astro, I’ve generally found it useful to check whether the points on the bottom are firm. If they are, then it’s probably a good apple. If they’re not, then it almost certainly isn’t. I will also second the recommendation for Braeburns as an acceptable substitute, but they’re also prone to being mealy.
A good Red Delicious is really a joy. The crisp texture has pleasant mouth feel, and the tangy sweet taste is more complex than most apples. YMMV, of course, but I tend to find Fujis and Galas kind of blah, and HoneyCrisps (which are my wife’s favorite) too sugary.
Interesting thread. I’ll just note that the same thing has been happening to strawberries lately, most store produce section strawberries are increasingly bland and mealy.
But BIG! They’re breeding them for size now, more than flavor. The plants can’t produce enough sugar to make fruit that size flavorful so the flavor isn’t keeping up with the size of them.
When I was a kid, Granny Smiths all seemed to be smaller than a baseball, nowadays they can be huge. Granny Smiths are what I eat, but maybe I’ll try expanding my horizons. I always like to say that the name Red Delicious is 50% correct. They are red. I seem to remember them not being awful in my childhood, but maybe that’s selective memory on my part. My favorite apple memory is apples bought from an orchard on a fall trip up to Door County in Wisconsin. Sigh.
Last time I bought strawberries a couple of them were so big that I just had to stare at them and laugh for a minute. Not particularly tasty, though, unless I put whipped cream on them.
I second the McCoun as a very tasty apple and my personal favorite. It seems a little scarce though, and only shows up in season, it seems.
I’m another person who grew up thinking apples were nothing special because I only ever got Red !Delicious and Macintosh, neither of which do I like (Though I must say that the freshly picked Red Delicious I had once was significantly better than the garbage one gets at the store) until I started actually going apple picking with friends.
There’s really nothing to compare with fresh fruit in season, whether it’s berries (Storebought BLUEBERRIES are these gigantic (for blueberries) tasteless, disgusting things. I was raised on wild blueberries, and the ones at the store are never even close.), apples, or whathaveyou. Find and support your local farmer’s market!
Farmer’s markets are good, but going straight to the orchard is better. This year, since July, I’ve had: Lodi, Vista Belle, Pristine, Jersey Mac, Oriole, Whitney Crab, Viking, Duchess of Oldenburg, Dolgo Crab, Zestar!, Beacon, State Fair, Chenango Strawberry, Red Free, Summer Treat, Centennial, William’s Pride, Ginger Gold, and Paula Red. Today I’ll pick up some Akane, and some more Dolgo Crab (can be used in place of cranberries). Maybe some Irish Peach or Empress if they’re ready.
Read 'em and weep! There are over seventy-five more varieties there that’ll be ripening between now and the start of November.
Alas, I bought a mealy Braeburn last week, that matched the mealy Empires we made a pie from the week before. I think the danger of mealiness is high right pretty much across the board now, given that any apples for sale are coming on a year old now.
Next month should be much better when the apples start to come into season. The local farm already has Jersey Macs for picking, so it can’t be too much longer before the better kinds are ready too.
I saw Honeycrisps and Pink Ladies in the grocery store yesterday, and they were ENORMOUS! Bigger than baseballs. Don’t know why all of a sudden this monster size showed up. Avoid the Jersey Macs, for eating purposes, I think they’re a cooking apple. I bought a few just-picked and they were sour, hard, and thick skinned, so I made them into applesauce.
The apple stand at the farmer’s market had heirloom Red Delicious last year. They were soooo good. The grocery ones are like they were made by someone with a vague description of what an apple looked like.
I have had pretty good luck with apples using this technique:
If the apple looks super shiny and the skin looks really tight, it’s usually crisp and yummy. When they have lost their sheen and the skin just looks normal, I’m taking chances.
I buy apples from a local farm market that “specializes” in apples. I go by their advice.
Easy Applesauce: Core and quarter 6 apples (or how ever many). Place in crock pot at bedtime. Add no water or sugar. Turn crock pot on low. In the morning, stir/mash to your desired consistency. Serve warm for breakfast, or refrigerate for lunch/dinner. You can vary apple types to make your applesauce sweet/tart/etc.
