Easy Instant Pot Applesauce

Make my Easy Instant Pot Applesauce Recipe this fall.

It’s the perfect cinnamon-y accompaniment to your favorite autumn-inspired dishes…plus it has no added sugar!

Now, y’all know I love stupid-easy recipes. (I mean, that is what I named this website when I started it in 2011.)

But sometimes I have to stop for a minute and think, “Is this even really a recipe?! It’s so simple.”

That thought did cross my mind when I was making this Easy Instant Pot Applesauce, but I decided to write it all up, photograph it, and post it anyway.

Why? I want you to stop eating store-bought applesauce.

When I was in my low-fat diet – didn’t we all go through one?! – I ate those little round plastic tubs of applesauce with the foil lids like they were going out of style.

But the thing is, they never really tasted all that good. And worse, the one I used to eat all the time has high-frickin’ fructose corn syrup as the SECOND ingredient. Just no.

Now, when I have a hankering for applesauce, I make my own. It’s so easy to do, and the flavor is far better than store-bought.

This Easy Instant Pot Applesauce uses, well, the Instant Pot. It’s an electronic pressure cooker. I know pressure cookers can seem scary – I used to have a stove-top model that terrified me – but the new electronic ones are so simple to use.

It’s frickin’ awesome because it cooks food in just a fraction of the time without losing any flavor. At first, I totally held out on getting one because I didn’t want to buy into yet another food fad.

Well, turns out, I got one. Yep, I drank that kool-aid, and now I use mine almost every day.

If you don’t have an Instant Pot, get one already click here to see my stovetop recipe for either Blackberry Cinnamon Applesauce or Apricot Ginger Applesauce.

The ingredients for this Easy Instant Pot Applesauce are pretty dang simple. I used about three pounds of apples, about half pink lady and half granny smith.

I like the tartness of the granny smith paired with the sweetness of other apples. Don’t go crazy trying to find these exact varieties if they’re not available to you. I also like gala, macintosh, and cortland apples for this recipe.

If you can, a mixture of at least two different apples will give you a better result…some apples are better for cooking while others are better for eating. Mixing them will ensure you don’t end up with all of one kind.

I’m one of those people who doesn’t peel my apples for applesauce. C’mon, I’m kinda lazy and it easily doubles the prep time! But if that bothers you, feel free to peel them first.

Next, I add apple pie spice which is generally a mixture of cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg and sometimes cardamom. The different spices add warmth to the apples. Click here for my favorite apple pie spice.

And, I add some ghee or grass-fed butter to my Easy Instant Pot Applesauce recipe to lend some mouthfeel. If you can’t tolerate either, it’s fine to leave them out.

After everything is cooked, I mash it all with a potato masher and leave it a little bit on the chunky side. Again, it’s up to you how finely you mash your sauce.

This makes approximately 4 cups of applesauce, so feel free to adjust the recipe up or down in the recipe card below.

This Easy Instant Pot Applesauce recipe pairs really well with my:

• Cast Iron Skillet Chicken Thighs
• Honey Mustard Crock Pot Ribs
• Cranberry Orange Turkey Thighs
• Pulled Pork Stuffed Squash
• Stuffed Pork Loin Roast

Easy Instant Pot Applesauce

Course: Sauce

Cuisine: Egg-Free, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free, Instant Pot, Nut-Free, Vegetarian, Whole30

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 8

Calories: 108 kcal

Author: Steph Gaudreau

 Find out how simple it is to make Easy Instant Pot Applesauce. Never wait for an hour or longer on the stove again!

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Ingredients

• 3 lb apples cored and roughly chopped (peel if desired)
• 1 tbsp apple pie spice
• 1 tbsp ghee
• pinch cloves
• pinch sea salt
• 2 star anise optional
• 1/2 cup water

Instructions

1. Add the chopped apples, apple pie spice, ghee, cloves, sea salt and star anise (optional) to the Instant Pot. Toss everything to combine, then add 1/2 cup water.
2. Set the Instant Pot to Manual for 10 minutes. Manual is high pressure. 
3. After the cycle finishes, allow the pressure to release naturally for at least 15 minutes. Carefully remove the lid.
4. Mash the apples as finely as you'd like, and when the applesauce is cool enough, bottle it up.

Recipe Notes

Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Nutrition Facts

Easy Instant Pot Applesauce

Amount Per Serving

Calories 108 Calories from Fat 18

% Daily Value*

Fat 2g3%

Saturated Fat 1g5%

Cholesterol 4mg1%

Sodium 2mg0%

Potassium 186mg5%

Carbohydrates 24g8%

Fiber 4g16%

Sugar 17g19%

Vitamin A 90IU2%

Vitamin C 8mg10%

Calcium 17mg2%

Iron 0.4mg2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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