Four ingredients are all you need to make this delicious, versatile strawberry compote. Grab some strawberries, a bit of sugar, cornstarch, and fresh lemon and you will have the most delicious fruity sauce perfect on top of ice cream, cake, pancakes, cheesecake, trifle, and more!
Whether you like your strawberry compote on top of breakfast like oatmeal, waffles, French toast, or on desserts like Pound Cake it has to be thick, juicy, and sweet. This strawberry compote recipe fits the bill.
Just a few ingredients and a little time are all you need to make this delicious strawberry sauce.
Check out my cherry sauce, apple compote, blueberry compote or mixed berry compote recipe if you're looking for blueberries, blackberries or raspberries too!
Let's get to the recipe
Ingredients
For this sauce you'll need:
- Fresh Lemon Zest and Fresh Lemon Juice. The lemon juice will help create the cornstarch slurry which thickens the sauce. You want to make sure to cook the sauce so it cooks out the taste of the cornstarch. I like using lemon rather than water because it brightens the sauce and gives it a deeper flavor profile.
- Cornstarch. This ingredient is what thickens the sauce. In order for it to properly incorporate the dry cornstarch powder needs to be mixed with a cold liquid to create a slurry.
- Strawberries. You'll want to hull the berries and cut them in half or cut the extra large ones into thirds or quarter them. You can use frozen berries but because some can be so large, and are harder to cut down I prefer to use fresh strawberries.
- Granulated Sugar. The sugar will help create the syrupy part of the sauce, if your berries are extra sour then you could add another tablespoon or two of sugar to create a sweeter sauce.
I have used lime juice and orange juice instead of lemon juice and had great results. Some like to add a sprinkle of a spice like ground cinnamon but I prefer to keep it all about the berries!
You gotta check out my key lime curd recipe next!
For ingredient quantities please reference the recipe card below. On the recipe card there is a button for US or M (Metric) measurements.
Instructions
In a small bowl whisk together the cornstarch and lemon juice to create a slurry.
Hull the strawberries and slice them, if your strawberries are on the smaller side slice them in half, if you have some really big strawberries you can quarter them.
In a saucepan pot add all ingredients and cook over medium-low heat for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently.
You want to bring the mixture to a slight boil, then reduce the heat and continue to stir.
The berries will naturally sort of break down, I use a potato masher to slightly mash some of the berries to create more of a sauce.
The longer you cook it the more reduced it will become.
Let cool completely then store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to one week.
Don't miss my fresh strawberry pie, cheesecake stuffed strawberries or strawberry frosting.
How to freeze
Once the compote is completely cooled you can pour it into a freezer-safe container and freeze it for up to 1 month. Souper Cubes would be a perfect way to freeze these into small portions they only take out the amount you want each time.
Recipes to use with strawberry compote
This strawberry cheesecake ice cream calls for a batch of this strawberry compote!
My no-bake cheesecake recipe is the perfect base for this strawberry compote recipe.
This whipped cream cake is a great way to use up leftover whipped cream and it would be a perfect accompaniment to this compote!
While I usually use bonne manman jam for my scones this compote would be a great option too for my English Scones.
You will also love this sauce swirled into some yogurt!
★★★★★ Please let me know if you make this recipe by leaving a star rating and comment below!
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PrintRecipe Card
Strawberry Compote
Four ingredients are all you need to make this delicious, versatile strawberry compote. Grab some strawberries, a bit of sugar, and fresh lemon and you will have the most delicious fruity sauce perfect on top of ice cream, cake, pancakes, cheesecake, trifle, and more!
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2 Cups 1x
Ingredients
- Zest and Juice from One Small Lemon
- 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
- 1lb (16oz) Strawberries
- ¼ cup Granulated Sugar
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk together the cornstarch and lemon juice to create a slurry.
- In a large pot add all ingredients and cook over low-medium heat for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently. You want to bring the mixture to a slight boil then, reduce the heat and continue to stir. The berries will naturally sort of break down, I use a potato masher to slightly mash some of the berries to create more of a sauce. The longer you cook it the more reduced it will become.
- Let cool completely then store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to one week.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 5
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Cook
- Cuisine: American
Meredith says
This on top of my oatmeal or my yogurt in the mornings has been dreamy! This is a staple for me!