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 and 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 appearing 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 it as a light dessert, mixed with Greek yogurt, or on top of homemade drop biscuits for breakfast.
Pair it with heartier fish or meat dishes, such as 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 for using either fresh stalks or frozen rhubarb and transforming it into one of my favorite compote recipes.
- 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 no sugar (Vegan, Paleo-friendly options).
- Adjustable: To change things up, add a fruit flavor, such as fresh strawberries, apples, pears, apricots, fresh herbs, or spices.
Ingredients & Notes
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
- Rhubarb: You can use fresh or frozen rhubarb. There is 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 using raw stalks. Extras can be used to make these Rhubarb Muffins or Rhubarb Smoothies.
- 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, Paleo, and vegan-friendly.
- Grapefruit Juice: You need some liquid to make stewed rhubarb sauce. Grapefruit juice is my top choice because it has an 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. Maple syrup, coconut sugar, brown sugar, Stevia powder, or Monkfruit sweetener (sugar-free) are great options. You control the amount of sugar in this rhubarb compote recipe.
How To Make It
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. The recipe card has more variations.
Step One (Picture 1 above) - Peel and chop rhubarb into small pieces.
Step Two (Picture 2 above) - Melt butter in a large saucepan. Add rhubarb, sweetener of choice, and grapefruit juice.
Step Three (Picture 3 above) - Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Then, reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer for a few minutes, allowing the rhubarb to break down.
Step Four (Picture 4 above) - Maintain a gentle simmer over low heat until the rhubarb has almost completely broken down.
Helpful 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 gradually increase it until you reach your desired level. You might prefer a less sweet compote.
- The compote becomes thicker once cooled and refrigerated.
Flavor Variations
Pairing rhubarb with different fruits and herbs creates unique flavors.
Here are a few lovely suggestions for making it more of a fruit sauce (see the recipe card for the instructions).
- Combine with strawberries. These red fruits are a great match for rhubarb, and everyone loves strawberry rhubarb compote. For more complexity, add torn mint or chocolate mint (optional).
- 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, so the sauce might need less of a sweetener.
- Combine with pears: Pears' sweet and vinous character complements rhubarb's tartness, while cloves and maple syrup add warmth and richness to this fruit compote.
- 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. Each chosen fruit adds its unique qualities to the rhubarb compote.
Add Some Complexity
- Add a touch of warm brandy, rum, or semi-sweet wine to the Rhubarb pear sauce. It's a delicious way to add a lovely complex flavor.
- Or try a liqueur such as Cointreau, as in this Instant Pot Apple Butter Recipe for the Rhubarb Apricot sauce.
- Other options: Orange peel, vanilla extract, fresh ginger, lemon zest, and cinnamon stick are all good additions to your rhubarb compote. Experiment with what you have on hand and love.
How To Use Rhubarb Compote
Here are a few of my favorite suggestions and different ways to use (leftover) rhubarb compote:
- Spoon some over my gluten-free drop biscuits, overnight oats, or peanut butter sandwiches.
- 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 plain 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.
Depending on your preference, you can make a compote chunky or silkier in texture.
Mid-spring or early summer is the prime season for these fleshy, reddish stalks, which can be found in local grocery stores or farmers' markets.
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, depending on your location.
The watery, crispy vegetable stalks have a robust 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 freeze it in smaller portions to enjoy long after the rhubarb season (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 an excellent job of getting the bitterness out of rhubarb.
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📖 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.3 tablespoons real butter or coconut butter/oil
- Add the rhubarb and chosen fruits (apples, pears, apricots, or strawberries) and coat them with your choice of sweetener (maple syrup, coconut sugar, Stevia, or monkfruit sweetener).2 pounds unpeeled rhubarb (920 grams), ½ cup Maple syrup (170 ml)
- Stir in the water or grapefruit juice.1 cup fresh grapefruit juice (about ¼ liter)
- 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 to ½ cup Monkfruit sweetener, or Stevia to taste. 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. Orange juice is a great alternative.
- 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,