This Instant Pot Pear Butter is a tried-and-true fall favorite in my kitchen, packed with warm spices and the natural sweetness of ripe pears. It’s a simple, dependable recipe that I’ve tested many times to get the perfect smooth, rich texture. The best part? You don’t even have to peel the pears! Their skins cook down beautifully and add extra flavor and nutrients. It’s the easiest way to turn those overripe pears into a cozy, homemade spread everyone will love.
When Fall comes around, there's nothing better than sweet fruit butter smeared all over scones or muffins! With the abundance of pears in Autumn, we are often looking for things to do with them.
This pear butter is like a pear applesauce. It's pureed to a jam-like consistency, so it spreads beautifully on your favorite baked goods.
This pressure cooker pear butter is sweet and the perfect treat! Serve homemade pear butter with Instant Pot apple butter together at your Fall brunch!
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Why You'll Love This Pear Butter Recipe
- It's quick to make! If you were to make pear butter on the stove top, it requires a long cooking time at a low heat. This recipe is great because the high pressure of the Instant Pot cooks the pears in less than 30 minutes.
- It's a great way to use fresh pears! We love going apple picking and pear picking in the Fall since we live in New England. There are so many fruit trees in the area with fresh apples and fresh pears, and this is a great use when you have an abundance of pears that you picked fresh off the trees!
- The Instant Pot does the hard work! I love making jam in the Instant Pot! Strawberry jam, peach jam, and blueberry jam are so easy to make in the Instant Pot!
What Is Pear Butter?
Pear butter is a smooth, thick fruit spread made by slowly cooking down ripe pears with warm spices and a little sweetener until it becomes rich, caramel-colored, and silky. It’s similar to applesauce but cooked longer for a deeper flavor and buttery texture, without any actual butter!
Ingredients You'll Need for Instant Pot Pear Butter
- Pears. This recipe uses 3 pounds of pears. No need to peel the pears either. The high pressure of the Instant Pot will make the peel disintegrate.
- Maple Syrup. Good quality maple syrup is so delicious and so much better than the store-bought fake stuff. When you have the option, get the real stuff!
- Ground spices. Pumpkin spice and cinnamon are used in this recipe.
- Lemon juice. The juice of one lemon, which comes out to about 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
- Water. ½ cup of water is all you need. This will prevent the burn notice from triggering on your Instant Pot.
Best Pears for Instant Pot Pear Butter
My favorite pears to use are bosc pears. I like using bosc pears because they are naturally sweet, and they are readily available at my local grocery store most of the year.
Asian pears and bartlett pears would also be delicious in this pear butter. I recommend tasting the pears and seeing how sweet they are. If you find that the pears are tart like a granny smith apple, add an extra ¼ cup of maple syrup or ¼ cup of added sugar.
Equipment To Gather
How To Make Instant Pot Pear Butter Recipe
Wash the pears and cut the pears into large chunks.
Add the chunks of pears to the Instant Pot. Juice the lemon into the Instant Pot and add the maple syrup, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and water.
Close the lid of the Instant Pot and make sure the knob on the lid is set to the sealing position.
Set the cooking time to 15 minutes on high pressure. After 15 minutes, allow the Instant Pot to natural release for 10 minutes. Quick release any remaining pressure.
With an immersion blender, blend the pears until it is the consistency of applesauce. Allow the pear butter to cool slightly before serving.
Pro Tip! If you don't have an immersion blender, use a potato masher, a food processor, or an individual hand blender to puree the pear mixture.
Tips and Tricks
- The Instant Pot will take 5-10 minutes to come up to pressure before it starts cooking.
- Brown sugar, white sugar, or honey can be used instead of maple syrup.
- Make this an apple pear butter! Add a chopped golden delicious apple to the Instant Pot and follow the recipe as is. This will create a pear applesauce that everyone will love!
How To Serve Pear Butter
- With sourdough scones
- Smeared on an Instant Pot bagel with cream cheese
- Alongside sourdough zucchini bread
- On top of your morning oatmeal
- With butter on a vanilla muffin
- As a sauce on top of ice cream
How to Store Instant Pot Pear Butter
Once your Instant Pot pear butter has cooled, store it in an airtight container or glass jar in the fridge. It’ll stay fresh for about 2 weeks (if it lasts that long!). For longer storage, you can freeze it in small jars or freezer-safe containers, just leave a little room at the top since it’ll expand as it freezes. When you’re ready to enjoy it again, let it thaw in the fridge overnight. It’s perfect for spreading on toast, stirring into yogurt, or even spooning over pancakes!
Pear Butter Recipe FAQs
Canning pear butter in a hot water bath is a process I am not an expert in, therefore I would not recommend canning this pear butter. Check out the Ball website if you are interested in recipes that are safe for canning.
If you get the burn notice of your Instant Pot, there was not enough water at the bottom of the Instant Pot. Add ½ cup of water to the bottom of the Instant Pot is you are concerned that the burn notice will show.
My favorite way to store this pear butter is in glass jars in the refrigerator. You can also freeze this pear butter in freezer safe containers. The pear butter will stay in the freezer for 3-4 months. To defrost, place the container in the refrigerator until it is thawed.
If your pear butter isn’t as thick as you’d like, just keep simmering it uncovered on the sauté setting (or on the stove) to let more liquid evaporate. Stir often to prevent sticking. You can also blend it again for an extra-smooth texture, just be patient, because the longer it cooks, the thicker and more flavorful it gets!
Other Recipes To Try
Did you love this Instant Pot Pear Butter Recipe? If you did, don't forget to tag me on social media on Instagram or Facebook and share this recipe on Pinterest! Thanks for sharing this journey with me and enjoy these delicious recipes!
📖 Recipe
The Easiest Instant Pot Pear Butter Recipe
Equipment
- Immersion Blender
Ingredients
- 3 lb Pears Bosc or Bartlett are best
- ⅓ cup Maple Syrup
- 1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 Lemon Juiced
- ½ cup Water
Instructions
- Wash the pears and cut the pears off the core and into large chunks. You do not have to peel the pears.
- Add the chunks of pears to the Instant Pot. Add the rest of the ingredients into the Instant Pot on top of the pears. Mix to combine the ingredients.
- Close the lid of the Instant Pot and make sure the knob on the lid is set to the sealing position.
- Set the cooking time to 15 minutes on high pressure. After 15 minutes, allow the Instant Pot to natural release for 10 minutes. Quick release any remaining pressure.
- With an immersion blender, blend the pears until it is the consistency of applesauce. Allow the pear butter to cool slightly before serving.
Notes
- The mixture will continue to thicken as it cools. If you would like the pear butter thicker, set the Instant Pot to "saute" and cook for 5 minutes or until your desired consistency is reached.
- The Instant Pot will take 5-10 minutes to come up to pressure before it will start cooking.
- If you don't have an immersion blender, use a potato masher, a food processor, or an individual hand blender to puree the pear mixture.
Carol says
Used Asian pears and it was wonderful! Be sure to peel, core, chop and then weigh pears!
DeeCee says
Great flavors
Very easy to make
Love the simplicity of the recipe and process.
Family is looking forward to more.
This will be amazing on a charcuterie board!
Vivian says
Hi! I want to make your recipe. If I sub out the maple syrup for brown sugar… how much brown sugar should I add?
lynnswayoflife says
You can use equal amounts of maple syrup and brown sugar. Let me know how it goes! 🙂
Melissa says
I bought pears from our local FFA this year and they all ripened at once, so I decided to try pear butter for the first time. This recipe is amazing...so easy and so tasty! I did make my own mixture of nutmeg, allspice, and ginger to replace the pumpkin spice called for since I don't keep that on hand. Thanks for sharing! (My family and friends that I gifted it to thank you too! 😁)
Kate says
Good afternoon, I would love to make this recipe tomorrow and I am not clear on if you have to core the pears????
lynnswayoflife says
Hi! Yes, you cut the pears and remove the core. You can either use a device like an apple corer or you can cut the pieces of pear right off the core with a sharp knife. I hope you enjoy!