Simmer Pot Recipes For Fall
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I’ve rounded up five simmer pot recipes for fall. One of the best ways to celebrate the fall season is to simmer scents that remind you of this wonderful season.
Since simmer pots contain no chemicals and are only made up of water and aromas of your choice, they’re a healthy alternative to synthetic fragrances and candles.

What Is A Stove Simmer Pot?
A potpourri simmer pot is a way to make your home smell fragrant for the season. Simmer pots are easy to put together, and the ingredients are inexpensive.
A simmer pot consists of boiling a combination of fruit, herbs, and other spices in water, then reducing it to a low simmer. The scented water then evaporates and brings the featured scent into your home. Keep adding water as necessary over 3-4 hours. Turn the temperature down slightly if the water is on the verge of boiling.
If the temperature is too low and you don’t see bubbles breaking the water’s surface, turn the temperature up slightly. Keep the stove on medium-low heat for a steady simmer.
Once you’ve finished simmering your recipe, you can drain any remaining water using a sieve. If you wish to use the simmer pot ingredients again, allow the ingredients to cool down. Then store them in an airtight box in the refrigerator.
Simmer pots can generally be reused, but not indefinitely. You can reuse the ingredients for a day or two, storing them in the refrigerator between uses. After that, it’s best to discard the old ingredients and start fresh with a new batch.
You can buy a simmer pot, or you could make yours on the stove on low heat. You can also cook your recipe in a slow cooker.
Stovetop Simmer Pots:
Add the fruit, herbs, and spices to a large pot. Next, pour water into the pot and cover the ingredients with enough water that they float. Turn the stovetop heat to low and simmer for two hours. You can simmer for longer too, just check on the water and add more water each hour.
Slow Cooker Simmer Pots:
You can also use a crockpot or slow cooker as a simmer pot. Add the ingredients you wish to use to the slow cooker, then fill with enough water so that the ingredients are floating. Set the slow cooker to high. Once the water starts to simmer, turn the heat to low or keep warm and simmer for up to two hours. If you wish to simmer longer, check on the water and add more each hour.
Pumpkin Spice Potpourri:
This simmer pot recipe includes apple cider, canned pumpkin, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, and apple slices.
Easy Homemade Autumn Simmer Pot:
This Easy Homemade Autumn Simmer Pot recipe uses apples, cinnamon sticks, anise stars, allspice berries, cardamom pods, and cloves.
Stove Top Potpourri For Fall:
This simmering potpourri recipe uses apple peels, orange peels, cinnamon sticks, star anise, bay leaves, whole cloves, and whole allspice.
Cinnamon & Apples Simmering Potpourri:
This simmering pot recipe uses cinnamon and apples.
This simmer pot recipe has apples, an orange, cinnamon sticks, ground nutmeg, and whole allspice.
Citrus Simmering Pot:
This citrus-scented simmer pot recipe uses sliced ginger root and Halo oranges.
More Simmer Pot Recipes for Fall:
Pumpkin Pie Comfort:
- Ingredients: Pumpkin chunks, vanilla extract, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg
- Instructions: Add fresh pumpkin chunks, a teaspoon of vanilla extract, a cinnamon stick, and a sprinkle of nutmeg.
Classic Autumn Spice Stovetop Potpourri:
- Ingredients: 2 to 3 cinnamon sticks, one tablespoon whole cloves, one orange, sliced (leave the peel on for extra fragrance), 2 to 3 star anise pods
- Instructions: Simmer ingredients in a saucepan with water.
Autumnal Simmer Pot:
- Ingredients: Apples, oranges, cinnamon sticks, star anise, pumpkin pie spice, whole cloves
- Instructions: Allow the ingredients to simmer in water to release their natural aromas.
Cozy Fall Simmer Pot:
- Ingredients: Coffee beans, two cinnamon sticks, two orange slices
- Instructions: Fill your pot with coffee beans and cinnamon sticks. Slice two wedges of fresh orange and add to the pot. Fill the pot about 2/3’s full of water. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat. Allow to simmer for 3-4 hours. More water can be added during this time to avoid drying out.
Blueberry Simmer Pot:
- Ingredients: 1 cup blueberries, 1 apple, 1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract, lemon zest, dash of cinnamon and/or nutmeg
- Instructions: Boil water then bring to a simmer and add ingredients. Add more water as the water boils down.
Simmer Pot Tips:
- If you can’t smell your simmer pot, you might have added too much water to the pot. Adding too much water right away dilutes the scent. This makes it take longer to disperse the scent into the room.
- Be resourceful and make simmer pots when you can’t eat apples or oranges fast enough before they start to go bad. These are good candidates for a simmer pot.
- Leave the pot on the stove simmering for upwards of 2-3 hours. Usually at the 3-hour mark it isn’t putting off as much smell.
- You can store simmer pots in the fridge for up to a week and reuse it 2-4 times.






I can almost smell these! Is there anything better than the scents of autumn?
I have never been so tired of Summer weather. Fall can’t get here soon enough. The idea of sipping hot tea or hot chocolate, wrapped in a fuzzy throw, sounds like heaven.
All those recipes sound wonderful! I think I actually might have enough ingredients to make one of those without having to run to the store. My mind can already smell them! Fall is in the air! Thank you for all these great ideas! Also, it’s probably (hopefully) way better for cats. I hear the essential oils are bad for them.
Oh I just love fall! That’s one of my fav seasons!
I just bought a bag of apples yesterday from the store that came from an orchard. Yum!
That means new and old recipes with apples to bake with.
Love all the recipes, thanks for sharing. They are tons better because they are natural. Our daughter and I are going to check out Trader Joe’s fall offerings this week. I got hooked on their scones and I also love Kroger’s scones. Have a good day!
Thank you! Can’t wait to give some a try in my electric fondue pot that never gets any use.
They all sound wonderful ! Thank you for reminding me how easy these are.