The 5 Best Dried Apples – Buyer’s Guide
Having a balanced diet has become doubly important nowadays. You need to ensure that you are getting the right kinds of nutrients consistently. This is what makes fruits so important.
Aside from being tasty treats that everyone enjoys, they are also packed to the brim with all kinds of vitamins and minerals that your body desperately needs. Apples are especially healthy and must become part of your staple food.
Just remember that men are recommended to consume 2 cups of fruits daily while the ideal amount for women is at 1.5 cups. Of course, a common problem with this is the fact that you probably won’t have access to fruits all the time.
Factors like price, seasons, and location can directly affect this as well. Luckily, there is a way to get around that. Eating dehydrated fruit is one of the most convenient ways to consistently meet your recommended fruit intake.
But what are the best dried apples? The best dried apples should be made with organic, high-quality apples and dried through baking or freeze-drying to preserve more of the apple’s natural nutritional content and flavor. It is a good idea to choose dried apples made from your preferred varieties, as well.
There is certainly no shortage of dried apples available today. Dried apples should help you meet the requirements of your healthy diet by giving you all the essential nutrients you need.
To help you meet your nutritional needs, we have listed down a couple of the best dried apples in the market today, as well as
How to Find the Best Dried Apples
So, before we begin, we need to establish what it is we are looking for from these dried apple products.
In case you were wondering, aren’t they all the same? The answer to that is a resounding no!
Like with everything else, not all dried apple products are made with the same level of quality and detail. That is why we are looking to identify which brands can be considered as the best dried apples.
For the sake of fairness and transparency, we made this list of criteria that the product must pass before they can get on this list.
We think these requirements best define what makes for great dried apples:
1. Taste: It should go without saying that the taste of apple must be there. Many brands use particular varieties of apples, or have multiple flavor options. So if you’re a fan of honeycrisp, look for honeycrisp or other sweeter varieties!
Of course, other flavors may be added to accentuate and compliment the taste of apple – cinnamon and sugar being the most commonly used flavorings for apple. But you don’t want the natural flavor of the fruit to be overwhelmed.
2. Health Benefits: As you are probably aware, it is not just the ingredients that determine the food’s health benefits. It is a mixture of different factors, the most important of which is the way it was cooked and prepared.
For instance, was the dried apple fried, baked, or just freeze-dried? Does the brand have sulfuric preservatives? Baked or freeze-dried apples are often the healthier choices – just watch preserving ingredients
Does the brand use GMO or organic apples? Organic is always a great choice, for quality and maximum nutrition.
3. Texture and Crispness: Dried apples should have that crispy, almost potato-chip-like texture to them. We deeply appreciate it if there is a bit of crunchiness and a certain level of crispness to every bite.
4. Versatility: This is a matter of preference, but you may enjoy plain baked or dried apples, as they can pair with other flavors or snacks more easily. Cinnamon or other flavors may be great, but you may also tire of them more easily.
The 5 Best Dried Apples
Here are our top picks for dried apples:
| Rank | Product | Flavor/Type |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Brothers All Natural Fruit Crisps | Fuji apples |
| 2. | Trader Joe's Crunchy Dried Apples | Honeycrisp |
| 3. | TreeTop Dried Apple Slices | Honeycrisp |
| 4. | Natierra Organic Freeze-Dried Apples | Grannysmith |
| 5. | Bare Baked Crunchy Apples | Cinnamon |
We know you want to make an informed decision, though, so we’ve included more details on each below. We don’t know if an apple a day will really keep the doc away, but at the very least, you’ll definitely enjoy any of these, daily or otherwise.
1. Brothers-All-Natural Fuji Apple Crisps (24pk)
The next dried apple product on our list is the Brothers-All-Natural Fuji Apple Crisps.
Before we say anything else, one of the reasons we love these crisps has a lot to do with the unique process that goes into making them.
What they do is they take high-quality and delicious fruits and put them through a process called freeze-drying. This process entails removing the fruit’s excess water without compromising or damaging its natural cell structures.
This only means that the apple’s flavors and nutrients remain intact and untouched. The final result gives us chips that are light yet packed with flavors.
When you bite into the chips, you can instantly tell that you are eating real sliced fruits. This gives these crisps a lot of advantages in numerous areas, including flavor levels.
This process also ensures that there are no additives that go into the fruits. So, all of its nutritional benefits remain intact, making this the perfect snack for the whole family.
We simply can’t recommend this enough.
2. Trader Joe’s Crunchy Dried Honey Crisp Apples (2pk)
Another Freeze-Dried treat, Trader Joe’s gives us crisps with all the flavors and nutrients you would expect from a piece of fresh fruit.
Like the other treats made in the same way, these snacks have no added sugar content. Needless to say, they can be considered one of the best snacks around.
Your fitness and wellness goals wouldn’t seem so far-off when you incorporate these dried apple snacks into your diet. But you can simply enjoy these as a wholesome snack, not just as a healthy one.
You should have no trouble reaching your dietary requirements with the high levels of vitamins, nutrients, and fiber they contain.
3. Tree Top Organic Dried Honeycrisp Apple Slices (20oz)
Honeycrisp is the apple variety used to make these dried apple snacks. They are known for their tarty and sweet flavor, which easily becomes apparent when you taste these slices.
It has a pleasant taste that isn’t overwhelmingly sweet. Instead, it retains the distinct taste of the Honeycrisp apples they used to make these snacks.
It is also worth mentioning that the apple slices look great as well. They retain the fruit’s natural color, something other brands seem to have trouble with. They do not have that chemically-induced whiteness that other dried apples have.
In terms of snacks, you can surely do worse. If you are planning to go to the gym, or on a hike, then these dried apple slices from Tree Top Organic should help give you the fuel you need.
4. Natierra Organic Freeze-Dried Apples (1.5oz)
Another product that we just adored, these freeze-dried apples from Natierra are something else. Made from organic apples, they are the definition of a healthy and family-friendly snack.
It is made clear that its manufacturers understand the fact that apples are delicious enough on their own. That is why no sugar or other artificial sweeteners were added to make these snacks.
Again, it seems freeze-dried is fast becoming our favorite method of preparation for these types of snacks. They are irresistible with their crisp texture and rich fruity flavor.
It would seem unthinkable that such a tasty snack can be filled with loads of vitamins and fiber yet have a crunchy snap when you bite into it. Yet, here we are.
You are practically spoiled for choice in terms of how you can eat these dried apple snacks. While they are good enough to eat on their own, they can also be incorporated into baked treats, smoothies, and other snacks. The choice is yours!
5. Bare Baked Crunchy Apples: Cinnamon (16pk.)
Lastly, we have the Crunchy Apple Chips from Bare. There is certainly a lot to unpack here.
One of the first things that stood out to us is the fact that these dried non-GMO apple snacks were baked. The distinctive flavor of fresh apples simply stands out.
It is also a welcome bonus that these chips are incredibly crunchy and crisp. They are even packed in a similar fashion which effectively makes them a portable and convenient snack that you can eat anytime you wish.
Surprisingly, eating them straight from the bag isn’t only your option. It seems Bare went the extra mile and invested in the snack’s versatility.
For instance, you can mix them in your yogurt, toss them in your blender for a smoothie, or mix them with your salad. They can even be dipped into nut butter if that is what you want.
Nutritional Benefits of Dried Apples
Let us take a look at the wide array of nutritional benefits that dried apples bring.
- High Levels of Fiber: It always comes as a surprise to most that dried apples have high fiber content. On average, a half-cup serving has around 3.7 grams fiber. That is quite a lot. This means that a single serving should give you 13 percent of your fiber requirements.
- Vitamins: Since it comes from fruit, it is hardly surprising that dried apples a lot of vitamins. For instance, these include Vitamins C and A that help promote healthy skin and strong bones. There are also high levels of vitamin B that effectively promote your metabolism. Interestingly, dried apples also carry an abundance of vitamin B-6 and B-5.
- Minerals: Dried apples are rich in essential minerals like potassium and iron. Both of these are supposed to ensure that your body has the energy to carry on during the day. This would explain the significant energy boost people have when they regularly eat these types of snacks.
Review
These are just some of the best dried apple products we found. We love them not just because they are extremely tasty, but because of the sheer level of nutritional value that they pack.
So be sure to stock up on these so you can integrate them into your regular diet!
