Choosing the Right Apple for the Job

Anyone who has cooked with apples for a few seasons learns the same lesson: the variety matters more than the recipe. A Bramley forced into a salad is a disappointment; a crisp Cox's Orange Pippin stewed for pork turns to bland mush. Get the fruit right and the cooking almost takes care of itself.

Broadly, British apples fall into three camps, and it pays to know which is which before you fill a bag at the farm gate or the Saturday market.

• Cookers — Bramley, Lord Derby, Edward VII. High acid, low sugar, and they break down into a soft, fluffy purée. These are the apples for crumbles, sauces, pies and anything you want to taste properly sharp.
• Eaters — Cox's Orange Pippin, Discovery, Katy, Egremont Russet, Ashmead's Kernel. Firm, aromatic and sweet-sharp. Best eaten raw, sliced into salads, or used where you want the fruit to hold its shape.
• Dual-purpose — Blenheim Orange, James Grieve, Worcester Pearmain. Reliable all-rounders when you have a glut and no patience for sorting.

Start with that, and everything below becomes easier.

The Autumn Crumble, Done Properly

The crumble is the first thing most of us make when the nights draw in, and it is worth doing well. Peel, core and slice about 900g of Bramleys into a buttered dish, toss with 2 tablespoons of caster sugar, a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of mixed spice. If the apples are very wet, add a teaspoon of cornflour to thicken the juices.

For the topping, rub 175g of cold butter into 250g of plain flour until it looks like rough breadcrumbs, then stir through 100g of demerara sugar and 75g of porridge oats. Scatter it thickly and don't press it down — you want a craggy surface with plenty of edges to catch. Bake at 180°C (160°C fan, gas 4) for 35 to 40 minutes until the fruit bubbles at the edges and the top is properly golden.

Serve with hot custard, clotted cream or vanilla ice cream, and give it ten minutes to settle before you dig in. A crumble straight from the oven will scald you and collapse on the plate.

Stewed Apples for Pork

A roast loin of pork with crackling and a dish of sharp apple sauce is one of the great British pairings, and it takes fifteen minutes. Peel and roughly chop 500g of cookers, put them in a pan with a splash of water, a knob of butter and a tablespoon of sugar, and cook gently until they collapse. Beat with a wooden spoon rather than a blender; a little texture is welcome.

If you want something a touch more grown-up, stew sliced dual-purpose apples with a sliced onion, a bay leaf and 150ml of dry cider until tender, then serve warm alongside the carved meat. The cider's acidity cuts the richness beautifully. The same mixture works cold the next day with leftover roast pork and a baked potato.

Pies, Tarts and a Word on Pastry

For a classic double-crust apple pie, use a mix: roughly two-thirds Bramley to one-third eater. The cookers give you flavour and the eaters keep some structure, so you don't end up with a hollow shell of syrup. Sweeten with light brown sugar, add a little cinnamon and a grating of nutmeg, and let the filling cool completely before it goes anywhere near the pastry — warm fruit will wreck a butter crust.

Shortcrust is the traditional choice, but puff makes a lovely open tart. Roll it thin, layer overlapping slices of Cox or Egremont Russet across the top in neat circles or a rough tumbling pattern, brush with melted butter and dust with demerara. Bake hot, around 200°C (180°C fan, gas 6), for 25 minutes.

Cakes, Teabreads and a Splash of Cider

Apples and cake are natural companions. A Dorset apple cake, made with a light sponge and chunks of fruit folded through, needs nothing more than a dusting of icing sugar. For a tea loaf, soak 300g of diced apple in 200ml of strong tea overnight, then beat in soft brown sugar, an egg, and enough self-raising flour to bring it to a dropping consistency. Bake in a lined loaf tin at 170°C (150°C fan, gas 3) for about an hour.

A spoonful of cider works wonders in savoury cooking too — deglaze a pan of pork chops or sausages with it, then stir in a little mustard and cream. If you are pressing your own fruit or buying from a small local maker, keep a bottle back from the racking for the kitchen. Dry, tannic cider made from bittersweet varieties such as Dabinett or Yarlington Mill gives the best depth.

Sweet Eaters and Storing the Harvest

Don't cook every apple you bring home. The sweet eaters earn their place raw: core and slice a Discovery or Katy into a salad with celery, walnuts and a mustardy dressing, or serve thin wedges alongside a strong Cheddar. Cut apples brown quickly, so toss them in lemon juice if they are going to sit for more than a few minutes.

For storage, wrap sound, unblemished fruit individually in newspaper and lay them in single layers in a cool, dark, frost-free shed or garage. Check them every fortnight and remove any that are going soft, because one bad apple really will spoil the rest. Cookers tend to keep until Christmas; eaters are best eaten by November.

There is something quietly satisfying about seeing a crate of your own apples through to a February crumble. Choose well, cook simply, and the autumn looks after itself.