For years, I’ve used this method of making applesauce. The past couple of years, I’ve decided to try something new, in an effort to cut down on preparation time and to make the homemade applesauce a bit healthier. Still, I have to say, this process still takes quite a bit of time and effort. After spending several hours making applesauce yesterday and only yielding five quarts – I felt a little bit discouraged. Several of you have mentioned that a Victorio Food Strainer is a worthwhile investment. After looking into this, I have to say that Matt and I are talking seriously about making the purchase. Check out this pretty tool. Does that not look like a life saver when making applesauce and tomato sauce?
Here is a run-down of yesterday’s applesauce process:
We used a mixture of apples, most of which had very dark red skin (Empire, I think). Cooking the apples with skin on created a lovely pink colored applesauce. To start, we gave the apples a good washing. I looked around for the cutest assistant I could find. Since everyone else was busy with math and vocabulary lessons, Malachi got the job.
While he was washing apples (about 18 pounds), I prepped my huge stock pot. I stirred 2 heaping tablespoons of Vitamin C Powder (ascorbic acid to keep the apples from turning brown) into 5 cups of water.
Then, I began to quarter and cut out all yucky parts. These apples were mostly organic (he had sprayed a little bit early on before the fruit set on), so there were some wormy parts to cut out. As I added apples, I stirred them around so that they would be coated with the ascorbic acid/water to keep them from browning.
I continued this process until my pot was full and until my right hand was cramped permanently into a claw-like position.
I then cooked the apples on the stove for about an hour, stirring occasionally, until they became nice and soft.
Next I blended the apples in my Blendtec, careful to dip down to the bottom of the pot to get some of the juices with each scoop. I blend until the peelings are completely pureed along with the flesh of the apples. This makes the applesauce pretty and creamy!
I ended up with smooth, beautiful, delicious applesauce that my family had seconds and thirds of at lunch time.
I then canned four remaining quarts (using this water bath process for 20 minutes) and put them into my pantry.
What do you use to make applesauce? I highly recommend the Blendtec to make this process super easy! (I also love the Blendtec for oodles of other kitchen tasks.)
I have yet to make apple butter or any of the other tasty apple dishes I talked about earlier this week. I do believe that next I will experiment with my crock pot and apple butter. Which means that I really need to make some whole wheat biscuits. Doesn’t apple butter spread on a hot, fresh biscuit sound wonderful?
I have one of those food mills! I highly recommend the investment. Last year we pumped out 56 liters of it in under 3 hours!
Oh wow, that’s great to hear. It sounds like such an efficient way to work!
I use a food grinder like the Victorio – mines a different brand. I have a HUGE stock pot like 22 quarts or something crazy…here’s how I do it. Wash and then cut the apples into quarters. Drop them in the boiling water and let them get soft (15-20 min?) put them in the top of the grinder and start grinding. I did a total of 40 lbs of apples in like 2 hours start to finish maybe – I ended up with 30 pints of applesauce. (Understand the actual canning took longer and I didn’t count it in the time.)
Did you notice the plastic piece that’s clear that sticks out the side. That piece you will Love – mine doesn’t have it and I have to be uber careful not to let the scraps fall into the pan that I’m grinding into. Sometimes I’ve accidentally knocked it under there and it can be a pain.
And one other thing – I wash mine right away after I use it. Then I put a little bit of oil on the mesh screen. The one time I didn’t do that, the screen got a little rusty looking. I used it again and then oiled it and haven’t seen it since then, but I think the oiling of that is critical.
At any rate, I think it’s worth the purchase. I use this for my tomato puree – sauce too. And if you have a dehdryder you can save the “junk” from the tomatoes and make tomatoe powder. I save the apple “junk” and run it through my steam juicer to get the last of the goodies from it and then make apple jelly from it.
Hope that helps!
I have a Victorio strainer that I inherited after my mom passed. I haven’t canned much over the last 20 years, but this year I have been canning alot. I received alot of free apples and would not have made applesauce without the strainer. I also have used it to do all my tomatoes, 3 bushel so far and still about 6 more to go (we planted late, but they keep ripening). It is SO definitely worth the purchase. I have made fruit roll-ups with some of my applesauce. My kids love the strainer. It can make quite a mess, but a little cleanup is easy compared to the time saved. Go for it!!!!
LOVE THE FOOD STRAINER! I do not have one, but I grew up on a farm with an orchard and we used this exact strainer especially for applesauce and tomato sauce. You don’t have to worry about cutting any but rot and worm spots out with one of these. You cook with skins and seeds and everything, and it takes care of the rest. My current applesauce method is more haphazard than this, I just strain them in a normal screen colander and push them around with a wooden spoon. after doing that a lot this year, I think I may be investing in the strainer myself. It’s REALLY worth it.
My lands, Laura… I can’t believe you’re still doing it so much by hand!! ;-) We have a Roma Food Mill we ordered from Lehmans and I ADORE it. Tomatoes, potatoes! apples, everything! It’s awesome. You gotta do something different, girl! ;-)
We got a Victorio last year and I can’t imagine doing applesauce (or tomatoes) any other way. With the help of 3 little ones we spent a couple hours, two evenings in a row and got 24 quarts done. I’m also hoping to get the berry and salsa screens to try out for next year. WELL worth the investment! :)
I make applesauce with the least amount of effort possible.
1-Scrub Apples
2-Quarter & seed
3-Throw in a big stock pot and let them cook down until they are soft(stirring occasionally.
4-Go after it all with my Cuisinart Stick Blender(http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-Blender-Chopper-Attachments-HB-154PC/dp/B000GHF3V8/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1319078359&sr=8-3)until all the skins and everything are silky smooth.
5-Pour into jars and turn them upside down.
Yup, I leave the skins on and I cheat at sealing my lids. We’re all still alive. ;)
Love it, Courtney.
I do that with jam that contains sugar. I didn’t know you could do it with unsweetened items.
I’m sure you’re not supposed to, haha, but it works just fine for me!
I’ve never tried it with jam though, I’ll have to do that, thanks!
This is the method I used when we made apple sauce with our homeschool co-op. The kids chopped up the apples and then we put them on the burner and let it cook while we ate lunch. We made about 3 quarts of sauce with about 30 minutes of work.
That’s what I did this year. But after they were done boiling, I mashed them like like mashed potatoes.
I got a lot of applesauce, unfortunately the kids ate it within the week.
Courtney, I do the exact same thing with the stick blender. I jar my applesauce and then put them in the deep freezer. Same thing with tomatoes for sauce. There’s only three things put in the dishwasher: stock pot, the knife, and the end of the stick blender. Love it!
I use a stick blender instead of a food mill. It seems to be much faster for me that way, and if I miss a few chunks nobody seems to mind. :)
A couple years ago my mom and I decided to try a batch of sauce with the peeling left on. We’ve never peeled another apple for sauce since. We just chunk the apples, add a few pears for sweetness, cook them to death in the crockpot or our waterless cookware. Then we run it through the blender, add a little cinnamon and freeze it in ziplocs. I will say though, those food strainers are awesome. We used one for tomato sauce years ago. I didn’t check your link but ours had hook up for a power drill if you didn’t want to use the hand crank. A bicep saver for sure!
Oooo… well, I have a “cone mill” (with the wooden pestle) thingy and it does take a lot of arm work with slow results. Here’s my thoughts on your food strainer you’re considering: My mom has the Squeezo version (it’s metal), and while it’s faster than the cone mill, it still takes time and cranking and cranking and cranking. With the metal squeezo, we hook a drill up to the shaft and you can run a bushel of apples through (about 14 qts, finished) in about 5-10 minutes. I don’t know if you could do this with the plastic version you’re looking at, but personally I would go with an all metal version for less wear and tear (since I don’t know how the plastic parts might hold up to the speed/friction of a drill) if you think you might use a drill. I canned 60-70 qts. of applesauce, total, and I wouldn’t use anything else to run the apples through!
The Victorio Strainer really cuts down the time altho you still have to crank the apples. If I remember correctly, you don’t have to cook the apples.
peels on.
stick blender.
done.
I have one (different brand) and love it! I actually haven’t canned anything here yet this year, though. (sad, I know.)
I have the Back to Basics version of the strainer. I process somewhere between 80 to 125 quarts per year and I can do it all in one day about 9-13 hours depending. You also have much less waste as you can send the skins back through 2 to 3 more times. The first year I canned without my mom I used a Foley mill. We bought the strainer right after that experience as it was so much work! I use my strainer for everything, grape juice, tomato products, raspberries, apples, and pumpkin. You do have to purchase other screens for some of those things, but it will pay for itself in time saved and the amount of product you can squeeze out if it. No peeling, or coring necessary!
I noticed you only process for 15 minutes. That is the recommended time for pints, quarts are supposed to be for 20 minutes. It probably won’t matter but you might want to make a note of it for next year.
Thanks for mentioning that – I’ll edit the post so as to make it clear. :)
I also have the back to Basics version after the one I inherited from my grandma wore out, it was older than me! I can’t imagine using anything else. Dito on running the peels through a second or even third time. And I have never added ascorbic acid or water to my apples, just a splash of juice, they cook so fast that they don’t have time to really brown at all. And I never cut the core out either, just chuck it in with the apples, the strainer gets out the seeds and etc, you get more sauce that way.
Oooo – looks yummy! I wish I had the problem of over 100 pounds of apples!
My Mom makes applesauce with the peel on. She puts it in her food processor. It blends well and has extra fiber! And takes less time – yay!
Make the purchase !!!!! IT is a GREAT TIME SAVING piece to have . I absolutely love mine and it is one thing that I would have to replace if it ever broke or tore up. I have several of the screens and would not want to can without them. It is very fast and effective!! Save yourself some time and buy one, you will not regret it.
A friend brought her strainer over this year and we made applesauce. I would absolutley reccomend buying one. The applesauce is fantastic and there is so little waste. It would be great for tomatoes too.
I just love that I have a Vitamix, I can have raw applesauce in no time flat. Quarter apples, cut out bad parts, leave cores, seeds and skin. Throw in the Vitamix, puree until smooth. Freeze or can in water bath. Done!
We also do it the super easy way here: cut apples in half, load up crockpot with as many as possible + 1 stick of cinnamon. Cook on low all night, run everything through the Foley Mill in the morning. Voila!
I have one of them and I LOVE it! I haven’t used it on apples yet. It worked great on all the tomatoes are garden produced this year. So easy! I just got it this year and used my swag bucks, so it was free.
I have a vitamix and can save all that cooking time and goodness that goes away with heat and peeling. Just core, process, heat just enough to go in hot jars and water bath. I had our bushel done in just a few hours!
I always use my crockpot to make applesauce, and I don’t think I’ll ever make it any other way, it’s just so easy! I just peel, core, and halve each apple, fill the pot, add some fresh lemon juice and a little water, let it cook for several hours, then they’re soft enough to mash with a potato masher…perfect! And of course I always save some to make your applesauce bread, yum!
I have a victorio strainer and I love it. It is worth every penny. My parents have had one for over 25 years that still works wonderfully. It still takes time, but it is so much easier. I don’t have to core the apples or peel them (I just cut the fuzzy ends off), it’s all taken care of. I wouldn’t do applesauce any other way – I like the texture, I like the flavour, I like the color and I think it’s easier then processing in smaller batches. I find that the quickest way is to cook the apples up in a 7-8 quart pot. That is one strainer’s worth. I mix several batches in a larger container before starting the canning process. Last time I did about 13 bushels of apples over 3 days.
I’ve seen a few commenters mention this as well, but I just leave the skins on. You absolutely cannot tell after you blend the applesauce. The blending is one extra step, but it’s very fast — much faster than peeling or straining!
Here’s a link to my post I just made about Apple Butter and Apple Jelly.
http://www.inthemommybusiness.com/2011/10/yummy-fall-foods.html
I have the Victorio also and absolutely love it! I use a “Back to Basics Nutristeamer” to juice my apples and then run the ‘spent’ apples through the Victorio. That gives us the blessing of liters of apple juice plus jars and jars of applesauce with very little waste and even less work!
Oh yes, and I forgot – no peeling or coring. I just slice each apple in half and drop it in the steamer. My Victorio takes care of getting rid of the peel, core, and stems. Lovely!
If you get yourself a Victorio (if plastic parts squick you out, check out the old-school Squeezo’s – I have one from 1979, a friend has one from 1976), you’ll find *all* kinds of uses for it. I’ve done seedless raspberry jam, lots of tomato sauce, have managed to get a batch of not only grape jelly (from just straining in a jelly bag) but I ran the mushy guts through the Squeezo and got enough skinless/seedless mush for more yummy grape jam. And canning 90-100 quarts of applesauce isn’t as backbreaking. ;) Having to peel and core every single apple for that much sauce takes a bit of time.
We love ours!!! Definitely get one.
I have another gadget you need to get to make applesauce – a turkey frier. I know it sounds weird but it is so amazing! We cut up the apples and added them to the frier basket. After it was full we put about an inch of water at the bottom of the pot – where you’d normally be heating up your oil – and slid in the basket. The apples cooked in about 20-30 minutes!!! We pulled the basket up out of the water and made sauce. No straining apples out of the water and you can get a little thicker sauce this way. It also makes fantastic fruit roll-ups. We got about 5-6 quarts of sauce per basket AND (the best part) 2-3 quarts of apple juice. I tried making a batch of apple juice before we tried the frier and it was pathetic. It was mainly really, really runny apple sauce. But this was pure juice. And completely delicious.
Laura,
I bought our Victorio 20 years ago and it is one of my favorite canning gadgets I use every year. I make applesauce, apple butter, tomato sauce, and ketchup.
I think you’ll really like having one. You’ll find, you have more time, to process triple the amount of applesauce :-)
I leave the skins on also.
At the end of canning season, I use food grade mineral oil to wipe the screen down with to keep it from rusting. Don’t used vegetable oil as it will get rancid.
We bought an apple-corer/peeler/slicer that takes a lot of the work out of making applesauce. Ted can core, peel and spiral-slice an apple in a minute. I then cut the spiral-sliced apple into quarters and cut out any bad parts, then put it in the crock-pot. I do add sugar and cinnamon, but that’s just preference; it’s not necessary if the apples are sweet. The crock-pot takes over from there, and except for stirring occasionally, there’s nothing more to do. We like it chunky, so don’t cook it as long as you would if you want real smooth sauce. After it cooks, I allow it to cool, then bag it (we freeze, rather than can).
I have a Victorio Strainer and while I still think making applesauce and tomato sauce are a pain and a lot work (but obviously worth the effort) I can’t imagine doing it without the strainer. With all of the canning you do I was shocked to hear you don’t already have one and I would highly recommend you make the investment!
I didn’t read through all the other posts so it is quite possible someone else mentioned this but when I make applesauce, I chop the apples and cook them skins and all in a large stock pot with just a bit of water. Once the apples are very tender, I whirl everything in the food processor until smooth. My kids can’t even tell that the skins are in there. I freeze my applesauce, but I believed it could also be canned very easily. I add cinnamon to some and leave the rest plain. Very good–I’m thinking about freezing some into portable discs to pack in school lunches. We love our applesauce this way and it is sloop easy!
***sooo easy***. I dislike auto-correct:-)
We love our Victorio strainer. We’ve used it for about 10 years and it’s still holding up well. We can can about 40 quarts of applesauce in about 5-6 hours. We run tomatoes through it to make tomato juice as well.
We like our applesauce chunky. I use my peeler/slicer/corer and put all the apples in my crock pot with a stick of cinnamon and let it cook all day (no water, no sugar). The house smells wonderful!
You poor dear, I can’t believe you do so much canning each year and don’t have one yet. I use the Kitchen Aid Attachment: Fruit & Vegetable Strainer. It works the same way but has its pros and cons also. I don’t core my apples but I do cut out the blossom end as that will go through the little holes and you will have little black peices in your applesauce that look like “fly legs”(sorry, that is really what they look like). I also love it for tomato juice and I do run the scrapes through the 2nd time with tomatoes but not applesauce. With the KA attachment it will splinter the seeds the 2nd time and leave you with even more black specks. Whichever you decide to purchase you will not regret it for a second…..and your boys (and husband) will beg to help you. Empire Apples make the best sauce!!!!!
I have the Kitchenaid attachment as well and LOVE it!! I couldn’t think of anything better than the Victorio until I realized the Kitchenaid meant no cranking! We use ours for tomato sauce and applesauce. Haven’t had the problems with the seeds splintering, but we do tend to get a few black specks from the blossom end, although not many.
Yay, I’m not the only one who cuts off the spider legs! :D
Laura, You have got to be kidding me!!!!! You are still using one of those things? get a strainer!!!! I have 3 kinds. One goes on my kitchen aid mixer. One is a sqeezo and another is a squeezo knock off that is annoying and cheap. I make applesauce. I do 10 baskets a year. I already did 6 baskets. Now, I freeze mine, but still. I did 6 baskets in one day. I only quarter them, don’t cut out any seeds, that comes out with the pulp. I do run my pulp thru one more time. that’s it!
Get current!!!!! Where I live, lots of people still make applesauce.
and yes, to above. empires make the best sauce!
I always use a crockpot when making applesauce. Then, I don’t have to worry about stirring and burning. At my peak this season, I had 3 crockpots with apples. Then, I use my kitchen aid food strainer and I’m done. It’s quick. I don’t use sugar or absorbic acid. Just cinnamon.
YUM!
I just cored and dropped into my Blendtec blender with a little water and and blended dumped in pot and cooked for a while. Much less time. My Blender and I are BFF’s.
I use a peeler/corer/slicer. Then cook for about 20-30 minutes just to get the crispness out. Then use a stick blender that I bought this year just for this purpose….so much faster!!!
I use that strainer for all of my tomato juice, it is absolutely amazing! No peeling or coring and so easy to use. DEFINITELY worth the investment, I can’t imagine canning without it!
I use my apple peeler/corer/slicer (similar to this: http://www.amazon.com/Industries-5920-Apple-Peeler-Slicer/dp/B001A6E91E), cook them down in a pot, and then use my hand/stick blender to smooth it out as much as I want.
Seems a lot easier than straining them.
Get a vitamix or a blendtec blender. It makes applesauce (or tomato sauce when working with tomatoes) without the cooking to make them soft process. Then all you would have to do is seal them in the jars. Besides that, the high power blender can be used for SOOOOO many things.
Doing it this way you preserve more enzymes and nutrients AND you get the full benefit of the fiber because you are not straining anything off!
When we started our gardening/canning food journey five years ago this is the first tool we purchased. I echo Lanna’s advice to get an old school Squeezo. Before we purchased ours, we borrowed both the newer plastic one and a stainless steel Squeezo and we definitely preferred the stainless steel Squeezo. We got ours off ebay and have used it heavily every summer ever since. We use it for spaghetti sauce/pizza sauce, tomato soup, applesauce, grape jam (squeezing the skins after making juice with our steamer), strawberry and raspberry jam. I’ve never timed it but I bet we squeeze a half bushel of apples into sauce in 10 minutes. I have a stick blender but when canning over 100 quarts of applesauce a year, I can’t imagine using a stick blender to do it. I probably wouldn’t can without our Squeezo. And, as Aleta says, when I get out our Squeezo I hear choruses of “Oooohh the Squeezo! Can I help?!” from everyone in our family. :-)
I use the peeler/corer/slicer then toss them in the pan to my electric roaster. I put the pan in the oven on 300 degrees and cook(stirring occassionally) until it’s soft. I mash it with a potato masher then can. We like it chunky, so this works. If I wanted it smooth, I’d use an immersion blender. With this method, I’ve turned 2 bushels into 45 quarts of sauce. Yum! Today I’m working on apple butter. Same method, only I add sugar and cinnamon. Cooking it low and slow in the oven allows me to make a big batch=less mess!!
I’ve used a Victorio strainer for 20 years and love it. I just canned 30 quarts of applesauce yesterday (by myself) and it took 5 hours from start to finish (meaning set-up to clean-up). I wash then quarter the apples, cook on high in closed, heavy-bottom kettle with 1/2-1 cup of water for about 20 min., stirring once or twice then run through the strainer then can. I usually freeze applesauce but my freezer is full right now!
I have a very simply way of making sauce. Since I don’t have access to a large amount of apples, I make do with the store apples (Ugh, I know). I take 3 lbs apples (Gala was on sale and my personal fave)peel, seed and chop. Put in a stockpot with 1/4 to 1/2 c. sugar (Gala’s are already sweet so I use a little less)and cinnamon to taste. Cover and cook over med. heat for 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once soft, mash with a potato masher and, voila! Applesauce! I would can it but we eat it all up within a few days :)After reading the comments above, I think I will leave the skins on and see how it goes.
I highly recommend that you get a strainer – it makes the work so much easier & quicker. I got the Back to Basics strainer from Amazon for around $50 and it is worth every penny!
Yes, I highly recommend a Victorio Strainer! I inherited mine from my grandma. You can also use it for tomato sauce. When I was making applesauce this week, the “waste” coming out of the side of the strainer looked like it had good stuff in it also, so I put it through the strainer again and got more applesauce.
I recently saw this entry and tried it: http://www.familyfeedbag.com/2011/08/applesauce-fruit-blends.html
Since we eat a lot of applesauce, variety seemed like a nice idea. I made blueberry applesauce and peach applesauce. I plan to try strawberry applesauce in the near future. :)
Deffinitely recommend you check around at stores for a strainer if you go that route. In the summer I found a new one to replace the one that died at a farm supply store, 29.99$. I can’t imagine paying 50$ or more for it. It isn’t the kind of thing that is available around here year round, you may need to wait till next canning season to pick one up locally, but it would be cheaper than online.
My grandma had a Victorio strainer, and now my mom has it. It is awesome for making applesauce or tomato sauce, and I thought it was super fun to use when I was a kid :)
I can’t believe anyone actually peels all their apples to make applesauce! I love the pink color I get with courtland apples. I use my Victorio but may try the Blendtec/vitamix method.
I use the Victorio strainer, too. I LOVE IT!!!! I would never approach making applesauce without it. This year we received three laundry baskets full of apples from my in-laws. We turned that into 90 quarts of applesauce!!!! That’s the most I’ve ever made at once. With the food strainer there is almost no waste. Just the apple skins and seeds come out and all the wonderful applesauce is strained and canned!
The process I use is to wash the apples really well. Then we quarter them, leaving the core and seeds all still in the apples. Then we throw them into a huge pot on the stove and add about a quart or quart and a half of water for them to cook in. After the apples are soft, I let them cool for just a bit and then run them through the strainer. Out comes beautiful applesauce, and the strainer seperates out the skins and seeds and deposits them into another bowl. It couldn’t get any simpler than that! You DEFINITELY want a strainer. You’ll never go back! It works great for tomato sauce, too!
Blessings on your sauce-making adventures!
I second that motion Lisa! I love that I can process a couple of bushels of apples in no time! I quarter mine and leave the sees and all too. I do remove the stem because it has clogged my mill before. Well worth the money spent. It speeds up tomato sauce and makes pumpkin wonderfully smooth. BUY ONE LAURA!!! :)
Can you get a screen with larger holes for the Victorio? We like chunky applesauce and I normally just use my potato masher.
My food mill is not a Victorio, but it did come with the option to buy different screens. We have three different screens that produce everything from a chunky salsa to a very fine puree (almost juice). I also got a couple of different spirals to help different sized seeds move through the mill to the discard pile.
I just searched online and found some similar sets on amazon. Here is one link: http://www.amazon.com/Victorio-VKP250-5-4-Piece-Accessory-Strainer/dp/B002SVZJ0A/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1319124925&sr=8-2
Hope that helps!
We use the Victorino contraption also. Here’s basically what I do: Scrub the apples and throw as many in the crockpot as well fit (no peeling or slicing needed). Cook on high for 3-4 hours or until they are VERY well done. I do NOT add any water. They pretty much release their own and I’ve never had them burn. When they are done and have cooled, I remove any stems (they don’t go through the machine very well)and I break them up a bit with a spatula so they will fit in the hole easily and then I get to cranking! I put the skins through a second time and get a bunch more applesauce out of them. I now realize how much “apple” was going in the compost with the skin when we used to peel them by hand. We freeze ours in quart size bags and also make fruit leather.
Would never do applesauce or tomatoes without it!! Make short work of tomatoe sauce, no peeling, just hunk them up and run them through – same with the apples, though I did cook them first to soften a little.
If doing a small batch, I use the crockpot. My strainer is a recent purchase. I did use it for a bag of apples and like it. It does leave a bit of stuff to clean up! However, we saved the discarded juice and drank it!
Can you borrow one from a friend? A couple of my friends have the Victrino strainer and we either have a applesauce making party – ton of fun with a bunch of us in the kitchen, everyone doing a job. Everyone brings their own empty containers and goes home full of friendship and food!Or, they would let any of us borrow it if we had a ton of apples we wanted to turn into applesauce at another time. They can be bulky to store and have limited things you can use them for. Maybe check around and see if anyone has one?
Wow, that IS a lot of work. I just wash chop (removing yucky parts, seeds & stems) and put them all into the pot. I add a bit of water to the pot and I let that simmer on med/low for several hours. Then I use my immersion blender to make it smooth – skins and all! We love it and its very simple to make with any combo of fruits. Yesterday it was sweet plums – 80 plums yielded 8 quarts of jam – YUM!
I do the same thing. The skins just look like small slivers by the time they are blended in. It doesn’t affect the texture at all.
a victorio strainer is worth every penny!!!
Laura- I use my kitchen aid food strainer attachment for tomatoes and apples. You just have to quarter remove bad spots, cook and run through, it removes the skin, seeds, and stems. It spits out the applesauce and a very dry peel. If you have a big kitchen aid mixer you can purchase the strainer for it. I really love mine. I can do a 33 cup container of cooked apples in less than an hour. When I make my apple butter I ALWAYS use my crockpot. Applesauce, add the spices, cover the crockpot on low until everything is warm and then uncover stirring occasionally until it thickens.
I use the kitchen aid food strainer as well. Love it!
Takes up very small storage space, as it is a couple of pieces.
Great tool to have for applesauce and tomato sauce.
Ditto on the kitchen aid attachment. We have a little applesauce party involving the kids. We chop the apples into quarters, cook them in the large steamer baskets of our stockpots, and dump them into the strainer. Two bushels a night is easy. The attachment comes apart and washes in our dishwasher.
P.S. And as long as you have the right apples, the sauce is beautifully pink. We’ve considered it a great investment.
I have to say: Kitchen Aid rocks. 2 bushels in 2 afternoons made 28 quarts for me — very satisfying for the effort. The operation has been well discussed but I’ll mention I was only able to find this attachment as a part of a package attachment of 3 items including a grinder we now use for grinding our bulk purchases of raw cheese and a slicer/grater that works great on all that zucchini. The attachment package was listed at a whopping $180 on Amazon but I patiently waited and enlisted the service of camelcamelcamel.com and was notified when the package went down to my buy point of $90. What a thrill when that notice came in! This was my first fall to have the attachment for applesauce and I’m so happy with the results. Time is money around here. I’ll be making applesauce for many years to come with this tool at my disposal — I’m sure it will be a great childhood memory for my kids!
I use a my Kitchenaid attachment, too, and LOVE it. I was able to make gallons of applesauce, start to finish in 30 minutes! No need to remove seeds, cores or stems… just quarter and go. :)
I also use the kitchen aid attachment for my mixer. It works great for apples and tomatoes and is easy!
If you have a KitchenAid mixer, this attachment is totally worth it. Save your arm muscles for something else! The powerful mixer motor makes quick work of the straining process. The hardest part of applesauce is cutting up the apples at the beginning. Straining is the fun part!
I always cook mine with the skin on and then just run it through my food processor. It also makes a pretty pink color and you cant even tell there are peels in it.
I love mine!
Erin- It does have a screen with larger holes. It’s called a salsa screen but I think it would work great for what you want!
I use the Foley Food Mill and always have been pleased with the results. I wash then cut he apple in half, use my melon baller to remove the seeds as I think they make the sauce taste a bit off, the cook down. I cook them way down until the pulp of the apple has mostly broken away from the skin all together. All that is left in the food mill is skin. I noticed that there was quite a bit of fruit left on the apples in your mill. I’d try to cook them another 1/2 hour until the apples look like sauce in the pot with skins floating freely.
I don’t see that anyone else has mentioned this… unless you want extra vitamin C in your applesauce, there’s no need to add the vitamin C powder (ascorbic acid). Yes, the apples turn brown while waiting to be cooked, but once you start cooking them, they turn back to the lovely apple color. I’m sure there’s come scientific explanation. I’ve never had applesauce turn “brown” after canning either. We also use an apple/peeler/corer and the victorio. My mother-in-law bought the victorio at a garage sale. Awesome!
Have you tried using an apple peeler/corer/slicer.
Its super easy (plus kids & husbands think its fun to do) and in 1 easy step you have peeled sliced corer apples which you throw in the pot and cook with water. The slices are nice and thin and also work perfect for throwing on the food dehydrater for dried apples, putting in a jar with syrup mixture for apple pie filling too.
http://www.amazon.com/Progressive-International-Apple-Peeler-Corer/dp/B00004RDFR/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1319125169&sr=8-13
I use the apple peeler/corer/slicer and then soak my apples in salt water to keep them from browning. Then I put them in the crock pot, on the stove, or in the microwave (if I’m in a hurry)…I never process them…I just stir often and let the cooking break them down into applesauce and wallah!
I don’t even cook my apples. I core it and then peel or if I am being really lazy I leave the peel on, throw in a smidge of sweetener (or you can leave it out)into my vita mix and have fresh applesauce in about 30 seconds. One apple fills up a toddler size bowl.
I will be using my Vitamix this year – I will quarter and core the apples, but no peeling. Throw them in the blender and process it, skins and all. Then heat to boiling on the stove, jar it, can it. Sounds easy to me. Then you get the nutrition of the peels, as well, but it’s still very smooth (since the Vitamix works so well). I wouldn’t buy the Vitamix just to make applesauce, because it’s rather expensive, but we already have it and use it for so much (including amazing smoothies and canning dozens of quarts of tomato sauce, skin/seeds and all).
I swear by my Vitamix for processing tomatoes and apples!
I second the idea of using a crockpot to cook the apples. In fact I fill up both my crockpots, and then as many large baking dishes as will fit in the oven and let the apples cook with no added water (we get a thicker sauce and they don’t have to cook for so long) and very little attention from me. The casserole dishes need to be covered so that the apples don’t carmelize on top. It doesn’t take long for the apples to soften enough to process.
I also second the comment that vitamin C crystals are unnecessary. The apples are going to “brown” as they cook anyway–it’s called enzymatic browning in the food world.
The Victorio strainer is a necessity for doing large batches, though I find that it helps things go faster if I take the screen off and scrape out the residue every so often.
We were just blessed with lots of free, but conventional, apples. I did not want to cook with the skins because of this.
I ran each apple through the peeler/corer/slicer and threw them in the stockpot. When they were soft, I put them through the Foley Mill to get out any bits of skin and the “toenails.”
It was a lot of work, but I did 14 quarts yesterday by myself with a 2 and 4 year old running around. We have enough apples to do at least another 28 quarts, but my goal is to get 14 more done and consider some other uses for the apples.
That food strainer looks really nice. A friend has the KitchenAide attachment that she uses for tomatoes. I will look into those more before next year.
Laura, I don’t know if I would attemt applesauce that is this laborious! I also don’t know what a Victorio food strainer is, but maybe I should look into one. However, we make applesauce in just a minute or two on the spot, and it’s wonderful and raw! I just slice a few apples with my apple-slicer, stick skin and all into my Vita-Mix, and blend for about 30 seconds. It tastes way better than store-bought, is super easy, and is totally healthy because it includes the skins and is raw. Because it is not cooked, all of the vitamins and living enzymes are present.
I wouldn’t necessarily endorse spending one’s life-savings on a Vita=Mix, but what I would endorse is checking out Craigslist for a used one. I faithfully checked, and sure enough, I finally got a very good used one for 1/3 the normal price. Also, I think to can fruit, it must be cooked, so you could just cook a bunch of apples, skin on, and dump them into the Vita-Mix for a few seconds before canning. I’m interested if you or anyone else has thoughts about this method. Does anyone out there do what I do for easy (and much healthier) applesauce?
I do that occasionally, but for preserving the bounty of fall, one must do SOMETHING. I’ve taken more to blanching/freezing (usually with ziploc baggies) than canning, just because it’s a step closer to ‘fresh’, but not everyone has lots of freezer space, etc. I do love myvitamix for tomato sauce though! I will probably try it for applesauce too.
I core my apples and cook with the skin on until tender. Then, I run the apples (skins and all) through my blender – exactly how you do your tomato sauce. The skins disappear, and no one has ever complained! It’s very quick and easy!
I make mine in the crock pot! I toss, stir and leave over night. Then I mush and mash and if needed leave a few more hours.
Easy. Good.
LOVE LOVE LOVE my Victorio!!! It is so easy to use! In fact, my older children (older is relative, they are 8 and almost 6) do most of it themselves. I quarter the apples, throw them in the biggest pot I have with a little water or cider until they are tender. Using a slotted spoon, I place them in the hopper, my son pushes them through the hopper and my daughter turns the crank. The skins go to my chickens. The remaining water we have after boiling the apples I save for making apple jelly.
The Victorio made making tomato sauce SO easy as well! With a LOT less waste! I can’t wait to get the attachments!
HIGHLY reccomend!
After I peel and core the apples, my children cut them up into bite sized pieces for cooking in a little bit of water. We also add black berries, blue berries, and any other berries we have. After cooking for about an hour I add strawberries until just heated through. The sauce is pretty soupy with all the extra berries at this point, so I ladle off the excess, freeze this until I have enough for a batch of mixed fruit jelly (yum!!), and potato mash the remaining fruit sauce (we like ours on the chunkier side). Result–wonderful apple/fruit sauce that doesn’t need any extra sweetener and didn’t really take too much time. The deep purply/red color is beautiful. Like you, Laura, I love to stare at the results and smile.
http://www.amazon.com/Velox-Tomato-Press-Strainer-Italy/dp/B00127T8UI I use the italian Velox tomato strainer for my applesauce. It is samller but , easier and compact. Love it! It is also half the cost.
I use my vita mix put the apples in grind them up and we have apple sauce No cooking no smashing YEAH!!!!! I usually freeze it and its awesome.
My husband likes kitchen gadgets, so he bought us a Victorio food strainer, and it works great!
I would not do apple sauce or tomato stuff without my victorio strainer. I have an off brand I got much cheaper at Farm & Fleet for around $30. (A few yrs ago, don’t know what the price would be now.) It works just fine and its holding up well.
I got mine there also–brand name is Norpro and it also has a salsa and a pumpkin screen–it works great!!!
Love, love, love the Victorio Strainer … for the price they are totally worth it! My Mom helps me make my applesauce every year … this year I made 160 quarts (we are a family of 7 and love our applesauce!) and it only took us about 8 hours from start to finish, including clean up. One tip if you end up using it … we run the apple pulp through twice to make sure we get all of the applesauce out of the skins! We find that one bag full (paper grocery bag – weighs about 17 pounds) of apples gives us a good 10 quart.
You won’t be disappointed if you buy a Victorio. I use it for applesauce, tomatoes and getting the seeds out of blackberries and grapes. (It does require different screens.) The best price I found was on Amazon.
I made applesauce and it is a time consuming process. I peel and core my apples before I put them in the pot. Then I just scoop them out and fill my blender half way and blend until smooth. I pour it into another pot and then blend some more. It does seem to be faster than what you did. But you lose the nutrients in cooking without the skins on.
WOW! Sounds like a TON of work… I did a about 8 quarts in less than 4 hours and it was so quick. My mom has a squeezo (like victorio) which is awesome for huge batches. Since this was a little bath I just wash and quartered apples (don’t remove the core to have less waist and save time), cook and strain once. I used a food press/strainer like this one:http://www.amazon.com/Mirro-Canning-Accessories–Wooden-Pestle/dp/B00002N5ZQ/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1319131913&sr=8-5 and presto… done in a snap. Email if you’d like more info. I’m planning a post in a bit on making applesauce too!
I also leave on my peels. You lose so much of the apple in peeling it, and that is a huge part of the prep time used. You can quickly core an apple by envisioning the core as a post inside the apple. Cut the sides of the apple straight down around the core. It comes out as a rectangular piece and your apple is cored in 4 slices. One more slice through all 4 pieces gives you small enough chunks to cook down. After the apples are cooked down, just blend in a blender and you are good to go.
I can’t imagine not using a victorio strainer. I have done 30 quart so far, and that was in one afternoon. (i am still a little amazed…)
I wash,de-worm,quarter,cook,strain,cool,can. Then I sit down because I am dizzy. You will probably be so glad you invested in one.
Laura, you are going to LOVE making applesauce with a Vitorio!!! I’ve used one for years, and it makes the whole process so much easier and quicker, and thereby, even fun. It’s a great investment! Without any kiddos to share the fun, I put on some good music and away I go!
I borrowed a friends Vitorio that was her grandmothers and loved it! I scored one at a yard sale this year for $10! Highly recommend it! Also, we cooked the apples outside using my parents turkey fryer. It as a basket insert, can old a ton of water and boils quickly using a propane take. We were able to cook apples in 8-10 minutes then run them through the strainer. The longest part was cutting and cleaning the apples as we too used organic unsprayed apples.
My mom has one of those cool sauce maker things! I think it might be another brand but the same thing — it makes it go so much faster! She was wonderful and came to visit, bringing it with her and we got 12 quarts of applesauce done in about 4-5 hours. The best part is that you can even send the “junk” (skins and cores and stuff) through again to get even more applesauce — easy and so much less waste! If we couldn’t borrow one, we’d definitely consider purchasing one!
I use a peeler/corer/slicer and after they are cooked I use my K-tec blender. It works great and is MUCH easier than straining. I’ve never tried to do them with the peel because my corer/slicer peels them and I wouldn’t do it without that contraption. The kids love helping with that part. I guess I could save the skin and cook it with the apples. I think if you’d skip the straining part and use something like a blender or food processer you’d be much happier with your process.
I made apple sauce today as weel and I use the Vectorio food strainer as well. I love it. It makes the whole process so much easier, cleaner and faster. You cook, you strain and you can.
I either use a potato peeler to peel the apples, plop them into salt water to keep from browning, strain and then rinse the apples. put in big enough pot as needed, add a bit of water, boil down to whatever consistancy I’m wanting at the moment.
If I have a ton of apples I pull out the ole crank that peels and cores at the sametime, then do the rest as above! Super easy! We always make way more applesauce than a crockpot could handle. :)
I make mine by throwing the apples (whole)in my blender and then I cook them up in a bit of water. Very quick and easy and ready to can. We sometimes add a bit of honey and cinnamon but most of the time just the apples.
I don’t make bushels of applesauce, so this may not work for you, but I use a peeler/corer/slicer gadget that sits on my counter. I run all the apples through that first, then just dump them in the the slow cooker or pot on the stove. I cook it all down and then use an immersion blender to get it to the consistency I want.
I wouldn’t dream of making applesauce without one…we did 2 bushels today, 23qts, 5hrs start to finish. Wash the apples & quarter, removing bad spots, blossom ends & tiny, tiny seeds. Cook in a covered pot with just a bit of water until soft & mushy, about a half hour. Run through Victorio strainer & can. Easy as that.
Highly recommend the strainer! I’ve never used it for applesauce, only tomato, but oh the work it saves! It’s a great investment for saving time and effort, plus your crank arm still gets a work out. :P
I have typically done them like you did and I agree that it is a lot of work for not much output. I did buy the back to basics strainer for Christmas last year, but have not had any apples to try it with this year. I do have a Vitamix, and hope to get some apples this year to try it.
It does take a while but makes it taste even better with all that effort
I just use my crockpot. I peel my apples core them and throw them in the crock for about 6 hours with some cinnamon, the apples are so soft I don’t even have to blend them just give it a stir and and its very smooth with a couple chunks, my kids love it and so do I and I don’t even like applesauce.
I don’t have the Victorio brand, but one made by Presto 20-some years ago. I wouldn’t be without it and if something happens to it, I’ll be investing in the attachment for my mixer.
We do the majority of our tomatoes into sauce using it, plus occasionally use it for appples (we aren’t big applesauce eaters), and pears. It is definitely worth the space to store it and the effort to clean it (a scrub brush makes is the quickest way I’ve found).
Bottom line-when I got mine, I wouldn’t have paid the Victorio price but my off-brand one was $20 or less and has given me 20+ years of perfect service.
I ditto the Victoria. My 3 lovely girls (6, 8, 10) helped me a couple days ago and we processed almost 60 qts of sauce and 20 jelly jars of apple butter. It took us 7 hours- including lunch and clean up!
Check out how she makes applesauce: http://twolittleladiesonafarm.blogspot.com/2011/10/i-love-you-bushel-and-peck.html
Two hours start to finish, including canning, and NO STRAINING OR PEELING!!!!
I love my Victorio strainer, it is so worth the investment. I use mine for applesauce, tomato juice and applebutter also. I do around 2-3 bushels of apples every fall for applesauce. I just made 40 qt. of applesauce last week for the freezer. I would never do applesauce without it, it just takes a few hours for all that applesauce!
I have a different brand of the victorio which works wonderfully for applesauce and tomato juice. I did 2 bushels in part of a day. The children and my husband all enjoy helping. I agree that the vitamin C is not necessary, neither is sweetener unless you have very sour apples. I run the apple “junk” through again and get more applesauce.
I did applesauce the same way you do this year and then when we were done doing all of it, I found a NORPRO Sauce Master Food Strainer still in the box sealed in the packaging at Goodwill for $6- it is awesome!!! We used amazon gift cards to buy the pumpkin- which makes mashed potatoes, grape, berry, and salsa attatchment all of them for $25 and you can get an attatchment on it to make it electric! I am very excited about using it tons next year! It works great! I would highly recommend getting something similiar!!
I made applesauce for many years before using a Victorio and I LOVE it! It far surpasses any of the other methods I have tried. It also utilizes just about all the apple,or whatever fruit you are using. It makes wonderful tomato V-8 type juice, etc! It is well worth the money!
I always quarter and peel my apples before cooking them. As they get soft, I mash them. We love chunky applesauce with a little brown sugar, cinnamon, and cardamom.
OOPs, wrote this under the wrong comment! This head cold has got me down!
Laura, I just do my applesauce in the crockpot. It is EXTREMELY easy. Just cut (peel or no peel, your choice) in pieces and add some spices. I have a recipe I love and would be glad to share. I like mine a little chunky so I use a potato masher at the end of the process. So easy and we love it.
Ditto! I had the kids peel the apples and cut them off the core by making simply 4 square cuts only (on the “good” apples)around the core. threw them in the crockpot, forget about it, enjoy the csmell and know it’s ready! Yumm – esp with a tablespoon of brown sugar and hint of cinnamonon! Topped on vanilla ice cream! Just as good and easier than making an apple pie!
Do share the crockpot recipe Lisa :) I do mine in my blender after I cook it-saves time-
Me too! I make Crockpot Pumpkin Applesauce in mine. I just half the apples, peel, and core them.
Then, they cook for a few hours, and I put them in the food processor to make th em
smooth. So easy!
I think my method might be easier, but I freeze mine. First I use an apple corer to wedge. I have one with a popper thong that pops the wedges out. Then I peel approx half of the wedges. It’s easy, just a swipe of the paring knife. I toss them in the slow cooker as I go. When the slow cooker is full I turn it on and cook the apples until they are soft. Then I hit them with an immersion blender until smooth. Then I freeze in pint or quart jars. No ascorbic acid necessary. Probably woul freeze fine and flat in ziplocks as well.
I never use anything to keep the apples from getting dark. I’m not sure why you are using this step? I have purchased one of these gadgets this year to do tomato sauce and it is wonderful. I have not used it yet for apples but if it is anything like for tomatoes it is well worth the money.
I use lemon juice for preserving the color, and I’ve read it’s also good for keeping up the acidity level in canning – but I canned applesauce this week and that’s my first experience canning ever. I just boiled my apples adn then threw them in the blender and food processor. Seems like that might be easier than your strainer?
I’m with you on the wook for the output. I spend the good part of a morning/afternoon and did 40 pounds, got 12 quarts… I have 120 pounds still left in my pantry, and I’m hoping I get back around to it again before they all rot. I did not enjoy the coring part. I need a better corer! Can’t wait to see what else you’re doing with your apples, I need ideas.. fast!
Try making apple butter and also applechips to use them up!
My Mom had one and it is was a real time saver. Well worth it I think.
We used to live near an applesauce factory and would buy 5 gal buckets of beautiful pink applesauce, still warm from cooking, from them to can ourselves! We moved away years ago now and do I ever miss that applesauce! A victorio strainer just went on my Christmas list!
The Victorio is worth every penny. I consider myself frugal, but would consider this a GREAT investment…you’ll just wish you had bought one years ago! It will help you produce applesauce in no time at all. I usually quarter my apples just so they cook faster…the only thing I cut off is the little black things on the bottom of the apples because I don’t like specks in my sauce. The Victorio will get the skins, seeds and core stems out. The Victorio also works excellent for doing tomatoes…I did your oven method and then ran them through the Victorio to make sauce.
this year instead of cooking them on the stove, I roasted them in the oven and loved the results. I dont both coring the apples, the food mill should get rid of those. I have never used the victorio but used a better quality food mill and it makes such a huge difference.
I use my apple slicer/corer on my cleaned but unpeeled apples. Throw them all into the crockpot, full to the brim with a healthy splash of cider (or water) and cinnamon to taste. When they cook down in a few hours, I take the blending stick to the whole pot. Everybody loves it, and it’s easy as can be. Of course, we eat it faster than we can put it up :-)
Oh, Laura, do buy the Victorio! When I was early married 25 years ago, I saw a similar device in a catalog and mentioned how great it looked. My dear mother-in-law said, “Oh, I think I have one of those in the basement.” (!!!)We had been processing apples by hand like you! I promptly went down and found it, and I’ve never looked back. You can do bushels and bushels of apples in a day, and tomatoes the same. It’s one of my favorite canning aids.
Absolutely buy the Victorio!! My MIL bought one for me for Christmas when she heard how I was making applesauce (peeling,coring every apple). That was over 12 years ago and I advise everyone who does alot of tomato juice, applesauce, etc to get one. My 8&9 year old quarter the apples and get them cooking on the stove, then ladle the cooked down apples into the top bowl while my 3,4&5 year olds crank away. All while I sit on the couch and read a book (just joking on this last part :) but that does sound nice!) They love to make applesauce. A couple years ago, we also invested in the additional attachments. I used the berry screen to take all the seeds out of our raspberries. I froze the juice in ice cube trays, we throw a couple cubes in a pitcher of lemonade for raspberry lemonade. I have also thickened the juice and made a jel to put on top of a cheesecake – tasty. I will warn you…once you purchase the Victorio, you will probably never use the food mill again :(
I have previously made my applesauce with a Foley mill, but borrowed a Victorio this year & it was amazing! It really did cut down on time & now it is at the top of my list.I also don’t core anymore. The Foley & Victorio took care of those.
This year I borrowed a Squeezo Strainer, it is similar to the victorio. It was amazing. I have two apple trees, but they only produce small apples, so for most of the apples, I cut them in half after washing. Then we steamed them in a juice steamer (so we could can the juice as well). They only steam for about 15 minutes. Then we plopped them into the strainer and voila… applesauce. I think we did about 60 pounds of apples in 6 hours and were able to get 19 quarts of sauce and 6 quarts of juice. Yummy!
I have my mom’s old Squeezo Strainer (very similar, but made of all metal). It is well worth it! I canned 60-something quarts of applesauce last year, and it was so easy! This is one of the best investments a canner can make!
Do it! You won’t regret it!
I have both a strainer much like the victorio, and an attachment which goes on my KitchenAid mixer. Both are great; one is hand powered, one is electric driven. I keep the non-electric one in case we ever need to live without electricity. Both work the same way, and are wonderful. They do tomatoes in a fraction of the time of other methods, and applesauce, and other fruit for jams or jellies, etc. These items are worth paying for in time savings!
Heather here is the recipe I use:
12 c pared, cored and sliced apples
1/2 c sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 c water
1 Tbs lemon juice
Freshly grated nutmeg (optional, but I use)
Put apples in slow cooker. Combine sugar and cinnamon and mix with apples. Stir in water and lemon juice and nutmeg. Cover and cook on low 5-7 hours or high for 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 hours. Stir for chunky sauce.
LOVE IT. The nutmeg makes the difference.
Oh my, I absolutely agree with the others that say to get a food strainer!! I have a different brand – presto, but it works the same way. A total lifesaver!! I did 6 bushels of apples this year (252lbs.) & was able to finish in 2 days – just the children & I (6, ages 12-2). I can NOT imagine doing it without my food strainer!!! I just quarter my apples, add 1/4-1/2 c. water. Cook & run through my food strainer. I don’t add any spices or sweetener. Yay for applesauce!:-)
I can’t even imagine putting this much work into making applesauce! I grew up with a Victorio that we made applesauce with. I have fond memories of cranking that puppy until my arm was going to fall off- but watching the applesauce come streaming out the front and the “junk” coming out the side was almost hypnotic.
Last week, we had the opportunity to buy apples for $0.13 a pound, so we jumped on it. My mom, sister and I bought 225 apples all together. When it was time to can, I pulled out the vegetable and fruit strainer kitchenaid attachment I had bought a couple years ago and never got around to using. It was amazing! We canned 49 quarts of applesauce in six hours! We’ve got another 60 pounds or so of apples that we’ll be doing on Monday, but I was really glad we didn’t have to kill our arms to get this done.
I don’t know anything about the Victorio…sorry! But if you do have a Kitchen Aid stand mixer I have an attachment for that that makes applesauce a breeze…it’s the food and vegetable strainer that works with the food grinder. I just quarter my apples (peel, seeds, everything throw them in the pot with a tiny amt of water just enough to cover the bottom of the pan, let them cook until soft and then run them thru the strainer attachment… it spits all the junk out the end and you get lovely applesauce out of the middle. I did a bushel of apples in 2 or 3 hrs and the size of my pots was what was holding me back! I hope that helps… I am just getting back to your blog after a 2 year hiatus and it has been a HUGE help and encouragement to me!
I’ve tried making applesauce with the Foley Food Mill and without. I definitely prefer without. For me it’s actually less work and faster.
I dump as many apples as will fit into a sink full of water and vegetable soap for a bath. I next use a Y peeler to skin the apples. I put several peeled apples into a large bowl of very diluted lemon water until I’m ready for a break from peeling and then chunk them with a paring knife. There is no need to core this way. These chunks go into my cooking pot with a few inches of purified water and a couple tablespoons of lemon juice. When the pot is full, the apples cook for a few hours. Every so often I mash it with a potato masher and then it’s ready for canning. The apples get so soft and smooth that there’s nothing else I need to do to adjust for consistency.
i have a simmilar food strainer to the one you are thinking about (different brand i think). it is a huge life saver!! you dont even need to get rid of the core of the apple, it spits everything out when you ‘process’ it! i highly recomend getting one!! :)
Victorio for sure!! I did 99 qt. apple sauce this year and would not have wanted to do it with anything else. Because it’s a cool handle you crank my 5 year old went to town on it and helped the whole time. Just have to make sure its attached very firmly to the table you are using. You don’t want it falling on your 5 year old while they are turning the handle. I get tons of help from my 4 boys when doing apple sauce!
I made applesauce for the first time this year and it was wonderful!! All I did was core and quarter the apples and threw them in a big pot with a little bit of water in the bottom. I boiled them with the lid on until they were tender. Then, I just used my stick blender and blended them, peel and all! I did one batch a little chunky (I love chunks), and the other I pureed pretty well. There are little tiny pieces of skin in it, but my family doesn’t mind, and I figure the skin is good for you! I didn’t add any sugar or spices, and it’s the best applesauce, ever! (as my kids tell me!!)
I have to say that I have used both the Victorio and the Squeezo. The Squeezo is far superior to the Victorio. The Squeezo has all metal parts, whereas the Victorio is mostly plastic. I found the Victorio took much longer and was harder to use because the auger was plastic and did not push the fruit through as well. I would definitely save up and get the Squeezo instead. My friend has an older model and it still works perfectly, so don’t be afraid to purchase a used one.
I’ve had a Squeezo for several years now. I LOVE it – and use it mostly for applesauce. It’s a bit more expensive, but I’ve never had to replace parts or had any trouble with it. It also squeezes out every last drop of apple-goodness and what is discarded is the bare minimum.
The kids like using it so much that they argue over who gets to turn the handle. They take turns turning and pushing it down the funnel so I’m free to do other tasks like filling jars and doing hot water baths.
It makes a day of applesauce go a lot faster in more ways than one!
I just use my apple peeler corer gizmo from amazon for $16 which peels, slices and cores the apple while suctioned to my counter. I throw all the apples in the pot or crock pot and no cutting necessary. They break down b/c it’s sliced already. My 4 kids usually want to take turn peeling so not much work to be done. I recommend it as a cheaper way to go and speed up the process!
I’ve used a Victorio and a food mill like you did, but neither of them are as nice as the Kitchenaid attachment that I bought last year. We canned about 70 quarts of applesauce with a newborn…no small feat, and it was WAY easier with the Kitchenaid. I think it’s a great invest ment!
I know cooking is necessary, if you want to can, but if you are just going for a healthy snack, you don’t need to cook them at all. I just core cut them up (skin included), and put 3-4 apples with 1/4 water (double, triple, however much yours will process at one time) and 1-2 tsp cinnamon (optional) in my food processor. In one minute or less, we have apple sauce! It does turn a light shade of brown if kept over night, but you can make more at one time and keep it in the refrigerator for several days – all depending on when you wanted to incorporate it in your menu, of course. Cooking, etc. is only necessary for canning. My children prefer this to canned applesauce!
So, I got the uberfast method down. Cut apples in 2″ parts, stem and all. Put in a pressure cooker, cook until it gets up to pressure and let go a few minutes. Use the quick method to lower pressure immediately, and repeat with new apples. While the next apples are cooking, run the mush through a food mill to get rid of stems and seeds (I have the hand crank type- I would like to get a stainless steel model someday as I run the apples through hot and worry about leeching). The peel is pretty mush at this time, so much of it goes into the sauce as well.
I like applebutter, so I put my sauce directly into my big crock pot, and let it cook down. Last fall I made about three gallons on apple sauce in about an hour, which turned into twelvish pints of apple butter by the next day. I think I pressure canned them for 5 minutes since it was faster and easier than the hot water bath.