Saffron Poached Pears | Jamie Oliver

Everyone in my family loves poached pears. We have the saffron poached pear here and there is a similar marsala-baked pear that got top billings. One thing we have a difficult time agreeing is whether to peel the skin or not. For once, I’m ambivalent. You seldom hear me say this: I’ll be happy with either one: peel on or naked. Obviously, no peeling is less work and the pear holds its shape better. But you might need a firmer rather than a riper pear for the effort. Additionally, the pear with the peel creates another layer of flavor and texture. I’ll let the readers decide how they want to proceed.

First, select several perfect and whole pears. How do you determine the point of perfect ripeness? The Bosc pears I used for poaching here don’t change color at all as they ripen. The signal is a slight give to a gentle pressure at the neck. A ripe pear will often smell sweet at the blossom end when you sniff it.

Next, prepare the saffron spice syrup with which to cook the pears. The spices include the trio of cardamom, cinnamon and vanilla pod (if you have one, I substitute it with the extract), and saffron for the golden color. Jamie Oliver’s recipe calls for 100 mg or .1 of a gram. Saffron is one of the most expensive and valuable spice, I use a pinch and be done with it. Saffron needs moisture to release its flavor. The best way to extract flavor from saffron is to soak the threads in hot (not boiling) liquid for 5 to 20 minutes.

Then comes the long 2-hour poaching, until the pears are tender. How long it ultimately takes depends on how ripe the pears are. Use a fork to test for tenderness at the two-hour mark. More important, it helps to have the pears fit snugly and stand upright in the poaching vessel. We want the pears to cook evenly, while keeping the pear shape intact.

In the picture, I pour the reduced saffron syrup over the pear and serve it with cream, slightly whipped to thicken. However, no one will turn down a simple dish of vanilla ice cream topped with a perfectly golden saffron poached pear.

Print Recipe

Saffron Poached Pears | Jamie Oliver

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4 medium pears
• 10 cardamom pods
• 320 g caster sugar
• ½ a vanilla pod
• 100 mg saffron
• 1 small stick of cinnamon

Instructions

1

Peel the pears, leaving the stalk intact. Crush the cardamom pods.

2

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan with 1 litre of water, bring to a simmer and gently poach the pears for about 2 hours or until tender. Remove from the heat, allow to cool, then refrigerate overnight to steep.

3

Before serving, remove the pears and set aside to bring to room temperature.

4

Boil the syrup until reduced to a sticky glaze, about 250ml. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of saffron glaze over the pears, then serve with ice cream or cream.

Notes

https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/fruit-recipes/saffron-poached-pears/