At its core, a compote is simply a fruit cooked or preserved in syrup. We'll use fresh strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice to create this super simple sauce that is perfect for everything from breakfast toast to cupcake filling!
You can make all sorts of different compotes using the same method/recipe as this one. Raspberry, blueberry, or a combination are all great choices. Be creative and use what you have in the house, or what's in season at your local farmers market or grocery store.
We use this recipe all the time for Saturday or Sunday mornings. My kids have become pros at this point and make it without my help. My son Noah was actually the one in the kitchen with me when we did our final round of recipe testing for all our compotes. They were all made until he was happy with them, haha #chefkidproblems
🛒 Ingredient
While you could use a combination of almost any berry this specific recipe will focus on strawberries.
- Fresh Strawberries
- Lemon Juice
- Sugar
- Kosher Salt
- Cornstarch (optional for thickening)
I have 100% made this exact same recipe but swapped out the fruit for blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, or a combination of whatever I have lying around and they have all been amazing.
📖 Instructions
Get started by washing your strawberries, removing the green top, and cutting each one into quarters. In a small pot combined your strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, and a pinch of salt.
Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes string every minute or so. You should start to notice the liquid from the berries starts to cook out!
If you prefer your strawberry compote to be slightly thicker, mix some of the warm strawberry syrup and some cornstarch in a small bowl. Mix well, and then slowly pour back into your strawberry compote mixing continuously.
Serve immediately or store in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
🍽 Serving
I threw together a few ideas below. If you make this recipe and use it uniquely, please share so I can add it to the list! I also included some recipe links below that would pair perfectly.
- Vanilla Ice Cream
- Yogurt & Granola Bowl
- Scones or Biscuits
- Filling for Cupcakes
- Mixed into Vanilla Buttercream
- Pancakes, French Toast, or Waffles
- Cheesecake Topping
These adorable cupcakes were Strawberry Shortcake themed. We added the strawberry compote on top, nested in whipped cream frosting.
🥡 Storing
If you make a large batch or find yourself with some strawberry compote left over, we recommend storing it in an airtight container in the fridge. It should stay fresh for 3-5 days, but if at any point it smells boozy (like wine or beer) it's time to throw it out.
👩🏼🍳 Chef Tip
If you decide last minute you want to thicken your sauce, and just add the cornstarch straight in, it will leave you with little white clumps of cornstarch throughout your sauce. Always premix your cornstarch with water or strawberry syrup before adding it!
📖 Recipe
Strawberry Compote
Equipment
- Small Pot
- Glass Storage Container optional
Ingredients
- 2 Cups Strawberries
- ½ teaspoon Lemon Juice
- 2 tablespoon Sugar
- 1 pinch Kosher Salt
- 2 teaspoon Water - optional
- 2 teaspoon Cornstarch - optional
Instructions
- Start by washing your strawberries, and cutting each one into quarters.
- In a small pot combined your strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.
- If you prefer your strawberry compote to be slightly thicker, mix the water and cornstarch in a small bowl and slowly pour into your strawberry compote mixing continuously.
- Serve immediately or store in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Nutrition
Handy Tools
Want to take your cooking game to the next level? Here's a list of some of the tools I use every time I make this recipe that help make this a breeze!
