Making applesauce at home is easier than you think: plus it avoids the added sugar of the store-bought kind! Here’s how to make applesauce.
Apple picking is synonymous with fall here in the Midwest. What would October be without a good trip to the apple orchard? Alex and I recently brought in a harvest of apples from a local orchard with our son Larson. Our family favorite applesauce recipe is so delicious and uses only natural sugar. So of course we had to share this classic fall recipe. Ready to start?
Do you have an instant pot? Try our Quick Instant Pot Applesauce instead!
Important: Use your favorite apple variety!
A very important note before you start: Only use your favorite baked apple variety in this applesauce! The taste of homemade applesauce is 100% dependent on the type of apple used. Alex and I love tart apples, so our favorite varieties are Macintosh, Jonathon, Ida Red, and Honeycrisp. Be sure to use an apple variety that you like the raw taste of! This ensures that you will love the taste of your applesauce.
How to make applesauce: a tutorial
What to do with the kilos of apples? Make applesauce, of course! (And many other apple recipes.) I grew up making applesauce from the tree in our backyard. My family always takes a few days to cook up mountains of apples and freeze the sauce for the winter. Perhaps because it was such a complicated business, I didn’t think applesauce could be easy until I started making it as an adult. Not only is it easy to make, but if you have the right apples, you don’t need any additional ingredients (other than water and salt)! Here’s how to make applesauce.
Or: If you have an Instant Pot, go to Instant Pot Applesauce!
Step 1: Core and dice the apples (no peeling necessary!).
Wash, core and chop 4 pounds of sweet baked apples, leaving skin on if desired (see below for pros and cons). Use your favorite baked apple variety! We recommend tangy sweet varieties like Macintosh, Jonathon, Ida Red or Honeycrisp.
Should you leave the apple peels for the applesauce? We do! But that depends on your preferences for prep time, equipment, and applesauce color.
- Leave the skin on the apples. Leaving the skins on allows for quick preparation as you don’t have to spend time peeling them. Even better, cooking with apple peels gives applesauce a rosy color! The trade-off is that you have to process (or mix) the food and then strain the skins or use a meat grinder. For us it’s worth it and we leave the skins.
- Peel the apple skins. If you want, you can peel the skin off the apples. It takes longer to peel the apples, but you don’t end up having to process or strain them. You don’t need any special equipment either: you can pound with a potato masher. This method turns the applesauce more yellow-brown.
Step 2: Place the apples in a saucepan with water and boil.
Place the apple pieces in a large saucepan or Dutch oven with ¾ cup water. Add a cinnamon stick and kosher salt. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook until apples are tender, about 30 to 35 minutes. Check the pan several times, stir and mash the apples. When the apples are done, turn off the heat and remove the cinnamon stick.
Step 3: Blend or puree the applesauce (see below).
Once you get into blending or brewing, there are a few options depending on whether you’ve decided to stick with the eardrums and what gear you have!
- Thick applesauce: Mash the apples with a potato masher. If you left the skin on, you can peel the skin off the apples with a fork. But it’s easier to make thick applesauce if you peel the apples first, so we recommend that.
- Creamy apple compote (seen on photos): Run the applesauce through a food processor (or blender) until smooth but still has some texture. Then pass through a sieve to remove the pieces of skin. Another option is to put it through a food grinder, which quickly removes the skin. (It’s my family’s method, but not everyone has a vegetable grinder these days!)
Step 4: Taste.
We were surprised that the apples we used were so sweet that the sauce was perfect with no added sweeteners! It all depends on the type of apple you use, so you can end up adding a bit of maple syrup depending on your taste. However, “au naturel” was perfect for us (and it had nothing to do with the “natural” brands on the market)!
More apple recipes we made? This delicious apple crumble or apple crisp, dried apples and these apple crumble muffins (plus a vegan version).
Use for applesauce: cakes, cookies and more!
It is best to eat your homemade applesauce straight from a bowl. Reheated applesauce is even better. But if you’re fed up with the same thing, there are so many ways to use applesauce! Here are some of our favourites:
This applesauce recipe is…
Vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based and dairy-free.
The description
Making applesauce at home is easier than you think: plus it avoids the added sugar of the store-bought kind! Here’s how to make applesauce.
- 4 delivers sweet baked apples (e.g. Macintosh)
- ¾ cup the water
- 1 Cinnamon stick (or ground cinnamon to flavor at the end)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Maple Syrup (optional – we don’t use it!)
- Prepare apples: Core and cut apples. Leave on the skin (for pink-colored applesauce) or peel the apples if desired (this way it’s easier to prepare applesauce with chunky pieces, see step 3).
- Cook apples: Put the apple pieces with the water in a large saucepan or Dutch oven. Add cinnamon stick and kosher salt. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook until apples are tender, about 30 to 35 minutes. Check the pan several times, stir and mash the apples. When the apples are done, turn off the heat and remove the cinnamon stick.
- To make a big applesaucewho mash the apples with a potato masher. If you left the skins on, use a fork to remove the apple skins (it’s easier to make thick applesauce if you peel the apples first).
- To make a creamy applesauce, use one of two methods: Process the applesauce through a food processor (or blender) until smooth but still has some texture. Then pass through a sieve to remove the pieces of skin. Another option is to put it through a food grinder, which quickly removes the skin.
- The taste: Depending on the type of apples, the applesauce will likely be quite sweet as is. Alternatively, add a dash of maple syrup. If you didn’t use a cinnamon stick, you can add a few pinches of ground cinnamon if you like.
- Category: garnish
- Method: Cook
- Kitchen: American
Keywords: how to make applesauce, homemade applesauce recipe,
Looking for more apple recipes?
If you have a lot of apples, we’re here to help! Here are the best apple recipes we recommend:
Last update: October 2019
