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
Hi
I’ve just found this wonderful site after attempting to make my membrillo from my own quinces this afternoon. I’ve read all the posts and hope that what I’ve done will also work. I normally make jellies from quinces but thought this year I’d try membrillo.
I’ve cooked my mixture and got it a deep colour and quite thick. I wanted to be able to cut it so have put into my dehydrator to dry it further. I’ve just done it and therefore don’t know the results but will try and remember to come back to let you know.
If anyone doesn’t have a quince bush the japanese ones you can buy in the garden centre would be OK, but if you can take a cutting of a quince bush you should get your own in a few years. I once soaked some quince pips until several of them put out little white shoots in the water. I was also able to get a bush this way. But that was a long time ago in a different garden.
Hi Claire’s Boyfriend,
I agree with Mildred, some quinces seem to set more easily than others. This is quite an easy recipe for quince cheese. We have another recipe for damson cheese which is cooked on a much higher heat and is a much faster process but it’s quite easy to let it go over and set too hard https://www.cottagesmallholder.com/?p=45.
Thanks so much for the update.
Hi Mildred,
Spot on. The membrillo, like all jellies and jams will become more solid in time. It’s better to start out with something a little too soft than too hard, as there is no going back from that.
Hi Seahorse,
I’m really pleased that your quince forays were successful and, reading your post on quinces in your blog, it sounds as if you had fun.
What an inspiration to add quinces to your tart tatin, thanks for the tip. Also bottling the syrup to pour over ice cream is a great idea too.
Hi, just to say thanks for such great information on quinces. I have to date made several jars of jelly, oodles of membrillo for Christmas and even poached a few left over ones last night (I like Clare above bought a box from a farmer’s market for a tenner). Highly recommend poaching. Rich ruby red quince halves in an absolutely divine syrup – instantly bottled for pouring over ice cream. On the tarte tatin front…My son and I loved our first tarte tatin so much we just made another, incorporating quince slices which really lifted the flavour – plus they go a delightful orange when nestled in amidst the apples. All lovely recipes and a great way to enjoy winter cooking 🙂
Hello Claire’s Boyfriend. When our Membrillo didn’t set too well, we called it Quince ‘Butter’!! Tastes just as nice and we are not bothered about slices! A dollop out the jar with some nice cheese and crusty bread – yum!
I honestly think the fruit varies, one batch we made set really easily . . . . the next (from a different source) was softer. All delicious though!
Well, it’s taken a LONG time, but my membrillo is finally finished!
I let it blubber and splutter on the hob for a long long time, but I think we must have got rid of too much pectin (into the jelly) as it never really set firmly. I found a clean tea-towel over the top of the pan helped reduce the explosion of pulp onto the hob, splashbacks and any other available surface.
I eventually got a thick gloop I was happy with, so put some into jars for later and poured the rest into oven trays. I started with 2.5kg of pulp, so you can imagine how long it took to process the lot. I used a well-oiled swiss roll tin, and some smaller individual round tins. I “baked” them at a low low temperature for several hours, then turned them out and dried the other side. the final product is very sweet, very thick and slightly caramelised, but still beautifully fragrant. I’m not convinced it’ll stay delicately dusted with granulated sugar; I think the sugar wil dissolve, but I’ve packed it carefully in layers of greaseproof, and will probably re-dredge it before packing it up for gifts.
Next year, I’m going to get my Spanish friend’s granny’s recipe to try… will let you know what happens!
Hi Juanice,
The membrillo is very thick and is sliced. That is why it is best to use straight sided jars. Oiling the jars makes it easier to get the membrillo out of the jars.
Yes, I think that your cooking method would probably work, keep a beady eye on it though during the later stages as it needs to be firm but not solid.
Greetings all-
Have just come upon your site in a Google search for quince recipes and am loving the conversation and information! I’d never heard of membrillo and thought I’d just be making quince jelly- now I plan to try this as well. I’m sure something interesting will come of it. My question is this- I don’t understand the oiling-the-jars bit when preserving the membrillo; can someone please explain the purpose of this? Is it just really sticky? The cooking down part sounds a lot like making apple butter, something I managed this year with good results by slow cooking the apple pulp in the oven and in an electric slow cooker (Crock pot). Do you think this would work as well with the membrillo?
Also love the idea of fresh basil in the quince jelly- unfortunately the first freeze has demolished my basil crop for the year. Next year, perhaps.
Thanks for any help you can give!
Hi Wendi
Thanks for leaving a comment and the link to a great site!
Hi Helen,
We’ve got lots of basil. I’ll try this twist. Thanks.
You might like to try this tip from Greece – let a big handful of fresh basil leaves infuse in the hot quince juice before straining it to make jelly; it gives a really subtle flavour that complements the sweetness.
Hi
Thank you for the detailed method. I’m trying quinces for the first time this year as I planted the bush for the gorgeous red flowers and didn’t expect quite so many large fruit – a lovely bonus.
I found this site really interesting:
www.historicfood.com/Quinces Recipe.htm