Your Guide to the Best Apples for Baking and Cooking

Not all apples are created equal. They come in many flavors and textures, and react to heat in different ways. That's why the apples you choose to cook and bake with can make or break your dish. Read on to learn which apples are suited for your recipes.

Comparing Apples to Apples

With so many varieties of apples to choose from — more than 2,500 in the United States alone — no wonder it's challenging to know which apple to use for what kind of recipe. Let's compare some of the most popular commercially available apples to help you sort out which ones are the best apples for apple pie, the best apples for applesauce, the best apples for all-purpose baking, and more.

Braeburn

Braeburns have a sweet-tart flavor, with a texture that remains firm when it's baked. An all-purpose apple, it works well in pies and tarts where you don't want the filling to be overly juicy.

Cortland

Cortlands are juicy and slightly tart, with bright red skin and snowy white flesh. They are a terrific baking apple: Great apples for pies, cobblers, and crisps. When sliced, Cortlands are a excellent for salads and cheese plates, as the flesh doesn't brown and discolor quickly.

Empire

Empires are a cross between McIntosh and Red Delicious apples. Firm-textured and sweet-tart, the Empire is a fine all-purpose apple good for juice, sauce, pies, baking, salads, eating fresh, and drying.

Fuji

Firm, crisp, and juicy, Fuji apples are among the most popular apples for eating fresh, but they're also great for baking, as they hold their shape when they cook.

Gala

A crisp, sweet apple with a mild flavor, Galas have yellow-orange skin with red striping. They're among the best apples for applesauce, salads, eating out-of-hand, and pressing into cider.

Golden Delicious

The Golden Delicious is sweet, with a rich, mellow flavor. It is one of the best all-around cooking apples, as it maintains its shape after baking.

Granny Smith

One of the most popular tart apples, Granny Smiths are crisp and quite sour. They're a good all-purpose cooking apple, and their flavor is enhanced when paired with sweeter, spicier apples in pies and crisps.

Gravenstein

Gravensteins come in red or yellow varieties, with a sweet-tart flavor and firm texture. They're excellent apples for eating fresh as well as baking, cooking down into applesauce, and pressing into cider. They have a very short season and don't keep well, so snap them up when you see them at a farmers' market or farm stand.

Honeycrisp

Developed in Minnesota, Honeycrisps are fantastic eating apples. As the name indicates, they are crisp and juicy, with a honey-sweet and tart flavor. Honeycrisps are also good for baking and applesauce.

Ida Red

A very old variety, Ida Reds have a tangy flavor and a flesh that is sometimes tinted a rosy pink. Ida Red apples make beautiful applesauce: cook the apples with the skins on and strain the sauce to get the best pink color. Ida Reds keep their shape during baking and are also excellent in salads and for freezing.

Jonagold

A blend of Jonathan and Golden Delicious apples, Jonagolds have a tangy-sweet flavor. With a yellow-green base and a blush stripe, is excellent both for eating fresh and for cooking.

Jonathan

Jonathans are quite tart, with a rich, slightly spicy apple flavor. They hold their shape well when baked. They are also good in salads and for applesauce.

Macoun

Sweet and aromatic, Macouns are excellent for snacking, in salads and for sauce. With bright red skin and juicy white flesh, they make an attractive apple on a cheese plate.

McIntosh

A classic bright red apple with green undertones, juicy, crisp McIntoshes tend to break down when cooked. They are delicious eaten out of hand or in sauce, and are best paired with Golden Delicious or other apples in pies and other baked goods.

Mutsu (Crispin)

This large, yellow-green fruit is very juicy and super crisp. It has a sweet, refreshing flavor and is great for fresh eating, salads, freezing, sauce, and baking.

Northern Spy

This late-season apple has a crisp, white, juicy flesh with a sweet-tart flavor. A great storage apple, it's also perfect for baking and juicing.

Winesap

The Winesap is very firm and aromatic, with a spicy bite. A sweet-flavored apple, Winesaps are good in sauces and for baking.

More About Apples

Even though some apples are better suited for certain kinds of recipes than others, you don't have to limit yourself to using just one kind of apple when you're cooking or baking. Many cooks like to use a mixture of apples to get more complex flavors and textures.

If you're buying apples during autumn's apple season at farmers' markets and specialty grocers, you have a better chance of finding regional and heirloom varieties. Be sure to ask the grower how they work in recipes.

How to Store Apples

Though they're at their best when they're freshly picked in autumn, apples that ship and store well are available year-round. When you get them home, store in a dry, cool place. They'll keep best if the individual apples don't touch: It's true, one bad apple spoils the bunch. If you store them in the fridge, keep them away from lettuce and other delicate produce, as the ethylene gas naturally produced by apples causes fruits and vegetables to ripen and/or spoil faster. Read more about how to store apples.

Check out our collection of Apple Recipes.

Related:

• Discover 5 Easy Tips for the best homemade applesauce.
• Get tips for baking the best pies.
• Check out 12 apple desserts that are easier than pie.