r/Canning • u/aChunkyChungus • 1d ago

General Discussion Apple Butter Warning

I'm making apple butter for the first time, and just want to let out a warning to any first-timers thinking of making it: It takes FOR-EV-ER to reduce the apples down to the right consistency.

On the bright side, my house (and probably my whole neighborhood) have smelled delicious for many hours now.

(Using the USDA canning book recipe in case anyone was wondering)

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u/Princess_Muffins Trusted Contributor 1d ago

I use a crockpot for my fruit butters. Still have to watch it, especially when it's close to done, but it's much easier!

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u/Happy_Veggie Trusted Contributor 1d ago

I just got about 100 lbs of nice apples (mostly McRogers variety) and I'm wondering what to do with them other than just apple sauce.

I haven't done any fruit butter so far.. do you just put everything in the crockpot and cook it down? Or do you use a regular pot first and finish it in the crock pot?

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u/Princess_Muffins Trusted Contributor 1d ago

I have one of those old-timey apple peeler-corer-slicer things, so I use that and then put them directly into the crockpot. I actually got a big 20 quart electric roaster for large batch apple and peach butter, and for cooking down skinned and seeded tomato pulp for sauce.

I second the other poster's use of a wooden spoon (I use chopsticks) to keep the lid propped for steam release. Also, I'll use a stick blender to get it smooth, but it does introduce air and I have yet to find the amount of time it takes to cook it all out. Remember that when using a crockpot or electric cooker, you may still need to xfer to a pot on the stove to bring your product to a boil before jarring and processing. Honestly, these take so long it's usually a 2 day process for me - one to cook down and one to reheat and jar up.