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    Home » Desserts

    Easy Sour Cherry Compote from canned or frozen fruit

    Published: May 20, 2022 · Modified: Mar 9, 2025 by Marita Sinden · 9 Comments

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    a jug of sour cherry sauce for ice cream
    bowl of sour cherry sauce.
    cherry compote

    Homemade cherry compote is quick and easy to make. This cherry dessert sauce is called "Kirschgrütze" or "Heiße Kirschen" in Germany. It is a staple condiment to dumplings, waffles, pancakes, and Kaiserschmarrn. Make this sauce in less than 10 minutes using canned or frozen cherries.

    In Germany, I used canned cherries. They are always on hand. I also use canned morello cherries to make my cherry streusel cake recipe for my family all year round. It is so quick and simple I can make this cherry sauce with my eyes closed.

    Sour Cherry Compote in Germany

    Cherry compote in Germany is called "Kirschgrütze". "Kirschen" is the German word for "cherries". It is so common here, that you can find it ready-made in any supermarket. Grütze is a term in German to describe a dish, with a thick pulpy texture. A related dessert to this is "Rote Grütze" which is a thickened red berry sauce.

    When the sauce is served warm it is referred to as "Heiße Kirschen" (Hot cherries).

    What cherries to use for compote?

    In Germany, the most common type to use is Sauerkirschen (sour cherries). Abroad, you can generally find jars of sour cherries in Polish or Russian shops. They are tarter than black or sweet cherries so are often used for baking and preserving.

    In the US and UK, you can get Morello cherries in jars. But you probably can get away with using frozen sour cherries or even black cherries and water or juice. Aldi USA, Walmart USA and Trader Joe's have jars of them.
    In the UK you can find Morello and sour cherries in Aldi and Lidl during Alpen Week. Asda has frozen Morello Cherries. You can also use the frozen black cherries as a substitute- like the canned black cherries in light syrup.

    I also found some options on Amazon (affiliate links):

    Sour Cherries

    Image of USA Sour Cherries

    USA Sour Cherries

    Buy Now →
    Image of UK Sour Cherries

    UK Sour Cherries

    Buy Now →

    (affiliate link)

    Substitutes for Sour cherries

    You can substitute sour cherries for sweet or black cherries. They taste is a little sweeter, so you might want to use less sugar but the texture will be the same. They are easier to find than sour cherries, and any larger supermarket should have a bag of frozen cherries available.

    Recipe Ingredients

    for exact quantities please jump to the printable recipe card.

    • pitted sour cherries (fresh, canned, or frozen - see above for ).
    • sugar
    • vanilla extract (affiliate link)
    • water or juice from the jar
    • corn starch/cornflour - to

    How to make Cherry Compote

    ingredients
    draining the cherries
    boiling the cherry juice
    pouring corn starch into cherry juice
    1. Prepare: Drain the jar of cherries and catch the juice.
    2. Fill up the juice with water so you have 2 cups/ 500ml of liquid. If you use frozen cherries use water instead. Remove 6 tablespoons of liquid and mix them with the cornstarch, sugar, and vanilla extract (affiliate link) to a thick paste.
    3. Thickening the Cherry Juice: Place the remaining juice in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Once the liquid is boiling, remove the pot from the heat and stir in your cornstarch paste. Stir continuously with a whisk. Place back onto the heat and boil for another 1-2 minutes. You will see that the liquid will become paste-like.
    4. Assembling the Sauce: Now add in the cherries, warm through and the sauce is ready to serve immediately.

    Recipe Variations

    You can adapt this recipe with any flavor you like. Here are some suggestions.

    • add a dash of cinnamon or ginger.
    • citrus peel gives the compote an interesting flavor. Try the peels of lemon, orange, or lime.
    • give your compote an alcoholic note by adding in some kirschwasser, brandy, amaretto (affiliate link) or even bourbon.
    • add a teaspoon of almond extract (affiliate link) to give rich marzipan-like note.

    Cherry Compote without sugar

    • try replacing the sugar with honey.
    • you can also make the cherry compote without any added sugar. However, you need to be aware that it will not last as long.

    What goes with cherry compote

    German waffles with cherry compote
    German waffles with cherry sauce
    Austrian Torn pancakes
    Kaiserschmarrn with cherry sauce
    A white bowl with a blue rim. In it is German milchreis. Half of the rice is topped with some cherries. Above the bowl is a little dessert cream can with cherries. Next to the bowl is a spoon. The bowl sits on a pink napkin which is placed on a wooden background.
    German Rice Pudding with Cherries
    cherry sauce with ice cream
    Ice Cream and Heiße Kirschen

    You can serve this compote warm or chilled, as a stand-alone dessert and a tart cherry dessert sauce. My children prefer it warm but it is up to preference.

    • it is a popular cherry topping for cheesecake
    • served with pfannkuchen, Milchreis (rice pudding), ice cream, waffles or Kaiserscharrn (Austrian Torn Pancakes)
    • You can use it to fill our sweet dumplings.
    • Simply serve it with yogurt -that is how we use up leftover cherry compote.
    • Have it as a dessert with vanilla sauce. A a simple yet popular German cherry dessert.

    Storage Instructions

    The compote should keep 2-3 days in the fridge. It may even last longer, depending on how much sugar you use. 

    More Dessert Sauce Recipes

    • rhubarb compote
      Simple Rhubarb Compote
    • Apfelmus - German Apple sauce.
      Homemade Apfelmus (German Apple Sauce Recipe)
    • Jar of German Plum Butter (Pflaumemus)
      Easy German Plum Butter - Pflaumenmus
    • German Vanilla Sauce in a Saucier. In the Background there is a bowl of fruits
      Easy German Vanilla Sauce Recipe (Vanillesoße)

    Recipe

    cherry compote

    Easy Sour Cherry Compote from canned or frozen fruit

    Marita
    A delicious cherry sauce which can be prepared in less than 10 minutes. It goes well with well with waffles, pancakes, cheesecake and yoghurt.
    5 from 6 votes
    I look forward to your feedback. Just click the stars above.
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 5 minutes mins
    Cook Time 5 minutes mins
    Total Time 10 minutes mins
    Course Dessert, Side Dish
    Cuisine German
    Servings 4 people
    Calories 129 kcal

    Ingredients
     
     

    • 500 g cherries use fresh pitted cherries, canned cherries or frozen cherries (defrosted).
    • 500 ml water if you are using canned cherries you can use the juice from the glass.
    • 3 tablespoon cornstarch / cornflour use less if you like it to be more liquidy - use more if you like your compote to be firmer.
    • 4 tablespoon sugar you can use make according to your preference.
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean (affiliate link)
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions
     

    • Drain the jar of cherries and catch the juice.
      500 g cherries
    • Fill up the juice with water so you have 2 cups/ 500ml of liquid. If you use frozen cherries use water instead. Remove 6 tablespoons of liquid and mix them with the cornstarch, sugar, and vanilla extract (affiliate link) (affiliate link) to a thick paste.
      3 tablespoon cornstarch / cornflour, 4 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (affiliate link), 500 ml water
    • Now heat up the cherries at a medium heat to boil. Stir in the cornstarch / cornflour paste and boil for 2 minutes. The cherry sauce should start to thicken.
    • Place the remaining juice in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Once the liquid is boiling, remove the pot from the heat and stir in your cornstarch paste. Stir continuously with a whisk. Place back onto the heat and boil for another 1-2 minutes. You will see that the liquid will become paste-like.
    • Now add in the cherries, warm through and the sauce is ready to serve immediately.

    Video

    Nutrition

    Calories: 129kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 1gFat: 0.3gSaturated Fat: 0.05gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.1gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.1gSodium: 6mgPotassium: 279mgFiber: 3gSugar: 28gVitamin A: 80IUVitamin C: 9mgCalcium: 20mgIron: 0.5mg
    Keyword cheeery sauce, cherry compote, kirschgrütze
    Did you make this recipe? I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Please leave a quick Comment and star rating. I appreciate your feedback.

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    Comments

      5 from 6 votes (3 ratings without comment)

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Carlo says

      June 17, 2023 at 12:15 am

      5 stars
      Is there an easy way to can these, if I make a large batch? Or would the texture suffer from water bathing?

      Reply
      • Marita Sinden says

        February 22, 2024 at 1:35 pm

        Hi Carlo, thanks for your comment. I cannot see a problem with making a large bath of these. Depends on how big a batch you are thinking of?

        Reply
        • Fanica says

          September 22, 2024 at 4:25 am

          5 stars
          Growing up as a little girl in Switzerland there were many cherry trees. We would have milk rice with cherry compote for dinner. I am looking forward to trying your recipe soon. Thank you for sharing. 😊

          Reply
    2. Rosalind says

      June 22, 2022 at 12:45 pm

      Hello Marita,
      I'd love to try your recipe.
      Where should the sugar be incorporated in the recipe?
      I will be using fresh cherries

      Reply
      • Marita says

        July 13, 2022 at 11:49 am

        You cook it with the cherries thanks for pointing it out and I have updated the recipe.

        Reply
    3. Jacky Flay says

      May 29, 2022 at 2:13 pm

      I have not tried this one yet as I am having problems getting hold of
      canned cherries. Lidl UK used to have some in jars but they stopped doing them. Any ideas as to where else I could buy them from?
      By the way, I do love your recipes.

      Reply
      • Marita says

        June 09, 2022 at 10:10 pm

        Hey Jacky,
        thanks for your comment. When I was living in the UK I normally found them in Polish shops. You can also get them frozen cherries at Asda or Tesco which should work well.

        Reply
    4. Malou says

      May 29, 2022 at 9:44 am

      5 stars
      Makes a great pie.😊👍 Thanks for sharing.

      Reply
      • Marita says

        June 08, 2022 at 11:09 am

        Thanks Malou x

        Reply

    Hi, I'm Marita

    Food enthusiast & home cook. I returned to Germany after living in the UK for 20 years. Here at My Dinner, you will find traditional and authentic German recipes with cultural backgrounds.

    More about me>

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