Quince Jelly

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4.80 from 24 votes

Quince jelly is fragrant and so delicious. Thanks to high levels of pectin in the fruit,, it is one of the easiest jellies to make so ideal for a beginner preserver.

Servings: tbsp

Author: Helen Best-Shaw

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Ingredients

1.7 kg quinces
2 litres water
granulated sugar - see recipe for quantities

Instructions

Prepare the quinces - Wash the quinces, and cut into chunks - about 1" / 2.5cm cubes. No need to peel or core.
1.7 kg quinces
Cook the quince - Add the quinces to a saucepan and just cover with water, and heat until simmering. Cook for about 30 minutes until the fruit is soft. Lightly mash with a potato masher to break the fruit up.
2 litres water
Strain - Spoon or ladle the cooked quinces into a jelly bag suspended over a bowl. Allow to drip for at least 12 hours or overnight.
For the clearest results, don't poke or squeeze the jelly bag.
The strained liquid will be pale pink, cloudy and slightly thick. It will clarify once you cook the jelly.
Weigh the sugar - Weigh the juice. Weigh out 75% of the weight of juice in granulated sugar.
granulated sugar
Dissolve the sugar - Add the juice and sugar to a large saucepan, stock pot of preserving pan (which should be less than half full). Heat gently, stirring all the time, to dissolve the sugar.
Meanwhile place the jam jars in a roasting tray in an oven set to 140°C / 275°F / GM 1 to sterilize them.
Boil the jelly - Once the sugar has dissolved turn the heat up high to until the jelly is at a rolling boil.
Test for set - Start to test for setting either by temperature (when jelly reaches 105°C), or by the wrinkle or flake method. See notes below
Pot the jelly - Once the jelly has reached the setting point, remove from the heat. Fill the jam jars: I spoon the jelly into a glass jug, and then pour into the jars using a jam funnel. Seal the hot jars with their lids.
As the jelly cools, the lids will pop showing that a seal has formed.

Notes

Don’t overcook the fruit, or the flavour of the final jelly will be lost. Just simmer the fruit gently.
Never poke or squeeze the bag, as this will result in cloudy jelly.
If your quince needs cooking but you don’t have time to make the jelly right away, then cook and strain and either keep the juice in the fridge for a few days, or freeze and make the jelly later.
For best results, tap the jam jar as you fill it, so that any air bubbles come out. Put the lids back on the jars while still hot, to help seal them tight.
For safety I always stand the jars in a tray when filling them in case one cracks. This has only happened to me once, but having a tray to catch and hot jelly is far safer.
Use plain white sugar – granulated or caster. You don’t need preserving sugar as there is plenty of pectin in quinces.

Setting Point

First, the wrinkle test. Drop a teaspoonful of the liquid onto one of your chilled plates and leave it for a few seconds. Then push the drop of jelly with your fingernail to see whether the jelly wrinkles. If it does, your quince jelly will set and can be transferred into the hot jars and sealed.

Second, temperature. The other ways to test are to watch the temperature of the boiling liquid. Keep boiling until it reaches 105°C – the setting point. You can use a jam thermometer for this; they’re easily available and not expensive. Use another method as well as temperature.

Third, the flake test. Take a spoonful of jelly from the saucepan, and turn the spoon vertical so that the jelly runs out of the spoon. When it starts to thicken, a flake of jelly will hang from the edge of the spoon, showing that you have reached the setting point.

• Please note that the nutrition information provided below is approximate and meant as a guideline only.

• Unless stated otherwise cup conversions have been made with an online tool. For accuracy please check with your favoured conversion tool. We recommend buying inexpensive digital kitchen scales.