With a mouli, apple sauce barely needs any prep. Chop the apples roughly, skins and cores included, cook them until soft and turn the handle. The mill keeps back the skin, pips and core, and gives you a smooth sauce for roast pork, porridge, yoghurt or baby food.
Makes: about 700ml · Time: about 25 minutes · You’ll need: a food mill with a medium or fine disc and a saucepan with a lid
Ingredients
- 1kg apples: Bramleys for a sharp sauce that breaks down quickly, or a mix of Bramleys and eating apples for something sweeter
- 4 tbsp water
- 1 to 3 tbsp sugar, to taste (leave it out for baby food)
- Optional: a squeeze of lemon juice, a pinch of cinnamon, a small knob of butter
Method
- Chop the apples. Wash them, pull off any stalks and cut them into rough chunks. Leave the skin and core in.
- Cook until soft. Put the apples and water in a pan, cover and cook over a low to medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they’re completely soft. Bramleys will turn fluffy; eating apples take a little longer.
- Mill. Set the mill over a bowl with the medium disc (or the fine disc for baby food) and pass the apples through, a few ladles at a time. Scrape the sauce off the underside of the disc as you go.
- Finish. Stir in sugar to taste while it’s warm, plus lemon, cinnamon or butter if you like. If it’s too thin, simmer it for a few minutes to thicken.
Tips
- Red-skinned apples give the sauce a pale pink colour, because some colour from the skin cooks into the flesh.
- Add sugar after milling, so you can taste the sauce first. Bramleys vary a lot in sharpness.
- The same method works for pears, or a mix of apples and blackberries. Use the fine disc to hold back the blackberry seeds.
Storing and freezing
Keep apple sauce covered in the fridge for up to 5 days. It freezes well for up to 3 months. For baby food, freeze it in an ice cube tray, then tip the cubes into a freezer bag so you can defrost a portion at a time.
Common questions
Which apples are best for apple sauce?
Bramleys are the classic British choice. They’re sharp and collapse quickly into a fluffy purée. Eating apples like Cox or Braeburn give a sweeter, thicker sauce that needs little or no sugar.
Can I make apple sauce for a baby with a mouli?
Yes. Use sweet eating apples, no sugar, and the fine disc for the smoothest texture. Follow NHS weaning advice on when to introduce new foods.
Can I use a blender instead?
Only if you peel and core the apples first. A mouli saves that step, because it leaves the skin and core behind.
Need a mouli? See our guide to the best food mills in the UK, or try making passata with a food mill next.
