# I pit APPLES! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 8, 2013, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854 "2013-05-08T23:47:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/41 "2013-05-09T08:29:25Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Apples are fantastic, what’s wrong with apples is the same thing that’s wrong with tomatoes - we’ve allowed supermarkets to be a significant arbiter of apple aesthetics. Come on now. Let’s not keep blaming the supermarket for all our food ills. Supermarkets are where we get our food and we should be thankful they exist! Like it or not, most of us aren’t going to be growing our own fruit, or visiting a weekend small artisan heirloom apple-crafter who has been preserving some ancient quasi-rare circa 1908 variety on his/her organic backwoods farm and whose apples taste like the luscious Biblical forbidden fruit. No, we’re going to be getting our apples from the supermarket and we’re going to be underwhelmed by the experience. It doesn’t really matter whose fault it is. 99% of apples are bland. Accept that and you may be occasionally surprised with a hint of something resembling flavor. Just don’t ask me to fly off to some obscure orchard so that I can have something more. Not for a friggin’ apple. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/42 "2013-05-09T09:35:26Z")
> [@gazpacho](#): > > You don’t pit apples you core them. You pit stone fruits like cherries and plums. /slowclap ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/43 "2013-05-09T10:03:45Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > Come on now. Let’s not keep blaming the supermarket for all our food ills. Supermarkets are where we get our food and we should be thankful they exist! Like it or not, most of us aren’t going to be growing our own fruit, or visiting a weekend small artisan heirloom apple-crafter who has been preserving some ancient quasi-rare circa 1908 variety on his/her organic backwoods farm and whose apples taste like the luscious Biblical forbidden fruit. No, we’re going to be getting our apples from the supermarket and we’re going to be underwhelmed by the experience. It doesn’t really matter whose fault it is. 99% of apples are bland. Accept that and you may be occasionally surprised with a hint of something resembling flavor. I don’t particularly blame supermarkets - as I say, we’ve allowed this to happen - it’s just one of the less brilliant facets of capitalism - if we’re prepared to accept shite, we’ll be offered several varieties of shite to choose from. Point is: the problem isn’t apples. Apples are just fine. > [@](#): > > Just don’t ask me to fly off to some obscure orchard so that I can have something more. Not for a friggin’ apple. [ul] [li]Cheap[/li][li]Conveniently available[/li][li]Good quality[/li][/ul] You can have any two of the above list. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/44 "2013-05-09T10:26:43Z")
I have relatives in North Carolina’s apple country and it’s a little slice of heaven. There are festivals and tons and tons and tons of fresh awesome apples in a dizzying variety. I became the Apple Pie Queen on these apples. So hurray for NC apples. ---
**Author:** ![R3d\_Anonymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/aeb1de/32.png) [@R3d\_Anonymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R3d_Anonymous)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/45 "2013-05-09T11:03:31Z")
We go to those “obscure” orchards you are talking about a few times a year not just for apples, in fact that is really only a minor part of our trips there, but many other fruits like peaches, blueberries, pears, nectarians, and even strawberries. Trust me, it is worth the time and effort (well I don’t drive yet but my dad thinks it is worth the time and effort). Basically, **Mangeout** ’s last part of hir last post summed it up for me. If you want cheap and good quality, then you lose out on convenience. If you want good quality and convenience, then it is expensive. ---
**Author:** ![April\_R](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@April\_R](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/April_R)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/46 "2013-05-09T11:36:32Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > I have relatives in North Carolina’s apple country and it’s a little slice of heaven. There are festivals and tons and tons and tons of fresh awesome apples in a dizzying variety. I became the Apple Pie Queen on these apples. So hurray for NC apples. Yep 🙂 We may be related, LOL ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/47 "2013-05-09T12:13:53Z")
> [@Anonymous User](#): > > Basically, **Mangeout** ’s last part of hir last post summed it up for me. If you want cheap and good quality, then you lose out on convenience. If you want good quality and convenience, then it is expensive. Exactly. \*\* Cheap and convenient \*\*= buy at the supermarket, but quality will be sacrificed **Cheap and good quality** = buy at a farmer’s market, or direct from the orchard, or plant your own tree, but this isn’t uber-convenient for everyone **Good quality and convenient** = buy the supermarket ‘premium’ pack of two hand-picked heirloom-variety organic in-season locally-sourced fairtrade ripe-and-ready apples - but these are not cheap. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/48 "2013-05-09T12:56:34Z")
> [@April\_R](#): > > Yep 🙂 We may be related, LOL Maybe, but mine don’t own any orchards. They just live there. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/49 "2013-05-09T12:56:50Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > I turn up my nose at apple pie. Apple fritters disappoint. Fuckin’ Dunkin’ Donuts changed their apple fritter recipe sometime in the last decade when I wasn’t looking. They used to have little bits of apple throughout, now they’re dough and more dough, with a dollop of gelatinous “apple preserves” (which appears to be a few gratings of apple floating in corn syrup) stuffed in the center. So gross. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/50 "2013-05-09T13:54:23Z")
There’s a big difference between a fresh-off-the-tree Red Delicious and a supermarket RD, you’d think they were two different strains, the FOTT RD is mouthwateringly good, perfect balance of tart, sweet and crisp ---
**Author:** ![Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Man_With_a_Cat)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/51 "2013-05-09T14:18:10Z")
I have no quarrel with apples. Now carrots? Don’t start me on carrots. Really, don’t cross me here. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/52 "2013-05-09T17:54:46Z")
You’re argument is rotten, OP. I find apples appealing. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/53 "2013-05-09T18:25:24Z")
You don’t pit apples, duh. You pit dates. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/54 "2013-05-09T19:02:09Z")
> [@Furious\_Marmot](#): > > The fault lies not in our apples, but in ourselves. And by ourselves I mean you, or more specifically, your grocery store. When it’s apple season again, go somewhere with a better selection. That’s my main problem with apples: during the off-season you have a higher chance the apple you purchase will turn out to be mealy. Anyway, I disagree with this pitting. Apple are one of two types of food I can say I like all varieties of (the other being cheese). I even like Red Delicious provided they’re not mealy (which, unfortunately, they often seem to be). My favorite types of apples, however, are those that are more sour/tart kind like Winesap or Northern Spy. Unfortunately, as **even sven** pointed out in his post, the market seems biased in favor of the sweet varieties. Granny Smith and the newer Pink Lady are okay but I would rather have the nearly-impossible-to-find-even-during-apple-season Winesap instead. ---
**Author:** ![Aquadementia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aquadementia/32/555_2.png) [@Aquadementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aquadementia)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/55 "2013-05-09T20:20:55Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > You don’t pit apples, duh. You pit dates. That’s why no one will go out with you a second time. ---
**Author:** ![R3d\_Anonymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/aeb1de/32.png) [@R3d\_Anonymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R3d_Anonymous)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/56 "2013-05-09T20:31:12Z")
> [@Aquadementia](#): > > That’s why no one will go out with you a second time. Great pun. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/57 "2013-05-09T20:32:34Z")
We barely even have an ‘apple season’ any more- most of the apples in the local supermarket come from other countries, and have sat in storage for 6 months or more before we get to them. I did apple picking in NZ, and straight off the tree, they’re great, full o’ flavour, but the same things will be bland and dull by the time they make it to the UK. Luckily for me, I’ve joined a local community orchard, with some awesome heritage varieties- split between the members at harvest time. Unless some turd nicks them (like they did last year :mad: ), we should get loads this year. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2013, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/58 "2013-05-10T04:17:14Z")
The thing is, even at their best, apples don’t really measure up to other fruits. The best peach is better than the best apple. The best melon is better than the best apple. The same goes for pineapples, mangoes, pears, berries, nectarines, apricots, bananas, grapes, cherries, figs, grapefruits, pomelos, guavas, plums, lychee, papayas and kumquats. And if you want to compare apples and oranges, the finest navels, tangerines, tangelos, satsumas, mandarins, clementines, valencias, temples, bloods, and even Florida hamlins are better than the best apples. Apples are by nature a blander fruit. They can’t help it. Apples are also just so dang everywhere and \*that \*gives the real merit to the pitting. And let us not forget the over-hyped nutritional benefits of apples. They may not make you fat, but apples aren’t really going to go out of their way to keep the doctor away. You get a whole lot more vitamin C from most other fruits than you do from apples. Apples…just not a whole lot there. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2013, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/59 "2013-05-10T05:23:58Z")
Not only do I eat apples, I love Red Delicious apples the most \*because \*they are the blandest of all the apples. It’s like, if you’re forced to eat a turd do you want a turd with the richest texture, odor and taste, or do you want to eat the blandest turd possible? That’s what Red Delicious is, it’s the blandest of the turd of fruits, the apple. People who actually claim that apples are their favorite fruit are seriously messed up in the head. Honeycrisps should be outlawed. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2013, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854/60 "2013-05-10T07:13:44Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > The thing is, even at their best, apples don’t really measure up to other fruits. The best peach is better than the best apple. The best melon is better than the best apple. The same goes for pineapples, mangoes, pears, berries, nectarines, apricots, bananas, grapes, cherries, figs, grapefruits, pomelos, guavas, plums, lychee, papayas and kumquats. > > And if you want to compare apples and oranges, the finest navels, tangerines, tangelos, satsumas, mandarins, clementines, valencias, temples, bloods, and even Florida hamlins are better than the best apples. Apples are by nature a blander fruit. They can’t help it. Apples are also just so dang everywhere and \*that \*gives the real merit to the pitting. > > And let us not forget the over-hyped nutritional benefits of apples. They may not make you fat, but apples aren’t really going to go out of their way to keep the doctor away. You get a whole lot more vitamin C from most other fruits than you do from apples. > > Apples…just not a whole lot there. Have you ever actually eaten a fresh, ripe apple? - because most of what you said makes no sense to me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-apples/657854.md?page=4)