Rhubarb compote is one of the most versatile stewed sauces you can easily make at home.
With its tantalizing sweet-tart flavor, it's delicious as a standalone treat, yet also perfect for jazzing up simple desserts or complementing various sweet and savory dishes.
I'll share my go-to recipe and three variations incorporating fresh fruit, herbs, and spices.
I grew up with rhubarb compote regularly showing up on our kitchen table during rhubarb season.
It is one of my favorite healthy side dishes, and I use it on pretty much anything.
Enjoy as a light dessert or mixed with Greek yogurt or on top of homemade drop biscuits for breakfast.
Or pair it with heartier fish or meat dishes like these easy beef short ribs, instant pot beef stew, or cast-iron roast chicken.
It's that versatile. Let's make it!
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Why You'll Love This Compote Recipe
- Simple: It's a great recipe with fresh or frozen rhubarb.
- Easy & quick: This stewed rhubarb sauce comes together over the stove with little effort.
- Healthy: You can make it with maple syrup, coconut sugar, less sugar content, or without sugar (Vegan, Paleo, and Keto-friendly options).
- Adjustable: Add a fruit flavor like fresh strawberries, apples, pears, or apricots, fresh herbs, or spices to switch things up.
Ingredients & Notes
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Rhubarb: You can use fresh rhubarb or frozen. No need to thaw the vegetable. It may take a few extra minutes to come to a boil, but it will have the same soft texture as fresh rhubarb.
Butter: It adds a delicious richness and a lovely glossy softness to the rhubarb compote. Use coconut butter if you wish to keep it dairy-free and vegan.
Grapefruit Juice: To make stewed rhubarb sauce, you need liquid. Grapefruit juice is my top choice for its acidic flavor that complements rhubarb, but orange juice also works as an alternative.
Sweetener of choice: To balance the tart flavors of rhubarb, add a small amount of sweetener based on taste. Natural sweeteners like maple syrup, coconut sugar, brown sugar, Stevia powder, or Monkfruit sweetener (sugar-free) are great options.
Add-ons
Pairing rhubarb with different fruits and herbs creates unique flavors.
Consider fresh strawberries, apples, pears, apricots, mint, rosemary, or warm cloves as great pairing options to make a delicious rhubarb fruit sauce (see recipes in the recipe card).
How to Make Stewed Rhubarb Sauce Step-by-Step Instructions
See the full recipe with measurements in the recipe card.
The following steps outline how to prepare a simple rhubarb compote without additional fruits or herbs. More variations can be found in the recipe card.
Step 1: Peel and chop rhubarb into small pieces.
Step 2: Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Add rhubarb, sweetener of choice, and grapefruit juice.
Step 3: Let it come to a boil over medium-high heat. Then reduce heat to maintain a steady simmer for a few minutes allowing the rhubarb to break down.
Step 4: Then, maintain a gentle simmer over low heat until the rhubarb has almost broken down completely.
Expert Tips
- Using fresh rhubarb stalks? Cut off their thick ends and always discard their leaves—only the stalks are edible.
- If the skin is tough, peel it off using a sharp paring knife—I always do. Simply slip the knife under the skin at the end of a rhubarb stalk and pull it off in strings.
- Adding herbs or spices? Bring the rhubarb mixture to a boil before adding them.
- If you like a more chunky compote texture, reduce the simmer time to only 10 to 15 minutes or until you get the desired consistency.
- Adjust the sweetness as needed. Start with a small amount and increase it gradually until it reaches your desired level of sweetness. You might prefer a less sweet compote.
Flavor Variations
Here are a few lovely suggestions to make it more of a fruit compote recipe.
- Combine with strawberries. They are a great flavor match. Add torn mint or chocolate mint to the strawberry rhubarb sauce for more complexity.
- Combine with apples. Pair rhubarb with sweet apples for an aromatic rhubarb apple sauce. It's a beautiful classic blend on its own, or pair it with warm cloves. The apples are naturally sweet and might need less maple syrup.
- Combine with pears: The sweet and vinous character of pears complements rhubarb's tartness, while cloves and maple syrup add warmth and richness.
- Combine with sweet apricots. They have floral notes with a silky, almost creamy texture that goes well with Rhubarb and Rosemary.
Note: Spices such as cloves and fresh herbs like Rosemary or mint subtly enhance the flavors of rhubarb. And each chosen fruit adds its unique qualities to rhubarb compote.
Add Some Complexity
- Add a touch of warm brandy, rum, or semi-sweet wine to the Rhubarb Pears sauce. It's a delicious way to add a lovely complex flavor.
- Or try a liqueur such as Cointreau for the Rhubarb Apricots sauce.
How to use Rhubarb Compote
Here are a few of my favorite suggestions:
- Spoon some over buttered toast or overnight oats.
- Serve with Oat Flour Pancakes, Healthy Waffles, or Orange Loaf Cake.
- Top it over vanilla ice cream or nice cream.
- Swirl over chia seed pudding or yogurt, topped with homemade granola.
- Serve rhubarb compote as a side on breakfast and brunch tables.
- Add it as a table spread with cheese and crackers or as part of a grazing board.
- Mash into cooked or baked potatoes and veggies. My favorite!
- Layer it on desserts like this baked chocolate cake or no-bake cheesecake.
- Its sweet and tarty flavors pair well with savory dishes like Turkey Burgers on The Stove, juicy beef burgers, or Bison Meatballs.
Recipe FAQs
I received a lot of questions about Rhubarb Compote, and I've answered them all here.
Compote is a sauce mostly made with a simple fruit(s), either fresh (or frozen), cooked briefly in some juice on the stove until it obtains a thicker or spreadable texture.
Herbs, spices, and sweeteners can be added to enhance the fruit or vegetable flavors.
Unlike jam, compote has a soft, slightly runny texture and is not intended for canning.
It's one of those recipes you make whenever you feel like having some on hand, and you know you will consume it in a fairly short amount of time.
Mid-spring or early summer is the prime season to see these fleshy, reddish stalks in local grocery stores or a local farmers market.
That's when field-grown rhubarb hits the market.
Sometimes I am lucky enough to find Greenhouse-grown Rhubarb anywhere from late winter to early spring, but I think it heavenly depends on your location.
The watery, crispy vegetable stalks have a strong tart taste and are very stringy.
Its flavor is heavenly when balanced with the right amount of sweetness.
As a kid, we used to get plenty of fresh rhubarb from our neighbors' gardens.
I remember peeling the stalks with our hands and immediately dipping them lightly into a pot of brown sugar or honey—highly recommended.
Although you don't have to, I always lightly peel them and remove the tougher strings before using them to make the compote.
Although it is meant to be consumed relatively soon after making it, it will keep up to two weeks in the fridge.
Yes, you can.
You can make a big batch and then freeze it in smaller portions to enjoy long after the rhubarb season is over (up to 6 months).
I like to store them in jars with a lid or airtight container, leaving half an inch of headspace—use freezer jars if you plan to freeze them.
Allow the compote to cool first and settle into the jar before screwing on the lid or closing the container.
Then refrigerate.
Yes. Add sweet fresh fruits and grapefruit or orange juice to add natural sweetness.
A tad of Monkfruit sweetener or Stevia also does a good job of getting the bitterness out of rhubarb.
Recommended
📖 Recipe
Simple Rhubarb Compote Recipe (+ 3 Easy Variations)
Mariska RamondinoIngredients
Rhubarb Sauce
- 3 tablespoons real butter or coconut butter/oil to keep it dairy-free
- 2 pounds unpeeled rhubarb (920 grams) (or about 810 grams peeled and cubed rhubarb)
- 1 cup fresh grapefruit juice (about ¼ liter) juice of two large grapefruits—see note
- ½ cup Maple syrup (170 ml) See note below on sweetener for more options
Rhubarb Compote (with apple or pears)
- 3 tablespoons real butter or coconut butter/oil to keep it dairy-free
- 1 ½ pounds unpeeled rhubarb*
- 2 large yellow apples or ripe pears coarsely chopped
- ½ cup maple syrup (170 ml) See note below on sweeteners for more options
- 1 cup of water (236 ml)
- ¾ teaspoon ground cloves or go up to 1 teaspoon based on taste.
Rhubarb-Apricots Compote
- 3 tablespoons real butter or coconut butter/oil to keep it dairy-free
- 1 ½ pounds unpeeled rhubarb*
- ¾ pound fresh apricots (340 grams) about three to four large apricots or about 2 to 2 ¼ cups of sliced apricots
- ½ cup Maple syrup (170 ml) See note below on sweeteners for more options
- 1 cup of water (236 ml)
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary chopped
Rhubarb-Strawberry Sauce (compote)
- 3 tablespoons real butter or coconut butter/oil to keep it dairy-free
- 1 ½ pounds unpeeled rhubarb*
- 3 cups chopped fresh strawberries (about 13 strawberries) 400 grams
- ½ cup Maple syrup (170 ml) See note below on sweeteners for more options
- 1 cup of water (236 ml)
- 1 tablespoon freshly chopped mint go up to 2 tablespoons if you like a stronger mint flavor
Instructions
Base Directions (FOR ALL):
- In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the rhubarb and chosen fruits (apples, pears, apricots, or strawberries) and coat with your choice of sweetener (maple syrup, coconut sugar, Stevia, or Monkfruit sweetener).
- Stir in the water or grapefruit juice.
- Change the heat to medium-high, cover the pan, and let the rhubarb mixture come to a boil.
- As soon as the liquid has come to a boil, stir in the herb ingredient, if using (cloves for apples or pears; rosemary for apricots, mint for strawberries)
- Then reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer.
- Cook for about 5 minutes to allow the fruits to break down, stirring occasionally. While stirring, break down the bigger pieces of fruit with a wooden spoon.
- Taste and add more sweetener if you prefer a sweeter rhubarb compote.
- Then reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for about 25 to 30 minutes, pot half-covered, or until the rhubarb and other chosen fruits have nearly broken down. Stir occasionally.
- Enjoy immediately or allow to cool slightly before storing the compote in tightly sealed jars.
- Refrigerate for up to two weeks.
Notes
- Use sweetener of choice: use either ½ cup maple syrup, ½ cup coconut or brown sugar, ¼ cup Monkfruit sweetener, or 1 teaspoon Stevia. Adjust to taste by using more or less, if preferred. Always start with a small amount and work up to the suggested amount in the recipes. You might like a less sweet compote, and adding extra sweetener at the end is so easy.
- If you like a more chunky compote texture, reduce the simmer time to only 10 to 15 minutes or until you get the desired consistency.
- For a thicker consistency, use less water or liquid.
- Add a touch of warm brandy, rum, or semi-sweet wine to the Rhubarb-Pears combo or a liqueur such as Cointreau to the Rhubarb-Apricots for more complex flavors.
- Add a chocolate mint instead of spear mint to the rhubarb-strawberry sauce for a touch of natural chocolate flavors.
- Note on grapefruit juice: try 1 cup of fresh lemon juice instead, but you might have to add more sweetener to offset the sourness.
- The nutrition calculation is for Rhubarb Sauce only without the added fruits, herbs, or spices. Included are butter and maple syrup.
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Nutrition (% Daily value)
Disclaimer: This nutritional data is calculated using third party tools and is only intended as a reference.
Carol says
Made the stewed rhubarb (rhubarb compote for my French husband) with apples and my husband, who grew up savoring compote, really enjoyed it. Thank you!
Mariska Ramondino says
Thank you, Carol! This makes me happy, and thank you for the star rating. It's so appreciated,