised that the by product is the juice for quince jelly.
Easy quince cheese recipe (membrillo)
Ingredients:
For the quince pulp:
- 1 kilo of quinces
- Zest of half a lemon
- Water to cover
For the quince cheese:
- Quince pulp
- Juice of half a lemon
- Granulated (not castor) white sugar (equal volume to the pulp)
Method:
- Rub the down off the quinces and wash them. There is no need to peel or core the quinces.
- Chop the quinces carefully, as they are hard it is easy for the knife to slip. I chopped them into quarters and sliced them into 1cm slices.
- Place the quince slices in a large saucepan or casserole dish and add water so that they are just floating. Add the zest of half a lemon.
- Bring slowly to the boil and then turn the hob down to it’s lowest setting so that the quinces gently simmer (lid on). Simmer the fruit until very soft and the fruit has turned a deep pink colour. This took me about 3 hours. Check the quinces every now and then and top up the water if necessary.
- Strain the juice from the fruit overnight using a jelly bag or muslin square. Retain the juice to make quince jelly.
- I was loathe to spend hours pressing the quinces through a sieve so I put them through the Magimix
(medium grater blade) and then I sieved them.
- Measure the pulp using a measuring jug put the pulp into a large heavy bottomed saucepan or casserole dish and add an equal volume of white granulated sugar. Add the juice of half a lemon.
- Bring the pulp and sugar gradually to simmering point, stirring to dissolve the sugar and let it simmer, lowest setting for 2-3 hours, stirring every now and then to stop it sticking and burning. It will resemble gloopy mud. Gradually the colour will darken. Eventually the fruit will become very thick (I could stand my spoon up in mine).
- Spoon into well oiled sterilised straight sided jars and seal with cellophane lids. This will keep for months. Cut slices to eat with cheese or cold meat. Refrigerate after opening.
Leave a reply
I forgot the lemon juice… do you think it will still set up?
Hi Jacqueline
Only time will tell. It might be very sweet without the lemon juice. You can reheat it very very gently and then add the lemon juice so all is not lost!
Hi Fiona,
Just wanted to let you know I tried your membrillo recipe, but when I cut into some of my quinces, it turns out lots of them were brown inside. So I ended up using half quinces and half cooking apples, and it turned out great.
I used an oiled loaf tin for the membrillo, it set fine, and has turned out so I can cut it in slices.
I’m not too worried about the lack of authenticity because I know “dulce de manzana” is popular in Spain too! Just had some on a manchego sandwich (you can get manchego in Tesco now), and it was lovely. Thanks loads for the recipe and advice.
Yes, I love and make both quince jelly and cheese. If you haven’t tried it add a couple of slices of quince to your apple pie. It takes the humble pie to another level. The perfume alone filling the kitchen is heaven. Happy baking.
I’m having difficulty getting my membrillo to set.After simmering the sugar and pulp on the stove for two hours, I put the stiffened gluppy paste to warm in the oven on baking paper lined trays. Even now, after two and half hours of gentle heat (100 degrees)in the oven, the mixture hasn’t properly stiffened and set.
Shall I continue to put in the oven for further gentle heat and hope that as it darkens, it will harden?Any ideas out there on how to harded the mixture? I have not used lemon and reduced the sugar amount.
Hi Anita
I’ve always sampled my membrillo immediately. Once the jar is opened store in the fridge. The unopened jars I store in the larder – darkish and dry – and they last for at least a couple of years.
Hi
I have just made my first few jars of jelly and membrillo from your recipes. How long do they need to be stored for before you can eat them??
Thanks
ANita
Hello,
I have got all the juice ready to make quince jelly and saw fro this post I can make membrillo from the pulp. However i have lots of pips in it, would it still work?
Hi Anouska
You need to press the pulp through a sieve or a mouli before making the membrillo. Then it would work.
love your site. have a tree so loaded with quinces
how can they be stored without cooking. until reading today stupidly threw the pulp away after making jelly woops!!!
Hi Kathy
If you pick the fruit they can be stored for a few weeks in a cool place – individually wrapped in newspaper. If they are windfalls they will be bruised even if they look perfect and will deteriorate within days but they can be chopped and frozen for preserving later.
Beryl –
I don’t think quince paste/cheese is meant to go in jars, or any air-tight container. I would recommend keeping it between baking parchment or similar in a cardboard box – I use old shoe boxes – in a dry, preferably cool, cupboard.
And I agree with other posts that only about 60% sugar is necessary. The recipe I use, adapted from Elisabeth Luard’s European Peasant Cookery, is as follows:
QUINCE PASTE
————
Best to make a fair quantity – several kilos if you have enough quinces and a large enough jam pan – as the exercise is fairly time-consuming and messy.
(1) Cut up the quinces roughly, discarding only bad bits, stalks and (optionally) pips. Add a very little water (around 10% by weight) and cook until soft. [Ideally, use a dish with a tight lid that will go on a flame and in the oven; start over a flame, and once boiling transfer to a pre-heated oven at gas mark 4 for about 45 minutes.]
When cooked, put through a mouli sieve.
The resulting quince puree keeps well in the freezer, and can be used to make other recipes, (e.g., with sugar syrup and lemon juice
to make quince sorbet).
(2) Weigh the quince puree and put with 60% of its weight in sugar in a jam pan. Simmer for 30 minutes with constant stirring.
Simmer gently – you must keep stirring, and if it boils too fiercely it will tend to splatter like a volcano, so it may be wise to take precautions (ideally, hold a splatter guard over the pan and put newspaper around nearby surfaces and floor.
After the 30 minutes, transfer fairly quickly to shallow tins lined with baking/greaseproof paper. Aim for a uniform thickness of about 2 cm (3/4 of an inch).
(3) Leave somewhere dry, preferably warm (e.g. an airing cupboard), for about a week. As it dries, it will lose about 30% in thickness and weight.
During this time, the paste should be turned several times (e.g. daily). It should not be left too long in contact with metal, so if metal tins are used turn the first time as soon as it is reasonably solid (next morning?). After the first turning, it is easy to keep it between two layers of greaseproof paper on a shelf or board.
(4) Once thoroughly dry it can be cut into small pieces, into squares using a sharp knife, or decorative shapes using biscuit or hors d’oeuvres cutters.
Kept in a cool dry place it will last for many months.
Hi
I’m just making a batch of quince jelly and cheese. I have lots of fruit to spare – I know some of you have trouble getting hold of quince. I live Just west of Oxford so if anyone is local and would like a few pounds of quinces please let me know.