Crisp, melt-in-your-mouth, sweet, tart… not all apples are the same, and—most importantly—they aren’t cooked the same way!
Some hold their shape perfectly in the oven, others quickly become tender, while some are so crisp and juicy that you’d rather just eat them as is.
With apple season in full swing, here’s a quick guide to help you get to know this must-have fruit better: popular varieties, their characteristics, how to choose and store them, and most importantly, which apple to use depending on what you’re in the mood to cook.
In this article
In this article
- The Apple: A Fruit That Has Been Cultivated for Thousands of Years
- Why are there so many varieties of apples?
- Apple Varieties and Their Uses
- Which apple should you choose for a particular recipe?
- Why do apples turn brown once they’re cut?
- How can you make apples last longer?
- Can you freeze apples?
- Some Surprising Facts About Apples
- Ideas for Cooking with Apples
The Apple: A Fruit That Has Been Cultivated for Thousands of Years
The apple we know today has a much longer history than one might think.
The ancestors of the domestic apple tree originated primarily in Central Asia, in a region that partly corresponds to present-day Kazakhstan. Over the centuries, apples spread through trade and human migration, particularly along the ancient trade routes connecting Asia and Europe.
Along the way, apple trees cross-pollinated with various wild species, gradually giving rise to an incredible diversity of apples.
Today, there are thousands of apple varieties around the world, although only a small fraction of them are commonly found in our grocery stores and orchards.
Why are there so many varieties of apples?
Here’s something quite surprising: planting an apple seed usually doesn’t produce an exact copy of the apple it came from.
Apple trees grown from seeds exhibit great genetic diversity. The fruit of the new tree can therefore be very different from the one you ate.
To reproduce a specific variety, such as a McIntosh or a Honeycrisp, growers instead use grafting. A cutting from the desired apple tree is grafted onto another tree to preserve the variety’s characteristics.
Apple Varieties and Their Uses
McIntosh
Tender, fragrant, and slightly tart
The McIntosh is a true classic, especially in Quebec and eastern Canada. Its white flesh is juicy and relatively tender, with a fruity flavor that balances sweetness and tartness well.
Season: mainly September through October
Texture: tender and juicy
Flavor: sweet and slightly tart
Ideal for: compotes, sauces, juices, applesauce, and melt-in-your-mouth desserts.
Since it tends to soften quickly when heated, it’s an excellent choice for recipes where you want the apple to break down and become tender.
For a pie with distinct apple chunks, it’s best to combine it with a firmer variety.
Cortland
Sweet, versatile, and convenient in the kitchen
A cross between McIntosh and Ben Davis, the Cortland has white, tender, and juicy flesh with a slightly tart flavor.
It also has a very practical feature: its flesh tends to brown more slowly than that of many other varieties once cut.
Season: mainly September through October
Texture: tender to semi-firm
Flavor: sweet and slightly tart
Ideal for: pies, crumbles, salads, snacks, and fruit platters.
It’s particularly well-suited for recipes where apple pieces remain visible or when apples need to be cut a little in advance.
Honeycrisp
Very crisp, juicy, and sweet
Its name gives you a good clue! The Honeycrisp is particularly prized for its very crisp texture and high juice content.
Its flavor typically combines a lovely sweetness with a slight tartness, which partly explains why it has become so popular.
Season: mainly from September through fall
Texture: very crisp and juicy
Flavor: sweet with a slight tartness
Perfect for: snacks, salads, fruit platters, and fresh desserts.
It’s the kind of apple you just love to cut into wedges and enjoy as is.
Gala
Mild, fragrant, and sweet
With its mild, sweet flavor and relatively low acidity, the Gala is easy to love and particularly versatile for everyday use.
Season: Harvested starting in late summer and available for several months thanks to storage
Texture: Crunchy
Flavor: Mild and sweet
Perfect for: snacks, lunchboxes, salads, compotes, and desserts.
It works just as well in a lunchbox as it does in a salad or dessert. Its natural sweetness is also a great choice when you want to avoid a flavor that’s too tart.
Granny Smith
Tart, firm, and very crisp
You can’t mistake it for any other apple! With its green skin and distinctly tart flavor, the Granny Smith adds a burst of freshness to recipes.
Its firm flesh also holds up well during cooking.
Season: available for much of the year
Texture: firm and very crisp
Flavor: very tart
Ideal for: pies, crumbles, baking, salads, and savory dishes.
Its tartness creates a lovely contrast in sweeter desserts. It also pairs particularly well with pork, cheeses, nuts, and certain salads.
Ambrosia
Very sweet, juicy, and not very tart
Juicy, crisp, and naturally very sweet, the Ambrosia will particularly appeal to those who prefer less tart apples.
Season: mainly in the fall, then available for several months thanks to storage
Texture: crisp and juicy
Taste: very mild and sweet
Ideal for: eating fresh, snacks, salads, and fruit platters.
Its natural sweetness makes it a perfect apple to enjoy just as it is.
Empire
A nice balance between sweet and tart
The Empire is a cross between the McIntosh and the Red Delicious. It combines fairly firm flesh with a flavor that is both sweet and slightly tart.
Season: fall
Texture: firm and juicy
Flavor: sweet and tart
Ideal for: snacks, salads, desserts, and cooking.
It’s a versatile apple that works just as well fresh as it does cooked.
Spartan
Crisp, aromatic, and slightly tart
The Spartan has white, juicy flesh and a fragrant flavor somewhat reminiscent of the McIntosh.
Season: fall
Texture: crisp
Flavor: sweet, fragrant, and slightly tart
Ideal for: snacks, compotes, desserts, and salads.
It’s especially delicious eaten fresh, but can also be used in a variety of recipes.
Which apple should you choose for a particular recipe?
Technically, any apple can be used in cooking, but the result will vary greatly depending on the apple’s firmness, water content, acidity, and sugar content.
For applesauce or apple butter, opt for an apple that softens easily, such as McIntosh.
For a pie or crumble, choose apples that hold their shape better, such as Cortland or Granny Smith.
For a salad, look for crispness above all else: Honeycrisp, Gala, Ambrosia, or Granny Smith work very well.
To accompany a savory dish, a tart apple like Granny Smith creates an interesting contrast with cheese, pork, or richer ingredients.
And when it comes to apples you’re just eating out of hand, it’s all a matter of preference!
Why do apples turn brown once they’re cut?
You cut an apple, and a few minutes later, its flesh is already starting to turn brown?
That’s completely normal.
When the flesh is exposed to air, certain enzymes naturally present in the apple react with oxygen. This is called enzymatic browning.
To slow down this process, you can add a little lemon juice or temporarily soak the pieces in a slightly acidified solution.
And contrary to what you might think, a slightly browned apple isn’t necessarily bad—it’s just changed in appearance.
How can you make apples last longer?
That pretty bowl of apples on the counter is convenient… but it’s not necessarily the best place to store them for a long time. Apples generally keep much better in the cold, ideally in the fruit and vegetable drawer of the refrigerator.
Another thing to note: Apples naturally produce ethylene, a gas that helps fruit ripen. As a result, they can speed up the ripening process of certain fruits and vegetables stored nearby.
And if an apple starts to get very bruised, it’s best to remove it from the bunch to prevent the damage and rot from spreading to the other fruits.
Can you freeze apples?
Yes! If your harvest from the orchard was a little more bountiful than expected, apples can easily be frozen for future recipes.
Peel them if desired, remove the core, and cut them into quarters or slices. A little lemon juice can help prevent browning.
To prevent them from forming a huge block in the freezer, first spread the pieces out on a baking sheet and freeze them separately before transferring them to an airtight container or bag.
Once thawed, their texture will be softer. They’re therefore best suited for compotes, muffins, crumbles, pies, sauces, and other baked goods.
Some Surprising Facts About Apples
An apple floats in water
Yes! An apple is less dense than water, mainly because of the air-filled spaces in its structure. That’s what allows it to float—and what makes the famous game of catching apples with your mouth in a basin of water possible.
Apples continue to change after harvest
An apple doesn’t become completely inactive as soon as it leaves the tree. It continues to breathe and produce ethylene after harvest.
This is one of the main reasons why storage conditions play such an important role in preserving them.
Apples sold in grocery stores may have been harvested several months earlier
Thanks to refrigeration and modern storage techniques, some apples can be stored for several months after harvest.
This explains why many varieties remain available long after the orchard season has ended.
Ideas for Cooking with Apples
Now that you know which variety to choose for your recipes, it’s time to get cooking!
Because apples are certainly not limited to pies and crumbles. They can add crunch to a salad, a touch of sweetness to a savory dish, pair with pork or cheese, be turned into applesauce or apple butter, and, of course, be incorporated into a wide variety of desserts.
From appetizers to desserts, discover our ideas for making the most of the season and cooking with apples in all their forms.
