This easy spiced plum compote recipe is a simple and delicious way to make use of a glut of seasonal fruit. Enjoy it for breakfast with yogurt, for brunch on waffles or French toast, or a tempting dessert. Serve it hot or cold.
Plum compote
This delicious plum compote recipe is easy to make and so flexible to use. Lightly spiced and lightly stewed, these lovely plums are deliciously refreshing and go so well with so many dishes. There are only four ingredients and the cooking is mostly hands-off.
See also
- Roasted plums, a richer way to cook plums that is a great way to make use of underripe fruit.
- If you have whole fruit in good condition, try these easy stewed plums with a delicious touch of cinnamon.
- Easy plum jam is a great way to enjoy a glut of fruit for longer.
- For another great plum preserve, try Plum and apple jam. It sets so easily!
Keep it in the fridge if you are trying to get more fruit into your diet and you will find that you naturally start to add it to yogurt and creamy puddings. Deliciously refreshing served cold, it makes a lovely breakfast or a light dessert served with cream or ice cream.
Alternatively, you can warm it to serve over pancakes, with ice cream or custard.
What is the difference between stewed plums and compote?
Compôte, (a French word for ‘mixture’) originally referred to poached whole or half fruits in sugar. Today we use it in English to talk about fruit that has been broken down a bit further, cooked in a sugar syrup until it is half way to becoming a sauce.
For me, stewed plums are whole (or at least start out that way), and compote is used when the fruit is broken up or perhaps even becoming a purée.
This lightly spiced plum compote recipe is great for using up a glut of plums when some of them may be imperfect. It’s ideal for windfalls, because you do not need whole fruit.
Why make plum compote
- easy to make and easy to eat
- delicious and refreshing
- get more fruit into your diet
- the easiest breakfasts and desserts
Plum compote ingredients
- Plums – any variety, use what you have
- Sugar – I prefer golden caster sugar but a golden sugar with larger crystals will work, as will ordinary granulated sugar.
- Spices – I used a couple of whole cardamom pods and a little bit of star anise (don’t use a whole one, as they are too strong). If you prefer, you can also pick from vanilla, cinnamon and cloves.
- Lemon – I used lemon juice but a squeeze or orange would also work well.
Types of plums
Plums come in quite a variety of size, with different coloured skins and flesh according to the variety. Some grow red, like the classic Victoria plum, some are dusky blue and purple like Marjorie’s Seedling or Purple Pershore, and mirabelle types can be distinctly yellow. The flesh is generally red or gold.
While there are botanical differences between the types of plum that originate in Europe, Japan and North America, when it comes to eating the real question is whether your plums are dessert plums or cookers.
This doesn’t really matter when you are cooking but you want dessert plums to eat raw. Cookers will be firmer and may be too tart to eat uncooked.
You can use any type of plum in this recipe, whether it’s the Stanley popular in the US, the ever-popular British Victoria, golden Mirabelle de Nancy or pale Japanese Shiro. You will find your choice can alter the colour of your compote a little but it won’t make much difference.
How to make plum compote – step by step
Before you start, read my step-by-step instructions, with photos, hints and tips so you can make this perfectly every time.
Scroll down for the recipe card with quantities and more tips at the bottom of the page.
Step One – Cut plums in half, removing the stones and any parts of the fruit that are bruised. Then cut each half into quarters.
Step Two – Put the plums, sugar, lemon juice, and cardamom in a small pan.
Add a splash of water. You don’t need much, because the sugar will draw out the juice from the fruit. Use too much and the syrup may become watery. You just need enough to prevent burning at the start of cooking.
Step Three – Stir ingredients together and simmer over a low heat, stirring all the time to break the plums up.
Step Four – After about 10 minutes, the plums will have softened and started to break down. Your plum compote is ready.
Serving suggestion
Serve this easy spiced plum compote any time, any place, anywhere! Enjoy a bowlful chilled, at room temperature or warmed through, at breakfast, lunch or dinner.
- Served cold, it is good with yogurt, cream or ice cream.
- A bowl of warm fruit compote is good with ice cream or custard.
- Use it as a topping for porridge, pancakes, waffles, French toast or ice cream. Add a crumble topping for a delicious dessert.
- Cook a little longer to reduce the syrup if you want to use this as a topping for a cheesecake.
Variations
- Vary the spices according to preference – vanilla, cardamon, cloves, cinnamon, and star anise all work well, but don’t be heavy handed. You want a lightly spiced plum compote so that you can still taste the fruit.
- Use a mix of different types of plums or add other stone fruit.
- Add some herbs – try a small sprig of thyme, oregano. Replace with a fresh sprig to serve. Sweet cicely is usually only available if you grow it, but this sweet herb counteracts tartness and will allow you to reduce the quantity of sugar.
- Try different sugars – light golden to dark muscavado, if you prefer a deeper, richer flavour.
- Halve the sugar and add a tbsp of honey or maple syrup for the last 5 minutes of cooking.
- For a special dessert, add a dash of your favourite spirit or liqueur to this spiced plum compote recipe, and serve with creme fraiche.
Storage
Fridge – Cover your plum compote and transfer to an airtight pot in the fridge as soon as it is cold. Store for up to five days. I find it is best at room temperature or gently reheated on a pan on the stove top, but chilled can be refreshing on warmer days.
Freezer – Prepare as for the fridge but ensure that your pot has a good seal. The syrup will not freeze solid, so if you haven’t sealed it properly, it will leak all over your freezer the moment you tip the container. Your plum compote will stay delicious for at least three months.
Hints and tips
- Check the plums and remove any bruised parts that may deteriorate before the rest of the fruit.
- Cook your plums gently, especially at the start. It can be easy to burn them before the syrup forms.
- Don’t be too heavy-handed with spices or herbs. You want to taste the fruit.
FAQs
Plum compote keeps well for about 5 days in the fridge and for several months in the freezer.
No, this process won’t extend the life of your fruit significantly, though if you think your plums are running out of time raw, you can make them last a few extra days.
No. A coulis is a smooth, strained fruit sauce, so although this compote starts in much the same way, you would have to reduce it, mash it and strain it to a puree before you would call it a coulis.
More recipes with plums
- Spiced pears and plums in port – warm, rich flavours in the lightest of desserts
- Spiced plum chutney with apple – a rich chutney that is delicious with cold cuts and cheese
- Golden syrup and plum cake – comfort food at its best
- Easy plum jam – classic and simple
- Easy plum and apple jam – easy to make and sets like a dream
Simple Plum Compote
Ingredients
- 250 g plums (about 12 or 13 fruits, more if you have damaged windfalls, much fewer if you have large supermarket fruit)
- 3 tbsp (0.2 cups) golden caster sugar
- spices (I used 2 cardomom pods and a small piece of star anise.)
- juice of half a lemon (or orange juice)
Instructions
- Wash, stone and chop the plums, removing any bits of bruised or damaged fruit.250 g plums
- Put all the ingredients in a pan. Add a splash of cold water and stir well.3 tbsp golden caster sugar, spices, juice of half a lemon
- Heat gently. Cook for about ten minutes.
- When the plums are tender and have started to break down in a rich syrup, your compote is ready.
Notes
Storage
Fridge – Cover your plum compote and transfer to an airtight pot in the fridge as soon as it is cold. Store for up to five days. I find it is best at room temperature or gently reheated on a pan on the stove top, but chilled can be refreshing on warmer days. Freezer – Prepare as for the fridge but ensure that your pot has a good seal. The syrup will not freeze solid, so if you haven’t sealed it properly, it will leak all over your freezer the moment you tip the container. Your plum compote will stay delicious for at least three months.Hints and tips
- Check the plums and remove any bruised parts that may deteriorate before the rest of the fruit.
- Cook your plums gently, especially at the start. It can be easy to burn them before the syrup forms.
- Don’t be too heavy-handed with spices or herbs. You want to taste the fruit.
Frank Milner
Been cooking plum compote for ages used 3 star anise, and a cinomom stick. Never know when to take them out!!
Will have a go at your receipt.
Frank
Helen Best-Shaw
Hope you enjoy it!