Description
Delight in these elegant Red Wine Poached Pears, a classic French dessert featuring ripe pears simmered in a fragrant mixture of red wine, honey, and warm spices. Perfectly tender and infused with citrus and cinnamon notes, these pears are delicious served warm or chilled with a drizzle of syrup and a touch of orange zest.
Ingredients
Scale
Fruits and Citrus
- 2 large oranges, navel or cara cara
- 6 ripe but firm small pears
Poaching Liquid
- 2 cups red wine (such as Pinot Noir)
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 tablespoons raw sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
Instructions
- Prepare Citrus: Zest and juice one orange into a medium bowl. Slice the remaining orange into ¼-inch rounds for poaching.
- Peel and Coat Pears: Using a vegetable peeler, peel the pears whole. Immediately add them to the bowl with the orange juice and toss gently to prevent browning.
- Assemble Poaching Pot: In a non-reactive pot that fits the pears snugly, combine the orange slices, red wine, honey, sugar, cinnamon stick, and ground cardamom.
- Simmer Pears: Bring the liquid to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and add the pears along with the orange juice. Cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes, occasionally turning pears with a wooden spoon until tender when pierced with a skewer.
- Thicken Syrup: Remove pears to a bowl. Continue simmering the poaching liquid until it thickens slightly to a syrup consistency.
- Cool and Serve: Return pears upright into the syrup and let cool to serving temperature. Serve warm or chilled with syrup drizzled on top and garnish with fresh orange zest.
Notes
- Wine poached pears improve in flavor when chilled overnight in the poaching liquid.
- Use small, firm pears like Anjou or Bosc to maintain shape and texture during poaching.
- Serve with whipped cream, mascarpone cheese, or crème fraîche for extra richness.
- Use a non-reactive pot such as enameled to avoid metallic taste from red wine.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pear with syrup
- Calories: 190 kcal
- Sugar: 25 g
- Sodium: 5 mg
- Fat: 0.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0.2 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 50 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
