Apples are Peaking; Choose the Best Preservation Method

Anne Rood and Elizabeth L. Anndress
National Center for Home Food Preservation
August 2003

Did you know that once an apple tree begins to bear fruit, it will do so for a century? Today, there are over 2,500 varieties of apples grown in the United States. Fall weather brings the best fresh apples in bushels.

How can I preserve these apples while they are peaking, you ask? Preserved apple products can add lots of variety to the menu. Apples can be dried, made into applesauce or apple butter, or even made into a delicious apple pear jam. Apples do not make the highest quality canned or frozen slices, but they can be preserved by those methods, also.

Whether you are buying apples at the grocery store, visiting the nearby orchard, or picking apples from your backyard, choose the preservation method that is best for your apple variety. Varieties that are good for freezing include: Golden Delicious, Rome Beauty, Stayman, Jonathan and Granny Smith. Varieties that are good for making applesauce and apple butter include: Golden Delicious, Rome Beauty, Stayman, Jonathan, Gravenstein and McIntosh. Red Delicious apples are best eaten fresh. They do not freeze or cook well.

When selecting your apples, remember that their flavor is best when they are at the peak of maturity. To judge the maturity of apples, don=t go by size. Choose apples that are free of defects, such as bruises, skin breaks and decayed spots. Russeting, or little brown spots on the skin of the apple, does not affect quality. Also look for firm (hard) apples since soft apples tend to have a mealy texture and overripe flavor.

If making applesauce, apple butter or dried slices with your apples, use them as soon as possible after harvest. If any apples must be stored, keep them in a cool, dark place. They should not be tightly covered or wrapped up; a perforated plastic or open paper bag, basket or wooden crate are good choices. If kept in the refrigerator, apples should be placed in the humidifier compartment or in a plastic bag with several holes punched in it (or in a zipper-type vegetable bag). This prevents loss of moisture and crispness. Apples should not be placed close to foods with strong odors since the odor may be picked up by the apples.

Here are some options to prepare for and choose from in preserving your apples:

Making and canning a flavorful applesauce:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_02/applesauce.html

Making and canning a tasty, robust apple butter:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_02/apple_butter.html

Drying apple slices or rings:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/uga/uga_dry_fruit.pdf

Combining the best of fall fruits in tasty pear-apple jam:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_07/pear_apple_jam.html

Making old-fashioned, pretty crabapple jelly:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_07/crabapple_jelly.html

Canning fun, cinnamon-flavored spiced apple rings:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_02/apple_rings_spiced.html

Canning a special, spicy gift quality apple chutney:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_06/apple_chutney.html

And, for all those extra apple slices to save for pies and desserts later in the year, freezing:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/freeze/apple.html

Additional ideas and preservation methods are available from the National Center for Home Food Preservation at the University of Georgia, www.homefoodpreservation.com.

Anne Rood is a student in the Department of Foods and Nutrition, College of Family and Consumer Sciences, The University of Georgia, Athens.

Elizabeth L. Andress is an Extension Food Safety Specialist with the Cooperative Extension Service, Department of Foods and Nutrition, College of Family and Consumer Sciences, The University of Georgia, Athens.

This material is based upon work supported by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under Agreement No. 00-51110-9762.

Document Use:

Permission is granted to reproduce these materials in whole or in part for educational purposes only (not for profit beyond the cost of reproduction) provided the authors and the University of Georgia receive acknowledgment and this notice is included:

Reprinted with permission of the University of Georgia. Anne Rood and Elizabeth L. Andress. 2003. Apples are Peaking; Choose the Best Preservation Method. Athens, GA: The University of Georgia, Cooperative Extension Service.

References to commercials products, services, and information is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by the University of Georgia, U.S. Department of Agriculture and supporting organizations is implied. This information is provided for the educational information and convenience of the reader.

The University of Georgia and Ft. Valley State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and counties of the state cooperating. The Cooperative Extension Service, the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences offers educational programs, assistance and materials to all people without regard to race, color, national origin, age, sex or disability. An Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Organization Committed to a Diverse Work Force.

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