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Learn how to make probiotic rich fermented apple sauce with this easy tutorial. This recipe is great for kids and adults!
This is my daughters new favorite snack! I’ve been trying to give her more fermented and cultured foods over the last few months. This apple sauce recipe along with full fat yogurt seem to be her favorite (for now).
You may be wondering why I ferment my apple sauce. Fermented foods are incrediblegood for the digestive system. They help build up good bacteria in the gut! Sauerkraut is one of the more popular fermented foods but unfortunately my kids don’t like it much.
But apple sauce – just about every kid likes apple sauce! This recipe is simple, popular, AND healthy.
How to make probiotic fermented apple sauce
Start by gathering your ingredients. You’ll need:
- 6 – 8 medium size organic apples
- 2 tablespoons whey or water kefir
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon sea salt (optional)
And then here’s how to combine them:
- Core and slice the apples.
- Blend apples in your food processor until they reach desired consistency. (I like a little chunky, but you may be different!) Add whey or kefir, cinnamon and salt.
- Blend until smooth.
- Pour apple sauce into a clean quart size jar (or 2 pint size jars).
- Leave an inch of space from apple sauce to lid. If you don’t, you may have an explosion!
- Place somewhere warm for 3 days.
This apple sauce will keep in your refrigerator for up to two months!
And if you liked this recipe, I bet you’ll love these other healthy recipes:
- Coconut berry bars
- Healthy homemade Mounds candy
- Coconut gummy snacks
Probiotic Fermented Apple Sauce
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5 from 2 reviews
Learn how to make probiotic rich fermented apple sauce with this easy tutorial. This recipe is great for kids and adults!
- Author: The Coconut Mama
- Yield: 1 quart 1x
Ingredients
- 6 – 8 medium size organic apples
- 2 tablespoons whey or water kefir
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon sea salt (optional)
Instructions
- Core and slice apples.
- Process apples in food processor until it reaches desired consistency. Add whey, cinnamon and salt.
- Blend until smooth.
- Pour apple sauce into a clean quart size jar (or 2 pint size jars).
- Leave an inch of space from apple sauce to lid. If you don’t, you may have an explosion!
- Place in warm place for 3 days.
- Keep in refrigerator for up to 2 months.
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About Tiffany Pelkey
Tiffany is the founder of the wellness website Coconut Mama where she spent over a decade creating coconut-inspired recipes and tutorials. Tiffany lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family and works as a freelance writer, recipe creator, and photographer. She studies aromatherapy and herbalism and loves to cook plant-based meals. You can follow Tiffany on Instagram.
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Reader Interactions
97 Comments
Wendy CHello! I saw someone else asked my question but I couldn’t see an answer. Can probiotics be used in place of the kefir or whey? I would love to make this without wheat/dairy and brewing a batch of water kefir. Thanks so much!
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- Tiffany Marie
Hi Wendy! Yes, a probiotic powder of capsules will work in place of whey.
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- Marie
The recipe didn’t work without the salt. Almost no fermentation even with the whey. Plus it looks very brown. Would it help to add lemon juice to reduce oxidation? Thanks.
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- Kristine
I am on an anti candida diet and can only eat granny smith apples. Is there any reason I can’t ferment that type of apple?
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- Jennifer
What is the alcohol content?
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- Jim
I find that sometimes my applesauce ferments all by itself, just by going in and out of the refrigerator. I don’t let it happen on purpose , it just gets that way sometimes, when it gets older, and at first it really surprised me. It was as sweet as always, but when that cold carbonated stuff began to sizzle on my tongue… wow!! It was pure delight! I quickly checked in the jar for mold or something like that, but saw nothing untoward, and tried it again and it was great!
When that jar was gone, I did not find it occurring in the next ones and wondered if I would ever find such a treat again. I considered putting a little yeast in a jar , but was afraid that would sour it, and kind of hoped however it happened, it might again and kind of wistfully forgot about it… until several nights ago! We were having pork for supper and I finished with my the applesauce to cut the grease, and suddenly felt that cold, sweet sizzle on my tongue again and it was even better than I remembered! I savored it for a while, and asked my wife to save the remainder of the jar until we get another one, and I plan to transfer some of it to the new jar,
Store it the fridge and out and see what happens. I hope that, as with sourdough, a little of the old will start the process anew. Wish me luck!.
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- Kathryn Comerford
Would hot water/pressure canning the finished product destroy the probiotic benefit? We use a lot of apple sauce in baking and usually I hot water bath process the jars as I want a longer shelf life.
thanks
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- Mark
I’m a first timer and a little confused. I bought “water kefir grains” on Amazon. They are like little crystals. I just mixed them in with the applesauce (there wasn’t even a full tablespoon of the crystals in the packet). I’m guessing I messed this up. Am I supposed to make “water kefir” first, and then use a tablespoon of that? Please help!
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- Priscilla
Hi, yup that was a goof. You use the crystal in a sugar water for 24-48 hours (do NOT refrigerate, it will stop them from working), drain the liquid (which is the water kefir you measure and add to the applesauce, if you are only doing 1 fermentation stage you can now refrigerate this water, try to use up in a few days to a week), and put the grains (that can look a bit like jelly now) into a new batch of sugar water (do not refrigerate, leave them on the counter or in a cupboard is fine). The grains you get in the mail are dehydrated and so you have to wake them up and get them growing again. because they are waking up it might take a little longer to ferment things and the taste of each batch for the first week or two might be different from each other. If they get too cold they slow down fermenting,a warm kitchen they ferment well/faster, if they get too hot (above 95 degrees fahrenheit)they start dieing. Also if you don’t give them a new batch of sugar water (it is their food) they start starving and dieing, also makes the mix even more sour because ALL the sugar is gone.
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- Folake
Hi Tiffany,
Great recipe and I can’t wait to try it. Quick question though, in the absence of any of the starter cultures that you’ve mentioned, would probiotics work, do you think? And if so, how much? Many thanks. Folake
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- Stephanie
Would coconut water kefir work?
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- Emily McMillan
I made this and the taste is evervescent. It’s supposed to taste like this, correct?
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- Miriam
How old should baby be to feed this? My son is 6 months and we are starting solids. Would love to give him some fermented food to hopefully help constipation.
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- suzi
kombucha would do the same in place of the kefir, right? this sounds great!! i have kombucha and i have apples : )
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- barb
if you get mold on top it is ok just scrap it off if it smells bad with mold its bad throw it out you will know its bad when its bad it just stinks really bad
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- Wendy Yi
If you keep getting mold on top, use a zip lock baggie full of water to remove the air. Mold is aerobic and can only grow with access to oxygen.
see this Sauerkraut recipe.
http://onparadisecove.blogspot.com/2012/06/harvest-monday-and-sauerkraut.htmlreply to comment
- Rina
Do I need to burp this as it ferments?
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- Cori
Couple of quick questions if anyone can answer this. I’ll have the air on and I keep the thermostat at 71/72, is this warm enough? I am wondering if I can just use the dehydrator but the lowest setting I have is 95 and for how long now? If I can make yogurt in the dehydrator surely I can do the applesauce but I can’t find any links on fermented apple sauce and dehydrators. I guess #2 will be answered about the fuzziness on top like some other people have mentioned. I don’t want to throw out a batch if this is something that can be scraped off or stirred back in.
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- Allison
The first batch I made was awesome! No issues. The second batch had fuzzy stuff on the top. Is this yeast or mold? Either way what do you know what caused this, and how I can prevent it? I did open the jar on a daily basis to let breath, is this where I went wrong? Can I just scrap it off or do I just throw it out?
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- Amanda
So I tried this… But I’m not sure it worked?? My jar lid seemed to have sealed when left for the three days? And it seems to taste really salty? Did I do something wrong?!
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- Kristine
I used whey (that I separated from my yogurt). The yogurt was pasteurized store bought organic. Will that work? Thanks!
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- Roberta
Can you use whey isolate instead of the whey, or whey protein hydrolysate?
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- Georgie
I’m so excited to try this – just finished making my whey. Is it freezable?
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- Audrey
I love this idea, and I have tons of apple sauce canned from last fall. Can I use cooked apple sauce for this recipe? There is no sugar in it. Thanks!
Audreyreply to comment
- The Coconut Mama
Yes! It should work just fine.
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- Summer
So I am up to day 2 and mine has fuzzy mould on top, is this normal? Is it ok to eat?
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- Lesley Earl
I’ve already cooked and frozen my apple sauce can I thaw it and then ferment I’ll use whey. Also my oven light doesn’t work and isn’t easily accessible to replace bulb (Need a socket which I do not have) so would a heating pad on low work as a warming source?
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- Erin Lyons Harris
Does the whey have to be raw? I buy liquid whey from a local dairy (they sell the whey left over from making cheese) but it’s pasteurized.
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- Tiffany @ The Coconut Mama
Yes. The live bacteria is needed to culture the applesauce.
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- Laura
Do you think a ginger bug would work as a starter. I don’t keep water kefir because I usually forget about it for a while and it gets gross, but I can restart a ginger bug easily at any time.
Thanksreply to comment
- Tiffany @ The Coconut Mama
I bet it will but i can’t say for sure because I haven’t tried it. Please let me know how it turns out if you try it. Thanks!
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- Aliyanna Mancuso
Was wondering how this would work with pumpkin or winter squash???
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- Faith Gauthier
This looks wonderful for my little guy who is gluten free. Thanks for sharing.
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- Erica M
I’ve just made applesauce and used a small amount of chai spiced Kombucha as the only addition and it is great. Next I,m going to make a larger quantity so I can lacto ferment some.
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- MamaA
Do you think you could make it in a vitamix instead? I don’t have a large food processor.
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- The Coconut Mama
Yes, I think a vitamix would work great 🙂
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- Liz
I just used a vitamix and it worked great! I can’t wait to eat it in a few days.
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- Kera
I love, love, LOVE this recipe! I make it in four quart batches at a time. (need to feed five kids) and when I let it sit out long enough it forms one mass, like apple yogurt 🙂 Super yummy! Thanks for posting!
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- Lynn
Do you use whey or water kefir? And where do you get yours? Thank you.
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- Amy
Help! I made the fermented apple sauce exactly as the recipe says but I’m not sure it worked. It tastes great. Just like apple sauce, not sure it fermented. The cover didn’t pop when I opened it, was it supposed to? As you might be able to tell this is the first time I’ve tried fermenting. Thank you for any help you can give me.
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- A different Amy!
How funny, this is the exact question I came on here to ask. I looked through the comments to see whether anyone had mentioned this, and sure enough, you did! Does anyone know the answer to this?
It tasted the exact same after sitting out for a few days as it did when I first pureed it. When I ferment other things, they taste completely different after fermenting.
Also, it never burped or popped when I opened it. The recipe warns to leave an inch of headspace to avoid an explosion. Does it mean I did something wrong since mine didn’t have that issue?
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- Shaina
We keep our thermostat at 60 during the winter, is this too cold for this to ferment? Should I put it in my dehydrator on a low setting? Thanks!
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- The Coconut Mama
Yes, I would put it in your dehydrator. The temperature needs to be 70-75 degrees :).
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- Lisa in TX
Or put it in a closed oven with just the light turned on.
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- Elizabeth
The honey doesn’t counteract the bacteria in the fermentation process? This sounds great, but I thought honey was a “no-no”.
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- The Coconut Mama
The recipe for apple butter in Nourishing Traditions uses raw honey, so I assumed it would be okay in this recipe too! I haven’t had any trouble with it fermenting properly.
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- Jennifer @ How to Peel an Onion
I’m about to try this right now! Seems like just the thing to get my son into fermented foods. Thanks!
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- lydia
Tiffany, I love you!! I have been wanting to do this very thing! I love the idea of using water kefir, how complimentary! Gonna try this soon!
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- KomBuChaCha
Have you seen the ‘Apple Pie’ smoothie @ Cultures for Health? Combines applesauce w/ dairy kefir, bet your daughter would *love* it! (we sure do) Hubby has me add extra cinnamon, plus I add a frozen banana per person in the Vitamix when I whip it up… yum! http://tinyurl.com/3h4cs4j
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- Ruthann
Can the fermented applesauce be put in the freezer? At what stage?
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
@ Peggy – Yes, it can turn brown on top. You can scoop off the top layer if you prefer.
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- peggy
i just made this using honey then fermenting i am wondering if it is supposed to turn brown on top?
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- Anonymous
can this be done with cooked apples?
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- Jennifer Linden
I’d like to know this one, too. I made applesauce and canned it this summer, but would LOVE to just pull some out and ferment it. Do you suppose it would work?
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- anna
ah good to know then .. . .
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- Krista
It worked okay, but the water kefir just keeps eating the natural sugars so it turns “off” pretty quickly in my experience.
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- anna
how did the water kefir work?
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- Krista
Tiffany, thanks for the quick reply. It's so nice knowing there's this great community for those new to fermentation. Thanks a ton for all the help. I'll let you know how it turns out with the water kefir.
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
Krista – you just need at least an inch of space =)
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- Krista
Okay, I'm trying this recipe out now, substituting water kefir for the whey. I used about 1/2 cup of water kefir to 4 apples, since water kefir is more dilute than the dairy counterparts.
The question I have is I'm using a 1/2 gallon jar to ferment, and the jar is only half full. Is it important to have *only* 1 inch headspace, or is it okay to have a lot more than that?
I'm sure Nourishing Traditions answers this question, but I just requested it from my library and there's 17 people in front of me. Thanks!
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
@ Menueys – You can actually ferment cooked food. I ferment my beans and other cooked foods (recipes from Nourishing Traditions). I did wonder if the honey would be okay, so I did some research and looked at other recipes. There's an apple butter recipe in nourishing traditions that calls for raw honey that is fermented. You could omit the honey, or add it after you've fermented the apple sauce if you prefer.
I think this recipe is more beneficial raw, but it does not have to be raw.
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- Menueys
Faedemere – I don't think you can cook them and then have them ferment; the lacto bacteria would be dead, right? Or did you mean adapt your recipe to fermentation w/o cooking? Also, not sure about honey w/ lacto ferments?! want to try this but I've only done cabbage and carrots, lol!
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- Wendy
Oh thank you for this! I am VERY new to the cultured veggie thing and having a difficult time getting my 4 and 6 yy girls to try them…excited to try this! Keep them coming!
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
@totiemotie – I left the peep on. I like easy =). You can peel yours if you prefer it that way.
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- totiemotie
Do you peel your apples first or leave the peel on??
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
@ Rosalyn – I tried this with salt and it turned out very salty. That is why I went with the whey. You can use whichever method you prefer =)
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
@ Faedemere – You cane use your favorite recipe. Just add the whey at the end and leave it out to ferment for a few days.
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
@ Aiming4simple – Yes. I bet that would taste terrific!
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- Rosalyn
Actually you can use a little sea salt instead of whey. The “lacto” in lacto-fermentation refers not so much to the whey, but to the lactic acid that is produced by enzyme activity (which is why fermentation is good for you).
I use salt instead of whey in my fermentation and it works great.
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- Nichol-Doula
I'm curious, do you have to puree the apples? We like our applesauce chunky. Do you cook the apples? My recipe is to peel and core the apple and slow cook them with just enough water to cover in the crock pot along with 2 cinnamon sticks and honey.
How could I adapt that to use the fementation?reply to comment
- Aiming4Simple
I have never lacto-fermented anything before. Do you think I could add cranberries to this?
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- Farmgirl Cyn
Dang! Wish I'd have thought of this a few weeks ago when I had 2 bushels of apples! I have been on a fermenting binge, but had never thought of apples. Next year for sure!
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- Brandon May
I just “re-discovered” apple sauce this Thanksgiving, and this gives me a good excuse to make a version packed full of nutrition. So far I've made lacto-fermented ketchup. I love fermenting condiments, but never thought of this.
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- Tiffany - The Coconut Mama
Krista- I believe you can. Let me know how it turns out!
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- Krista
Great idea! I do have a question. My daughter is sensitive to dairy, it makes her wheeze. Can I replace whey with water kefir when doing fermentation?
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