Ingredients
Fruit
- 800 gfruit, fresh or frozen
- sour cherries, plums, apples, rhubarb, strawberries or a mixture
Liquid
- 2 litreswater
Sweetening
- 100to 200 g sugar, to taste
- juice of half a lemon
Optional
- a few cloves
- a small cinnamon stick
- a strip of lemon peel
- a few mint leaves
To serve
- cold in summer, warm in winter, in a jug on the dinner table
Directions
- Use roughly four hundred grams of fruit to a litre of water as a starting point and adjust from there. Kompot should taste clearly of fruit while remaining light and drinkable rather than concentrated like a cordial.
- Bring the water to a boil, add the sugar and stir until it dissolves.
- Simmer soft fruits such as berries and rhubarb for only five to ten minutes. Overcooking soft fruit collapses it completely and turns the drink cloudy and dull, so take it off early.
- Simmer firmer fruits such as apples, plums and dried fruit for twenty to thirty minutes. Now the stones, which are worth thinking about.
- Add sugar gradually and taste as you go, since fruit varies enormously in sweetness. Remember that it tastes sweeter warm than it will cold, so make it slightly sweeter than you want if serving it chilled.
- Add a squeeze of lemon at the end, which sharpens the flavour and helps keep the colour bright. Now take it off the heat and let it stand, covered, for at least half an hour.
- Serve it cold in summer, straight from the fridge, and warm in winter. It keeps three or four days refrigerated and it is also bottled and preserved for the winter.
Technique
- Polish kompot is a drink, unlike the English dessert compote.
- It is meant to be only lightly sweet.
- Kompot z suszu, from dried fruit, is a Christmas Eve tradition.
Substitutions
- Frozen fruit, used straight from frozen.
- Honey in place of sugar, though it changes the flavour.
Variations
- Kompot z suszu, made from dried fruit at Christmas.
- Rhubarb and strawberry, which is a classic spring combination.
- With cinnamon and cloves, for a winter version.
History
Made from summer cherries, apples and berries in Ukrainian households, and jarred for winter.
Frequently asked questions
What is Kompot?
Kompot is a drink from Poland: homey drink of fruit simmered in water, served with dinner. Made from summer cherries, apples and berries in Ukrainian households, and jarred for winter.
How long does Kompot take to make?
Kompot takes 15 min of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes 2 litres. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Kompot?
Yes, within limits. Frozen fruit, used straight from frozen. Honey in place of sugar, though it changes the flavour.
What is the most important thing to get right in Kompot?
Use roughly four hundred grams of fruit to a litre of water as a starting point and adjust from there. Kompot should taste clearly of fruit while remaining light and drinkable rather than concentrated like a cordial.
