A tart and fruity blackcurrant compote recipe made with fresh or frozen blackcurrants and flavoured with lemon.
This easy fruit compote is delicious stirred through yogurt or porridge, spooned on pancakes or waffles, or served with vanilla ice cream for an easy dessert, just like my blueberry compote!
Just three ingredients and 15 minutes are needed to make this simple black currant compote.
I make it regularly in the summer months when my blackcurrant bush is laden with currants. It's equally tasty made with frozen blackcurrants, so you can enjoy it all year round!
Compote is also much easier and quicker to make than jam, but still every bit as tasty!
👩🍳 Love blackcurrants? You might also like to try my easy blackcurrant coulis recipe!
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✔️ Why you'll love this recipe!
- Quick and easy to make.
- Use fresh or frozen blackcurrants.
- Freezer friendly.
- Great for breakfast or dessert.
- Much easier to make than jam.
🛒 Ingredient notes
- Blackcurrants - finding fresh blackcurrants can be a bit of a challenge. If you're not lucky enough to have blackcurrant bushes in your garden or allotment, seek out frozen blackcurrants from farm shops (often sold loose in the freezer section) or try large supermarkets.
- Sugar - white caster sugar or granulated sugar.
- Lemon - the juice of half a lemon.
- Water - one tablespoon.
🔪 How to make blackcurrant compote
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
One: Place the blackcurrants, caster sugar, lemon juice, and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil.
Two: Immediately turn down the heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the blackcurrants have broken down.
Three: Allow to cool, before spooning into jars and refrigerating.
💭 Expert tips
- If you're using freshly picked blackcurrants, first remove the stems, then place them in a colander and wash them under cold running water to get rid of dirt and insects. Pat dry with a paper towel.
- There is no need to defrost frozen blackcurrants before beginning the recipe. You will need to add a couple of extra minutes to the cooking time.
- For a chunkier compote, remove the blackcurrants with a slotted spoon halfway through cooking and allow the liquid to reduce by half. Take off the heat, add the currants back in and allow to cool.
- To thicken the compote (remembering it will continue to thicken up on cooling), spoon 1 tablespoon of the blackcurrant juice into a small bowl and whisk with 1 tablespoon of cornflour. Whisk this back into the compote, simmer for 2 minutes, and watch it thicken!
- If storing the compote in glass jars, make sure they have been sterilised first.
🍴 Serving suggestions
You can use fruit compotes in so many ways!
- Stirred through Greek yogurt, porridge, or granola.
- Drizzled on pancakes (check out my what to serve with pancakes post for more topping inspiration), and scones.
- Spooned on ice cream
- Spread on toast, waffles, French toast, and crumpets
- Swirled over or into cheesecake
- Used as a filling for turnovers, cakes, or sweet pastries.
📖 Variations
- Make it extra lemony by adding the zest of half a lemon too.
- Swap the lemon for orange or lime.
- For a tarter, less sweet compote reduce the sugar.
- Try different berries such as raspberries or blueberries, or use a mixture of berries. You might like to check out my mixed berry compote recipe.
🥡 Storage
Store: The blackcurrant compote will keep in the fridge in a sealed jar or airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Reheat: The berry compote can be eaten cold, but if you prefer it warm, just place it in a pan on the hob and gently warm it up for a few minutes, stirring often. You could also use the microwave.
Freeze: The compote can be frozen for up to 3 months.
❓ Frequently asked questions
A compote is a simple chunky fruit sauce made with chopped or whole fresh (or frozen) fruit and, sugar or sweetener, and cooked briefly on the stove. Compote should be chunky and not pureed.
Blackcurrants are high in antioxidants, especially vitamin C, which can help to give your immune system a boost, allowing your body to fight infection and viruses more effectively.
Did you know blackcurrants carry four times the amount of vitamin C as oranges, and double the amount of antioxidants as blueberries!
1. Blackcurrant coulis
2. Blackcurrant muffins
3. Blackcurrant cordial
4. Cassis
5. Cheesecake
5. Compote
6. Jam
7. Blackcurrant cake
8. Blackcurrant crumble
Blackcurrants ripen by the time summer starts, so you can harvest them from your garden between June and August. They are at their best in July!
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Recipe
Easy Blackcurrant Compote
Equipment
Ingredients
- 500 g Blackcurrants fresh or frozen, stems removed
- 85 g Caster Sugar
- ½ Lemon juice only
- 1 tablespoon Water
Instructions
- Place the blackcurrants, caster sugar, lemon juice, and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil.500 g Blackcurrants, 85 g Caster Sugar, ½ Lemon, 1 tablespoon Water
- Immediately turn down the heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the blackcurrants have broken down
- Allow to cool, before spooning into jars and refrigerating. Remember the compote will set more on cooling, so don't worry if it seems a bit runny when you first take it off the hob.
Notes
- If you're using freshly picked blackcurrants, first remove the stems, then place them in a colander and wash them under cold running water to get rid of dirt and insects. Pat dry with a paper towel.
- There is no need to defrost frozen blackcurrants before beginning the recipe. You will need to add a couple of extra minutes to the cooking time.
- For a chunkier compote, remove the blackcurrants with a slotted spoon halfway through cooking and allow the liquid to reduce by half. Take off the heat, add the currants back in and allow to cool.
- To thicken the compote (remembering it will continue to thicken up on cooling), spoon 1 tablespoon of the blackcurrant juice into a small bowl and whisk with 1 tablespoon of cornflour. Whisk this
- Whisk this back into the compote, simmer for 2 minutes, and watch it thicken!
- If storing the compote in glass jars, make sure they have been sterilised first.
Sharon
This delicious and sweet compote is great to have on hand for adding to pancakes or spreading on homemade biscuits.
Jen
I love the combination of tart and fruity!! This is really good!
Vicky
I love how versatile this recipe is. The fact that you can use it for breakfast or dessert makes it great. Plus, love the flavor of the blackcurrants.
Kim
This looks delicious and I love that it can be frozen for up to 3 months! We have a small family, so being able to make things in large batches and freeze them for later is a huge money saver for us.
Stephanie
I've always been afraid to make jam, but I think I can definitely handle this compote! My daughter will put it on everything - pancakes, toast, in a smoothie...the possibilities are endless!