This easy, no-sugar-added pear sauce is a great way to use up leftover pears. Plus, there’s no peeling necessary!
If you like applesauce, then you’ll love this easy pressure cooker pear sauce.
Ingredients
- Fresh pears
- Fresh orange or lemon juice
- Vanilla extract
- Cinnamon (optional)
Top tips
The pressure cooker helps make this recipe come together quickly. But there are a few things you need to do to make sure it works.
Don’t peel the pears. Seed the pears and remove the stems. The peel will add a richer color and help the pear sauce to thicken naturally – no pectin needed. Plus the peel offers a great perk – fiber!
Cut pears into equally-sized chunks. This is important for even cooking.
Taste the pear sauce before adding sugar. If you add honey or maple syrup, do so after the sauce is cooked. If your pears are ripe and sweet, you can skip the added sugars.
Consider the juiciness of your pears before adding water. There’s this idea that all instant pot recipes require at least a cup of water to cook the food. This is not necessarily the case for this recipe. Because the fresh pears will release their liquid pretty quickly, in testing, I didn’t see a need for extra water or juice. So, unless your pears are excessively dry, you probably won’t need extra.
Once all of the ingredients are loaded in the Instant Pot, close the lid and cook just 5 minutes before doing a natural release.
After a natural release, the pears will still have a chunky shape. At this point, you can use a potato masher to crush the pears into a thick paste or use an immersion blender (stick blender) for a silky smooth puree.
I used the immersion blender. And stored the finished pear sauce in glass jars.
Can I use the slow cooker?
Yes. Simply swap pears for apples in my Chunky Slow Cooker Applesauce recipe. Put the pears and cinnamon in a slow cooker. Cook on high 3-4 hours. Go the shorter time for firmer sauce, longer for a softer texture.
Make this recipe your own
Add cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, or any other warm spices to the sauce. I added a touch of honey to mine because the pears were not super sweet. Only add the honey after the sauce is cooked – once you have a chance to taste the final cooked recipe.
Best pears for sauce
Most pears will work for this recipe. To cut down on added sugar (honey, white sugar, etc.), use the sweetest pears you can find.
Try ripe and fragrant Anjou, Concorde, or Bartlett Pears. Comice pears would be really delicious but I generally eat these raw because they are so juicy and delicious fresh.
I might avoid Bosc pears for this recipe because they tend to be a bit more grainy and less sweet.
REMEMBER: Pears are in season during the cooler months in the US. You can also use them up in my Canned Cinnamon Pears.
Ways to enjoy pear sauce
- Grab a spoon. Eat it straight as a snack or as a fruity side dish.
- Swirl pear sauce into oatmeal and sprinkle with chopped almonds.
- Swap pear sauce for syrup on your waffles or French toast.
- Top cottage cheese or Greek yogurt with pear sauce and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
- Top chicken or pork with pear sauce for a sweet and savory entree.
- Add flavor and moisture to muffins.
Looking for a traditional applesauce recipe? Be sure to check out my step-by-step recipe sharing how to can your own applesauce! It’s very easy and a great way to use up fresh apples.
Instant Pot Pear Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 pounds seeded pears, skin on (I used Anjou)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Wash, seed, and slice the pears into large chunks.
- Add all ingredients to the Instant Pot liner. Set the valve to "sealing" and set to manual mode for 5 minutes at high pressure. Allow a natural release. Once the pressure is released, open the top using an oven mitt.
- Using an immersion blender, blend the cooked pears to the desired pureed consistency. Feel free to leave it chunky (by using a potato masher) or make it smooth as shown in the photos. Serve the pear sauce warm or cold – as is with a spoon or use it to top oats!
P Solis
Simple and healthy. Family loved it.
Julie
Straight forward instructions and super easy to follow. Turned out exactly as promised. No extra sugar needed. Decided this would be the perfect recipe to try my new Instant Pot for the very first time. Jars are cooling on the counter as I type this, waiting to go into safely into the fridge and freezer. Thank you for this and I will definitely be back for more.
Sarah
Can I freeze the pears before using them. Our tree only has a few ripe at a time?
Marisa
Great question. I haven’t tried it with frozen pears but I think it would work. Be sure to seed and cut the pears before freezing. And note that you may need to cook the sauce longer for it to thicken.
SaraAnne
Yes yes yes!!! Chop, deseed, and freeze those pears! Absolutely you can then make pear butter or pear sauce after that.
Judy Sadler
Easy and delicious! But–I noticed you did not call for any water or any liquid besides the lemon juice and vanilla. I had learned that one always has to add water to the instant pot recipes in order for pressure to build up. I checked 2 other recipes and they both called for water (one said 1 cup and the other 1/4 cup so I went with 1/2). I shouldn’t have added any as the sauce is too runny, but still delicious. I used fresh red pears from a neighbor’s tree and they are so so sweet and juicy (which would have been sufficient for liquid).
You may want to mention that the addition of water is not necessary in this recipe.
Marisa
Yes. The pear varieties I recommend for this recipe release enough water. So no need for any extra liquid in this case. To remedy a runny sauce, you can always cook it a little longer just be sure to constantly stir and watch so it doesn’t thicken too quickly.
Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Clare
Great! Used my Vitamix to puree after cooking instant pot. Will save this recipe. Used about 2 T of maple syrup for sweetening a less sweet variety of pear.
karen
I followed everything as is but used orange as I didn’t have lemon. Turned out great! I was mentally ready in getting a burn notice but nope, the recipe worked perfectly without water. Thank you!
Marisa
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the note!
SaraAnne
Whoaaaaaa! How can a recipe that is this easy be this delicious!?! I actually used my stove top (wasn’t home with my instant pot) and lime instead of lemon juice (what I had on hand). I used an immersion blender and the texture and consistency is just perfect. This needed no sugar at all. The vanilla added a perfect touch but not overbearing, and do not skip the ever important salt. Leaving the skins on really did help naturally thicken the pear sauce. I’m just in awe. Thanks for a great recipe! I’ve already shared it with our friends who have the pear trees I got my pears from. No seriously. It’s just that good. It’s delicious!
Marisa
So happy to hear you made it work on the stovetop and enjoyed it! It’s a fall fave for sure.
Victoria Clark
Have made this recipe twice and just love it. This is one of my keeper recipes.
Victoria Clark
I love the taste and ease of this recipe. Can I make a peach sauce following this same recipe except using peaches? Thank you
Jen Hoffman
Love this simple recipe! I have a pear tree and was looking for a way to use up all of my pears. This was perfect and so delicious!