The Apple Pulp Connection

Virtually every recipe on this blog lists ‘Apple Pulp’ as an ingredient. Now that is quite conspicuous, isn’t it?

‘Apple Pulp‘ … what does that even mean? Do you press the apples, use the juice and the rest is pulp? Maybe it is a special way of preparing apples to preserve them? Or is it just a regular apple sauce with a fancy name?

Friends of mine have wondered about this, you know. And as usual, they were all right.

Because ‘Apple Pulp’ is technically just apple sauce, the real thing, made the old-fashioned way, no sugar added. The delicious mush that your grandmother – or great-grandmother – made from the apples in the fall. Probably from the ones that didn’t look so good.

At least that’s the way it was done in my family. Great big peeling and cutting party for the special apple sauce (‘apple pulp’) in Grandma’s kitchen. Everybody sat around the table, including Grandpa, he loved that part. And the apples they put in it tasted spectacular. Old apple brands from the huge trees that lined the driveway out front. Nothing but apples, so their apple sauce was “apple pulp” too.

But, and here comes the technical part, if you go to a store today and buy just any apple sauce, it may not be the same as the pure stuff. That means you have to look closely at the additives. And you have to buy food from a trustworthy manufacturer that actually declares all the ingredients.

So what’s the big deal? You can use regular applesauce to replace an egg, right? Yes, you can, but additives like sugar, citric acid – usually from lemons for preservation – or spices like cinnamon, vanilla, etc. have their own cooking values. And those can change the outcome of the recipe significantly.

So when I write ‘Apple Pulp’, I really mean ‘pure’ apple sauce – nothing else added.

And why do I use this stuff so much? Why is it one of my favorite ingredients?

Because not only can you use it to replace an egg – like regular applesauce – but:

• It gives sauces, stews, and other dishes more body than if you had added some thickener (flour) or fat.
• It adds a subtle sour note without the bite of vinegar, and you always need a little sour to round out the flavor.
• It binds ingredients that normally do not mix well, such as herbs in oil and low-fat water-based ingredients. This works less well with regular applesauce, by the way, because of the extra ingredients.
• You can cut back on other ingredients that tend to dominate a dish, such as tomato pulp. Apple pulp is very modest and stays in the background, at least as a flavor.
• You can use it to fix flavor ‘accidents’. It will take the peak off the spicy mountain or tame the bitter bite.

Can’t say much against so many pros, right? Well, give it a try and you’ll see.

You can cut back on other ingredients that tend to dominate a dish, such as tomato pulp. Apple pulp is very modest and stays in the background, at least as a flavor.

Side Notes:

• Yes, and of course, maybe another reason I use apple pulp so often is that every time I take a jar off the shelf in a store and have a moment to just be, I remember Grandpa and his kitchen table jokes. And his jokes were fabulous. The witty, smart, and ‘really dry’ – as we say around here – kind of jokes that hit the spot without hurting anyone. I miss you, Grandpa!
• I already mentioned above, that you can use ‘Apple Pulp’ (apple sauce made only from apples without additives) to replace an egg. If you are interested in other ways to do just that, look at my post [‘NoegkX – No Fun?’]