Instant Pot Applesauce

Instant Pot Applesauce is so easy! Made with apples, water, lemon juice, and a few optional additional flavors, in under 30 minutes you’ll have tasty applesauce that is WAY better than store-bought.

Applesauce in Instant Pot

This Instant Pot Applesauce is so handy to have in your back pocket. The mouthwatering aroma of the apples and cinnamon is reason enough to make it. But having a batch of applesauce on hand is great for when you want to serve your kids a healthy and nutritious snack that they’ll love.

You can also use pressure cooker applesauce in your baking as a replacement for melted butter or oil as well as a natural sweetener.

Nothing says fall like warm apples and cinnamon which means there is no better time to make applesauce in Instant Pot. With very little time and effort and a few simple ingredients, you’ll never buy store-bought again!

Ingredients for Instant Pot Applesauce

• Apples: Cored and quartered. Can be peeled or not. If you peel your apples you will have a consistency closer to store-bought applesauce, which my kids like. However, keep in mind you will also lose a bit of the vitamins and nutrients (ie. fibre) that the peel provides.
• Water
• Lemon juice: Can also use citric acid. Adding either will help keep your applesauce from browning too much.
• Optional seasonings: Adding a tablespoon of maple syrup as an additional sweetener to your applesauce can help if your apples are sour. As well, adding a tsp of cinnamon can add another layer of flavor. Season to your liking.

How to Make Instant Pot Applesauce

There is a full recipe card below.

• Prep: Peel (or not) the apples. As mentioned above, peeling your apples will give you a similar consistency to store bought. Core and cut the apples into quarters.
• Set Instant Pot: Add the apples to 6 or 8 quart Instant Pot along with water. Close the lid and set pressure release valve to Sealing and press Pressure Cook on High or Manual for 8 minutes.
• Release Instant Pot: Once finished, release the pressure right away – Quick Release. Open the lid and if you find you have a few pieces that still need mashing, go ahead and do that now using a potato masher.
• Add: Once your applesauce is made, stir in lemon juice.
• Optional additions: If you’d like it sweeter add a bit of maple syrup, and season to your taste, along with a sprinkling of cinnamon if you wish.

How to Store, Freeze, and Thaw

Storing: Instant Pot applesauce will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 7 days.

Freezing: You can freeze it, also in an airtight freezer-friendly container, leaving room for expansion for up to 3 months.

Thawing: When ready to thaw, leave it on your counter for approximately 6-8 hours. If you would like to serve it warm, reheat on the stovetop on low until heated through. In any case, stir for even consistency.

Tips and Variations

• No waste: If you have an abundance of apples, use them unripened, a little overripe, and even ones that have sat too long in the fridge (even the ones with worms!).
• Best apples: Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Gala or McIntosh all work well alone or as a combination.
• Blending: An electronic blender, such as a Vitamix, will help eliminate the pieces of skin if you choose not to peel your apples.
• More water: Some of the newer Instant Pots are very sensitive to the “burn” feature. If you notice this is happening, add 1/2 cup more water to the apples.
• Other fruit: Substitute strawberries, pears, or peaches to this recipe or better yet, pick two fruits to make a nice blended fruit sauce.

More Instant Pot Recipes

• Instant Pot yogurt
• Instant Pot steel cut oats
• Instant Pot eggs
• Instant Pot corn on the cob
• Browse 40 healthy Instant Pot recipes.

Instant Pot Applesauce

Print Recipe

Instant Pot Applesauce is so easy! Made with apples, water, lemon juice, and a few optional additional flavors, in under 30 minutes you’ll have tasty applesauce that is WAY better than store bought.

• Author: Olena of ifoodreal.com
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 8 minutes
• Total Time: 28 minutes
• Yield: 4 cups (8 servings) 1x
• Category: Side Dish
• Method: Instant Pot
• Cuisine: Ukrainian

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 3 lbs apples, cored and quartered (peeled or not)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Sweetener and cinnamon, optional

Instructions

1. Peel or do not peel apples – for store bought texture and colour applesauce I recommend to peel. Core and cut apples in quarters.
2. Add to 6 or 8 quart Instant pot along with 1/4 cup water.
3. Close the lid, set pressure release valve to Sealing and press Pressure Cook on High or Manual for 8 minutes.
4. After release pressure right away – called Quick Release.
5. Open the lid. More likely you won’t even have to mash cooked apples – I didn’t. But if you still see chunks, mash with a potato masher.
6. Add lemon juice, stir, taste and season to your taste with sweetener and cinnamon, if necessary.

Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 7 days.

Freeze: Freeze in any containers, bags or jars leaving some room for expansion for up to 3 months. Thaw on counter for 6-8 hours and enjoy!

Notes

• How sweet or sour are your apples, will dictate whether you need a sweetener. I used sour apples and added 1 tbsp maple syrup and 1/2 tsp cinnamon after.
• Lemon juice prevents applesauce from browning too much. Can also use citric acid.
• Peeled apples yield more store bought like applesauce re: texture and colour. That’s what my kids like, so I peeled apples. However, peels contain a lot of nutrients and vitamins.

★ Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating in the comments.

1/2 cup8817.6 g1.7 mg0.3 g0 g0 g23.4 g4.1 g0.4 g0 mg

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