Pear sauce?

Is there a reason we see applesauce everywhere and not pear sauce? A texture issue perhaps? If anyone has made it, would love to know. I have a glut of pears and I was thinking of using the same technique as my applesauce: peel and slice them into chunks, add a ton of cinnamon and a few cups of water, and simmer them in a Dutch oven until they break down into sauce.

Posie (Harwood) Brien
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8 Comments

AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames October 16, 2014
Roast them with ginger, cinnamon and a touch of unfiltered apple cider, with perhaps a small soft apple or two. If the peels are soft, as they are on Bartletts, don't bother paring, though you might want to buzz in a food processor after roasting to break down any large pieces of peel. Add dairy butter to roasting pan for extra goodness. ;o)
 
ktr
ktr October 16, 2014
I just made pear butter a few days ago and it is basically just pear sauce boiled down. I cored them and threw them in the blender with the peels on and blended them until they were smooth. I would have called it pear sauce at that point. Because they are so juicy and soft you shouldn't need to add any water.
 
sfmiller
sfmiller October 16, 2014
Once you've got the pear sauce, you can take it a step further and make pear butter. Exact same method as apple butter. I prefer it with light spicing and some acidity from lemon juice or cider vinegar, but that's a matter of taste.
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames October 16, 2014
sfmiller, to your point: I agree! I always add some tart, recently pressed local apple cider to my pear butter. ;o)
 
Cav
Cav October 16, 2014
I've used a pear sauce with green pepper corns for a duck dish.
Made it the same way I do an applesauce: Small dice on the fruit, into sauce pan with a touch of the fat from the protein, a splash of water and use brown sugar and salt to season to taste.

If you're going to use it as a sweet sauce, I'd cook it plain without any spicing. When reheating the sauce for use, or when portioning it out, I'd spice and sweeten to taste rather than risk the pears getting overpowered.
 

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HalfPint
HalfPint October 16, 2014
Sounds like a plan. Though, pear has such a sweet and delicate flavor, why would you want to swamp it with a ton of cinnamon. Maybe a touch of cinnamon or some ginger?
 
Posie (.
Posie (. October 16, 2014
Noted! I really like the idea of ginger. Maybe even some cardamom?
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames October 16, 2014
Just a touch of cinnamon; fresh ginger (more delicate when cooked than dried); cardamom maybe, but from many years of experimenting with spices in jams preserves and butters, I've learned that cardamom, like cloves and star anise, can be very "loud", so I might infuse a bit of country cider with it to add, but not put it in directly. Or perhaps put a few crushed pods in but remove them the minute I took the pan out of the oven. Also, cardamom can be a "divider" ingredient, so I would not put it in a batch for canning. ;o)
 
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