Why are bramley apples used for cooking?
Bramley apples are well known for being cooking apples. The reason for this is the unique combination of flavour and melt in the mouth texture in this English apple. As Bramley apple processors, we know that the tangy taste of the Bramley apple makes it an ideal flavour for cooking. Its acidity is mellowed but its low sugar content allows it to retain acidity and not become too sweet.
Eating apples – such as the Braeburn or Golden Delicious – have lower acid and more sugar. This means they can actually lose flavour during the cooking process, whereas Bramley retains its flavour.
You can eat a Bramley apple uncooked, but it is a very different taste to a cooked Bramley apple. Bramley apple processors would always recommend eating it cooked.
Popular ways to cook and enjoy a Bramley apple include:
- Apple pie
- Apple crumble
- A tarte tatin
- Apple sauce
- Stewed apples (great in your breakfast bowl of porridge)
- In savoury dishes such as curries or soup
The Bramley apple has a fascinating history. As Bramley apple processors in the heart of NI’s orchard city, we love the story of the Bramley’s seedling which grew from pips planted by a young girl, Mary Ann Brailsford.
Matthew Bramley, many years later, bought the cottage she had lived in. He was asked one day by local nurseryman Henry Merryweather if he could take cuttings from the Bramley apple trees. Matthew Bramley agreed, on the condition that the apple be named after him. He is now immortalised as the originator of the Bramley apple which now sells many thousands of tonnes every year.