A hard, fragrant yellow fruit related to apples and pears, too astringent to eat raw but excellent when cooked into preserves or jellies. The tree produces beautiful pink or white flowers.
From Arabic safarjal, the name for this aromatic fruit prized in Islamic cuisine. The word entered English via Old French coign and Latin cydonium in the 14th century. Arabic cooks developed many of the cooking techniques that make quince palatable, including the first quince preserves.
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