Simple Poached Pears with Quick Chocolate Sauce

Simple Poached Pears are an elegant dessert that’ are so quick and easy to put together. Peeled pears are poached in a spiced brown sugar sauce with hints of vanilla, orange, and cinnamon. The poaching liquid is then simmered until reduced into a tasty syrup and finished with a quick two‑ingredient chocolate sauce.

Why I Adore This Recipe

• Alcohol‑free & family‑friendly — all the flavor of classic poached pears without wine or liqueur.
• Pantry simple — water, brown sugar, vanilla, orange, and cinnamon create a richly flavored syrup.
• Hands‑off cooking — less than 10 minutes of active prep, the saucepan does the rest.
• Make‑ahead friendly — pears actually taste better after chilling in the syrup overnight and served with the syrup and drizzled with a 2 ingredient chocolate sauce.

If you would like to try more classic recipes, try my classic strawberry rhubarb pie and an amazing no-bake lemon cheesecake.

Ingredients and Notes

Choose firm, ripe–but–not–soft Bartlett, Bosc, or Anjou so they hold their shape. Every year a friend sends me a box of fresh pears from Harry & David, perfect for a special holiday dessert.

Selecting Pears for Poaching

How to Choose

1. Look for slight under ripe Pears that yield just a little at the stem end after gentle pressure will soften perfectly in the syrup without turning grainy.
2. Check for even color and unbroken skin. Blemishes tend to darken during poaching.
3. Opt for similar size. Uniform pears cook at the same rate so you don’t end up with one too soft and another still firm.

Quick Takeaways

• Bosc is the most reliable for classic, picture‑perfect poached pears.
• Anjou offers balanced texture and color—especially Red Anjou for visual flair.
• Use Bartlett only if it’s barely ripe; otherwise it can collapse.
• Any firm pear will work in a pinch, but firmer varieties make the process foolproof and allow longer reduction for a richer syrup.

Step-by Step Process Photos

This is a very easy recipe that gives a beautiful presentation, especially for you holiday table.

1. Simmer the poaching liquid, 2. add the pears, remove pears from pan, continue simmering sauce to thicken and then 3. make the chocolate sauce.sauce. Serve drizzled with chocolate.

Recipe Notes

• Uniform cooking: Trim a sliver off the pear bottoms so they stand upright and cook evenly.
• Flavor boosters: Add a strip of orange peel to the syrup for extra fragrance.
• Leftover syrup: Delicious over pancakes, oatmeal, or yogurt.

Serving Suggestions

• Nestle the poached pears over vanilla ice cream or Greek yogurt.
• Sprinkle with toasted almonds or crushed pistachios for some crunch.

How to Store Leftover Poached Pears

• Refrigerate pears in syrup up to 2 days; flavors deepen overnight.
• Reheat gently in the syrup on the stovetop or microwave until just warm.
• Chocolate sauce keeps 1 week refrigerated; rewarm at 50% power in 15‑second bursts.

Poached Pears with Chocolate Sauce

Poached pears are an elegant dessert that's so simple to put together.  The peeled pears are poached until tender in a brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon poaching liquid.  The poaching liquid is then simmered until reduced into a syrup. A,classic holiday dessert in under 1 hour.

 

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Estimate Recipe Cost $9.05/ $2.26 per serving

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Servings: 4 pears

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Calories: 915

Ingredients Directions Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

  

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• 4 cups water
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon orange extract
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 pears peeled and left whole with stem

Chocolate Sauce

• ½ cup heavy cream
• 7 oz. semi-sweet chocolate finely chopped

Step by Step Directions

 

1. Add the water, brown sugar, vanilla extract and ground cinnamon to a saucepan, and place over a medium-high heat. Bring to the boil, before reducing to a low-medium heat.
2. Add the pears to the saucepan and cover. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until pears are tender when pierced with a small sharp knife, but still hold their shape.
3. Remove the pears from the poaching liquid and set aside. Continue simmering the poaching liquid for 10-15 minutes or until reduced into a syrup.
4. While the syrup is simmering, make the chocolate sauce by placing the cream in a microwave safe mixing bowl, and microwave for 30 seconds or until hot but not boiling. Stir through the chopped chocolate, and allow to sit for 2 minutes. Whisk until the chocolate has melted and sauce is smooth.
5. Serve the poached pears with the syrup, and drizzle over the chocolate sauce.

Nutrition

Serving: 1pearCalories: 915kcalCarbohydrates: 162gProtein: 5gFat: 30gCholesterol: 37mgSodium: 58mgFiber: 10gSugar: 143gCalcium: 170mg

Notes

• • Ensure the pears are almost covered by the water, keeping in mind the pears will float and it will be impossible to completely submerge the pears. Add more water if necessary until the pears are covered. The amount of water added could also be reduced for smaller pears
• The amount of time the pears take to poach will depend on the size of the pears. Extend the poaching time for larger pears.
• The pears could be cored and halved before poaching if preferred. Reduce the poaching time to suit.
• Reducing the poaching liquid to a syrup is optional, and this step can be omitted if preferred.

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Cost Breakdown for Poached Pears Recipe:

*Package prices are the lowest everyday prices available at major U.S. retailers in early July 2025; regional sales tax not included. Produce pricing comes from the USDA Specialty Crops National Retail Report.