How To Can Apple Slices
Learning how to can apples was game changer for me when it came to preserving apples. I like apple pie filling, but it can be time consuming to make, and then you’re really only able to make pie with it. These canned apple slices are simple and easy to make, and can be used for many different apple recipes throughout the year. They stay slightly crisp even after being canned, and they can be easily turned into pie, muffins, coffee cake, and apple crisp without the apples turning mushy.
Ingredients
- Apples
- Sugar
Instructions
- Peel, slice and core apples. It’s preferable to use a drill connected to a peeler/corer/slicer if you are doing a lot of apples (see video). The peeler/corer/slicer makes apple rings and it's best to cut them in half with a sharp knife so they will fit in the jars more easily.
- Place apple slices into the bottom of your bucket or other straight sided container. I never measure, but what you want to do is put about 3-4 inches of apples in your bucket, and then sprinkle them with 1 cup sugar. If you want to measure figure 1 cup of sugar per 6-8 cups of apple slices.
- Layer apples, then sugar, then apples, then sugar until you run out of apples or fill the bucket. Whichever comes first.
- Put a plate or other flat surface over the apples in the bucket.
- Place a 10-15 pound weight on the plate so it presses down on the apples. (A gallon can of food like tomato paste works well for this).
- Allow it to sit overnight which will press the juice out of the apples.
- The next day, scoop the apples out of the bucket and pack them into narrow mouth jars.
- In a large stockpot, heat up the juice or syrup that is left in the bucket. Watch it carefully so it doesn't boil over.
- Pour the hot syrup over the jars. If you have more juice than you need, pour the extra juice into jars, and can it just like you can the apples. It is the best apple syrup you will ever eat and is perfect for sourdough pancakes. If you don't have enough juice from the apples, just fill them as full as you can and then top them off with some boiling water to within ½" of the top of the jar.
- Wipe jar rim with a damp cloth to make sure there is not sticky juice on them.
- Place lids and rings on jars and hand tighten.
- Process in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes.
- Remove from canner using jar lifter and allow to cool at room temperature and seal. If you're doing more than one canner load of apples, it is best to add a little cold water before you put another round of cold jars into the boiling hot water. This will help prevent any jars from breaking. You don't want to lose any of those precious apples after all that hard work.
- Remove rings, wash outside of jars if they are sticky, and then store on your pantry shelves.
Notes
Tips For Canning Apple Slices
Keep some of your nicest blemish free apples in the refrigerator for fresh eating during the winter. The rest of your nice apples work well for making canned apple slices, because they are easy to run through a peeler corer slicer which saves a lot of time. The blemished or small and medium apples are much easier to make into applesauce and apple juice, so it pays to sort through your apples before preserving them. We have found that the easiest way to peel apples is by attaching a drill to a peeler corer slicer. It makes peeling apples really fast and it’s something that kids enjoy doing (see video below). If you have extra syrup left after filling your apple jars, just put it into jars and can it all by itself. Then you can easily make apple syrup for sourdough pancakes by just adding a little cornstarch and heating it up. It’s my family’s favorite thing.