Cooking apples

Cooking apples are usually large, easy to grow, and with the strong sharp flavours needed for culinary uses.

Annie Elizabeth
A traditional English cooking apple, with a sweet flavour, which keeps its shape when cooked.
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Flowering group: 4
Arthur Turner
A mid-season cooking apple, producing a light yellow puree. Very attractive blossom.
- Picking season: Mid
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)
Blenheim Orange
Blenheim Orange is a classic English dual-purpose apple, useful for dessert and culinary purposes.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)
Bloody Ploughman
An old Scottish apple variety, named for the crimson-red colour of its skin and stained flesh.
- Picking season: Mid
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 4
Bountiful
Bountiful is an easy-to-grow cooking apple, it retains its shape when cooked, fairly sweet for a cooker.
£60.50buy
- Picking season: Mid
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 2
Bramley 20
Bramley 20 is a naturally smaller version of Bramley's Seedling (the apples are the same size though).
£56.50 - £60.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
Bramley's Seedling
Bramley is the essential English cooking apple, famous for its rich sharp acidity.
£56.50 - £61.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)
Galloway Pippin
A traditional Scottish cooking apple which keeps its shape when cooked.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
- Awards: RHS 1st class
Grenadier
Grenadier is an early-season cooking apple, and one of the most foolproof apple varieties.
- Picking season: Early
- Self-fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)
Hidden Rose®
Hidden Rose is named for the unexpected pink flesh hidden behind the plain green skin.
- Picking season: Very late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 2
Howgate Wonder
Howgate Wonder is a large cooking apple which keeps well. Produces an excellent sharp juice.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)
Isaac Newton's Tree
Also known as Flower of Kent, this is the variety the famous scientist Sir Isaac Newton sat under.
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 5
Keswick Codlin
Keswick Codlin is a popular early-season cooking apple, easy to grow, and productive in most climates.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Early
- Self-fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Flowering group: 2
Lady Henniker
A well-regarded Victorian dual-purpose apple, easy to grow.
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 4
Lane's Prince Albert
A classic Victorian cooking apple. Plenty of juicy acidity and stores well.
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 4
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)
Lord Derby
Lord Derby is a high-quality mid/late-season traditional English cooking apple, cooks to a chunky puree.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 4
Morgan Sweet
Morgan Sweet is a traditional English cider variety producing a full sweet juice.
- Picking season: Early
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 4
Newton Wonder
A traditional English cooking apple, a good alternative to Bramley.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Flowering group: 4
- Awards: RHS AGM (former)
Peasgood's Nonsuch
Peasgood Nonsuch is a highly-regarded old-fashioned English cooking apple.
- Picking season: Mid
- Self-fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)
Reverend W. Wilks
A widely-grown and well-regarded English cooking apple.
- Picking season: Early
- Self-fertility: Self-fertile
- Flowering group: 2
Scotch Bridget
A popular Scottish cooking apple, well-suited to damp wet conditions.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
Scotch Dumpling
Scotch Dumpling is a large Scottish cooking apple. Cooks to a frothy puree with a good flavour.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Early
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 2
Stirling Castle
A traditional Scottish cooker from the Victorian era, with a good sharp flavour.
£56.50buy
- Picking season: Mid
- Self-fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Flowering group: 2
Tom Putt
An old traditional English cider variety with a sharp juice, which can also be used for cooking.
- Picking season: Early
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 3
Warner's King
An 18th century English cooker which remains popular. Cooks to a sharp-flavoured puree.
- Picking season: Late
- Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
- Flowering group: 2
- Awards: RHS AGM (current)

How to choose Cooking apples

There is no doubt that the famous Bramley's Seedling still rightly reigns supreme. Characterised by its copious rich juicy acidity it quickly renders to stiff puree in the kitchen, and is the benchmark for English apple cookery. However we have noticed a real resurgence in interest in the humble cooking apple in recent years, with cooks looking beyond Bramley for other qualities and textures.

Look out for cooking apples which ripen earlier than Bramley, such as Grenadier or Keswick Codlin.

Scotland also has a strong tradition of cooking apples - Galloway Pippin, Scotch Bridget, Scotch Dumpling for example. This also illustrates another useful quality of cooking apples - they can be productive even in climates where grey skies and rain are more frequent than sun and blue skies.

Many cooking apples are also great for juicing, especially if you like your apple juice to have a bit of an acidic kick.