compote

Everyday

1. Fruit cooked slowly with sugar and a little water until soft, served cold or warm as a dessert or with yoghurt, porridge or pancakes. tree →
2. (Ukraine, Russia, Poland) A sweet drink made by boiling fruit or berries in water with sugar, often kept in big jars for winter. tree →
3. (rare) A bowl on a stem for serving fruit or sweets, also called a compotier. tree →

In the lessons

In cooking lessons and at home compote is an easy recipe: chop fruit, add sugar, simmer. In families from Ukraine and Eastern Europe «compote» (kompot) is a common homemade drink children have with dinner. In science it shows how heat softens fruit. Phrases: «apple compote», «berry compote», «rhubarb compote», «a jar of compote».

Examples

• We had pancakes with warm berry compote. tree →
• Grandma made apple compote with cinnamon. tree →
• Simmer the plums with sugar to make a compote. tree →
• My Ukrainian friend's mum gave us a glass of cherry compote to drink. tree →
• Compote is nice on top of porridge or yoghurt. tree →
• The shelves in the cellar were full of jars of compote for winter. tree →

Note

Said «KOM-poht» (the final e is silent). It comes from French. Countable (two compotes) for kinds or servings, uncountable for the food in general. Not the same as «compost» (rotting garden waste); be careful, the words look alike. Jam is thicker and has more sugar than compote.