Home › Canning and Preserving › Preserved Quinces

Preserved Quinces

Never make the mistake of cooking quinces in syrup before steaming or boiling them tender in clear water, as sugar hardens the uncooked fruit. Rub off the fur with a coarse towel, then peel, core and quarter, dropping the pieces into cold water to prevent discoloration. Save all the good parings and cores in a separate vessel. Put two layers of the quince quarters in a preserving kettle, cover with cold water and cook over a slow fire until the fruit is tender, then skim out and lay on a flat dish. Repeat this process until all the quinces are cooked, saving the water in which they are boiled to be used with the parings, cores and gnarly fruit for jelly. Make a rich syrup, allowing four quarts of the prepared fruit, measured before cooking, to two quarts of sugar and one quart of water.

Put sugar and water in the preserving kettle, stir until the sugar is dissolved, skim well and boil twenty minutes. Pour half the syrup in a second kettle and put some of the fruit in each vessel, as much as can be accommodated without crowding. Simmer gently about half an hour, or until the fruit turns a rich red. Lift out with a silver spoon and drop piece by piece into widemouthed glass cans that have been thoroughly sterilized. Let the syrup boil a little longer, then pour over the fruit until the juice runs down the sides of the can and seal.