Poached Pears Recipe with Amaretto

What Are Poached Pears?

Poaching means cooking something gently in liquid that barely bubbles. The pears soften slowly and take on the flavor of whatever they’re cooking in. Red wine is the version most people know. Here, it’s amaretto, the Italian almond liqueur, with vanilla, star anise, and cinnamon.

Poached pears work warm or cold. Serve them whole, or slice them onto puff pastry for these poached pear and Nutella pastries. They’re also lovely baked into a frangipane tart.

Ingredients for Poached Pears

Three short lists: the pears, the amaretto poaching liquid, and the chocolate for the curls. Amounts are in the recipe card at the bottom.

Pears for Poaching

• Bosc pears: the best pears for poaching, because their dense flesh stays firm even when ripe. Anjou works if it’s ripe but still firm; Bartlett and Comice turn soft and fall apart in the pot.

Amaretto Poaching Liquid

• Water: thins the sugar and liqueur into a light syrup. You need enough to cover the pears.
• Sugar: white or brown. Sugar in the syrup helps the pears hold their shape, and brown sugar gives them a deeper golden color.
• Lemon juice: I squeeze a fresh lemon. The acid slows browning on the peeled pears and keeps the syrup from tasting flat.
• Amaretto: the almond flavor in every bite. Grand Marnier, apricot liqueur, or peach liqueur work too.
• Vanilla extract: pure vanilla rounds out the almond.
• Star anise and a cinnamon stick: both optional. Whole spices keep the syrup clear, while ground spice clouds it and settles on the pears.

Chocolate Curls

• Dark chocolate bar: use a thick bar, since chips are too small to shave. Any dark chocolate you like to eat will work.

How to Make Poached Pears

There are three parts: the syrup, the pears, and the chocolate curls. You can make the curls while the pears soak.

How to Make the Amaretto Poaching Liquid

Pick a pot where the pears fit standing up, snug in one layer. A tall saucepan or an oval Dutch oven works well.

1. Boil the syrup – in a large pot, stir together the water, sugar, lemon juice, amaretto, vanilla, star anise, and cinnamon stick, and bring it to a boil over medium heat.
   
   Can I make these without the amaretto?

   Yes. Replace the amaretto with more water and add a little almond extract for the almond flavor. Recipe card Note 2 has the swap.

How to Poach Pears

Peel the pears while the syrup heats up.

1. Peel the pears – peel them whole with a Y-peeler, leaving the stems on. If you like, core them from the bottom and slice a thin piece off the base so they stand. Peel them just before they go in the pot so they don’t brown.
   
   How do I core a whole pear?

   Dig the core out through the base with a melon baller or a teaspoon. The pear keeps its shape and its stem, and nobody can tell from the outside.

   

2. Add a parchment lid – lower the pears into the syrup and press a circle of parchment paper with a small hole in the middle right onto the surface. It keeps the tops under the syrup, so they poach evenly and don’t brown.
   
   How do I cut parchment to fit the pot?

   Fold a square of parchment in half, then keep folding it into a narrow triangle. Hold the point over the center of the pot, trim the wide end where it meets the edge, and snip off the tip for the steam hole. Unfold it, and you have a circle that fits.
3. Simmer until tender – keep the syrup at a gentle simmer for 10 to 30 minutes, until a paring knife slides into the thickest part of a pear with no resistance. Start checking at 10 minutes. The outside turns slightly see-through when they’re close.
   
   Why does the timing vary so much?

   It depends on the pear. Ripe pears can be ready in 10 minutes, very firm ones take closer to 30, and halves cook faster than whole pears. Go by the knife, not the timer.
   Why are my pears falling apart?

   They were too ripe or cooked too long. Take them out of the syrup as soon as the knife slides in, and use firm pears next time.

   

4. Soak in the syrup – take the pot off the heat and leave the pears in the syrup for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the fridge for the most flavor.

How to Make Chocolate Curls and Serve Poached Pears

Make the curls while the pears soak. Reducing the syrup into a glaze is optional.

1. Warm the chocolate bar – microwave it in 2- to 3-second bursts, about 15 seconds in all, until it’s just a little warmer than room temperature and barely warm to the touch.
2. Shave the curls – hold the bar with a paper towel so your hand doesn’t melt it, and run the Y-peeler along its edge.
   
   Why is my chocolate breaking into shards?

   It’s still too cold. Give it a few more seconds in the microwave. If it smears on the peeler instead of curling, it went too warm, so let it sit on the counter for a minute.

   

3. Reduce the syrup (optional) – lift the pears out, strain out the spices, and simmer the syrup until it has reduced by half and lightly coats a spoon. Watch it near the end, because it thickens fast and keeps thickening as it cools.
4. Top and serve – set the pears in shallow bowls, spoon some syrup or the reduced glaze over them, and scatter the chocolate curls on top.
   
   Should I serve them warm or cold?

   Either one. Cold from the fridge they’re a little firmer, so let them sit out a while if you want the chill off. To serve them warm, heat them gently in their syrup over low heat.

Marina’s Pro Tips for theBest Poached Pears

These keep your pears smooth, golden, and full of flavor.

• Keep the pears under the syrup. A parchment lid holds them down. Any part that pokes out browns and cooks unevenly, so turn a floating pear over halfway through.
• Simmer the pears, never boil them. A hard boil knocks the pears into each other, and the outside turns mushy before the center is tender.
• Poach the pears a day ahead. A night in the syrup flavors them right to the core.
• Save the leftover syrup. Pour it over ice with a splash of water for a cold drink.

How to Serve Poached Pears

Chocolate curls and a spoonful of syrup are all these need. Here’s how else I like them.

• Vanilla ice cream: a warm pear next to a cold scoop. Add warm ganache and you have poire belle Hélène, the French classic.
• Chocolate sauce: this glossy chocolate ganache, spooned over while it’s still warm.
• Amaretti cookies: crush a few of my amaretti cookies over the top for crunch.
• Whipped cream: lightly sweetened, with a drizzle of the reduced syrup.
• Breakfast: slice one over yogurt, granola, or a bowl of pressure cooker oatmeal.

Answers to the most common poached pear questions.

More Pear Recipes to Try

Baked Pears

Pear halves baked in butter and brown sugar until they caramelize. →

Roasted Pear Pavlova

Whole caramelized pears on a crisp meringue with pear compote. →

Pear Frangipane Tart

Pears baked into almond cream, and a good home for poached pear halves. →

Poached Pear and Nutella Pastries

Puff pastry, Nutella, and a poached pear half on each one. →

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Poached Pears Recipe with Amaretto

5 from 5 votes

Poached pears simmered in an amaretto, vanilla, and cinnamon syrup until spoon-tender, then topped with chocolate curls. Easy, make-ahead, and gluten-free.

Author: Marina | Let the Baking Begin

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: poached pears

Calories: 384 kcal

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes

Servings: 6 pears

Ingredients

Pears for Poaching

• 6 medium Bosc pears Ripe but firm. Or 7 small (Note 1)

Amaretto Poaching Liquid

• 3 cups (720 ml) water
• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar White or brown
• 2 Tbsp (30 ml) lemon juice Freshly squeezed. Up to 3 Tbsp for a tarter syrup
• 1 cup (240 ml) Amaretto liqueur Or Grand Marnier, apricot, or peach liqueur (Note 2)
• 2 Tbsp (30 ml) vanilla extract
• 1 star anise Optional
• 1 cinnamon stick Optional

Chocolate Curls

• 1 dark chocolate bar

Equipment: The pans and tools I use are in my Amazon shop.

Instructions

How to Make the Amaretto Poaching Liquid

1. Boil the syrup. In a large pot where the pears fit standing up in one snug layer, stir together 3 cups water, 1 cup granulated sugar, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 cup Amaretto liqueur, 2 Tbsp vanilla extract, 1 star anise, and 1 cinnamon stick. Bring it to a boil over medium heat. No alcohol? See Note 2.

How to Poach Pears

1. Peel the pears. While the syrup heats, peel 6 medium Bosc pears whole with a Y-peeler, leaving the stems on. If you like, core them from the bottom with a melon baller and slice a thin piece off the base so they stand. Peel each one right before it goes in (Note 1).

2. Add a parchment lid. Lower the pears into the syrup. Cut a circle of parchment paper slightly smaller than the pot, snip a small hole in the middle, and press it onto the surface so the tops stay under the syrup (Note 3).

3. Simmer until tender. Keep it at a gentle simmer, never a hard boil, for 10 to 30 minutes, until a paring knife slides into the thickest part with no resistance and the edges look slightly see-through. Start checking at 10 minutes; halves cook faster (Note 4).

4. Soak. Take the pot off the heat and leave the pears in the syrup for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the fridge for the most flavor.

How to Make Chocolate Curls and Serve Poached Pears

1. Warm the chocolate. Microwave 1 dark chocolate bar in 2- to 3-second bursts, about 15 seconds in all, until it is barely warm to the touch.

2. Shave the curls. Hold the bar with a paper towel and run a Y-peeler along its edge. If it breaks into shards, warm it a few seconds more.

3. Reduce the syrup (optional). Lift the pears out, strain out the spices, and simmer the syrup until it has reduced by half and lightly coats a spoon. It thickens fast near the end and more as it cools.

4. Top and serve. Set the pears in shallow bowls, spoon some syrup or the reduced glaze over them, and scatter the curls on top. Serve cold, or warm the pears in their syrup over low heat first.

Recipe Notes

1. Pears: Bosc holds its shape best. Anjou works if it is ripe but still firm; Bartlett and Comice fall apart. Peeled pears brown fast, so peel each one right before it goes in the pot.

2. Alcohol-free: simmering does not cook off all the alcohol. For an alcohol-free version, replace the amaretto with 1 cup more water and add 1 tsp almond extract.

3. Parchment lid: fold a square of parchment into a narrow triangle, hold the point over the center of the pot, and trim the wide end at the edge. Snip off the tip for the steam hole. If a pear still floats above the syrup, turn it over halfway through.

4. Pear halves: for a tart, peel, halve, and core the pears before poaching. Halves cook faster, so start checking early.

5. Leftover syrup: pour it over ice with a splash of water for a cold drink.

6. Make ahead: poach the pears up to 5 days ahead and keep them in their syrup in the fridge. Shave the curls ahead too and keep them covered somewhere cool.

7. Storage: up to 5 days in the fridge, covered with their syrup. Freezing is not recommended; the pears turn soft and watery.

8. Simmer, never boil: a hard boil knocks the pears together and turns the outside mushy before the center is tender.

Nutrition Facts

Poached Pears Recipe with Amaretto

Amount Per Serving (1 pear)

Calories 384

% Daily Value*

Sodium 12mg1%

Potassium 234mg7%

Carbohydrates 74g25%

Fiber 5g21%

Sugar 64g71%

Vitamin A 45IU1%

Vitamin C 9.6mg12%

Calcium 20mg2%

Iron 0.4mg2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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I first shared these amaretto poached pears in 2014. In 2026, I added tips for each step, make-ahead and storage notes, an alcohol-free option, help choosing the best pears, and metric measurements in the recipe card.