Instant Pot Apple Butter

On a chilly fall day, there’s nothing better than a piece of toast slathered with this lovely Instant Pot apple butter. It brings all your favorite fall spices to the table.

Typically it can take hours to make apple butter. It’s not a quick process because you have to stew the apples and spices for a long time to extract the flavors and break down the fruit into a rich and flavorful spread. However, with the Instant Pot, that’s no longer the case.

You can actually make a batch on Instant Pot apple butter in just 45 minutes. What was once an all day process is now super simple. Something to note is that apple butter does not contain actual butter. It’s spiced apples that are cooked down and pureed into a super flavorful spread.

Jessica Formicola says: I made this apple butter over the weekend and it turned out perfectly. Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!

What You’ll Need

This recipe is fairly simple, with only a handful of ingredients.

• Apples – I like to use two different types of apples for more flavor – Fuji, Honey crisp, gala, pink lady. There’s no need to peel the apple, but they do need to be cored.
• Orange – I find that adding a little bit of citrus livens up the flavor
• Cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, and star anise – you can add clove too if you want. If you don’t have these in their full form, you can add a few teaspoons of ground spice, instead.
• Brown sugar – the brown sugar adds a bit of caramel flavor so I recommend not substituting for white sugar, however you could use a brown sugar substitute to lower the sugar content.
• Water – 1/2 a cup of water is enough for a 6-quart Instant Pot, but you’ll need to add at least 1 cup of water to an 8-quart pot.

If you like this apple butter, you’ll want to give our Instant Pot Apple Cider a try.

Helpful Tips

• Store in jars in the fridge for up to 7 days or in the freezer for up to a year. You can also can the apple butter, following a safe canning method.
• There’s no need to peel the apples, they will cook down and be pureed in the end.
• If you like more spice, you can add two cinnamon sticks, nutmeg and star anise. You can also add clove, if you like it.
• This recipe is vegan and gluten free.

How to Make Instant Pot Apple Butter

Step 1: Wash and prep the apples

Wash the apples and then cut the cores out of them. You can leave them in halves or quarters. There’s no need to peel the apples. For the orange, I only use half of it, or it can be overpowering. So just slice about 3-4 slices and remove the peel. Pour the fruit into the Instant Pot inner pot.

Step 2: Add the other ingredients

Add the cinnamon sticks, nutmeg and star anise. If you like more spice, you can add two of each. You can also add clove, if you like it.

Pour in the water and brown sugar. Stir it all up. Then lock the lid.

Step 3: Pressure cook

Press the pressure cook button and set the time to 15 minutes on high pressure. After time is up, allow a natural release for 15 minutes, then turn off the Instant Pot and open the lid.

Depending on how much water you added, the mixture might still be a little liquidy at this stage. You can scoop out some of the cider to make it thicker, or turn on sauté mode to let the liquid cook down for about 5 minutes. How long you let it reduce depends on how thick you want the butter to be.

Step 4: Blend

Using an immersion blender, blend it up until it’s super smooth. You need to be sure to pulverize all of the apple skins. If you don’t have an immersion blender, cool the mixture and blend it in the blender in batches until smooth.

How to Store It

Allow your homemade apple butter to cool completely, then store in jars in the fridge. It’ll keep in the fridge for 7 days, so you’ll have to eat it quickly. If you don’t think you’ll be able to get through it, you can freeze it. I like to put it in ice cube trays and make cubes out of it that can be frozen for up to a year.

You can also can the apple butter, following a safe canning method. This is a step that I don’t do because we tend to use it up quicker than that. But if you make a lot and want to store it, or give it away as gifts, this is a good thing to do.

What to Use Apple Butter For

Apple Butter is a fantastic spread for all types of bread, biscuits, muffins, toast or pancakes and waffles. We also love to serve it with a cheese plate. It also goes well with pork, so you can serve it as a sauce with pork roast or pork chops.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between apple butter and apple sauce?

Apple butter is cooked down for a long period of time where the water cooks out. It is then pureed into a super flavorful spread. Applesauce is cooked less and usually has chunks of apples.

What are the best apples to use for apple butter?

I like to use two different types of apples for more flavor – Fuji, Honey crisp, gala, granny smith, or pink lady. Mixing 2 different types of apples will add more flavor and texture.

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