Fried apples are slowly cooked in browned butter and sugar for an amazing, yet easy addition to any dinner. Caramelized apples will melt in your melt.
One of our favorite meals is my mother-in-laws’ fried chicken dinner. While the fried chicken is amazing, her method is the same used by Ashely Christensen, the fried apples that accompany the chicken have always been my favorite part of the dinner. I have to admit, that fried apples would have never been served in my house growing up, but I don’t really think of these as fried, more like sautéed in brown butter deliciousness.
I think it helps to cook these in an iron skillet if you have one available, if not a regular skillet will still work. You start by browning the butter. Next add thickly sliced apples to the browned butter, add sugar and let them cook for about 30-45 minutes. Cooking them slowly allows the apples and sugar to caramelize without getting too mushy, you don’t want applesauce. Try to avoid the temptation to stir them. You’ll stir them once after adding the sugar but then let them be.
You also want to use firm apples. Gala’s looked the best this week which is what I used, but Fuji’s are my favorite. You can definitely cut down on the sugar depending on your preference, but you’ll need some. There’s just something about these sweet apples that are perfect with fried chicken. And don’t forget some buttermilk biscuits and the green beans that have been cooked with a little bacon for 4 hours. Now you have the perfect Southern dinner.
Fried Apples
Fried Apples – slowly cooked in brown butter and sugar, these are amazing with fried chicken
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Side
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- 6 large firm apples, cored and thickly sliced
- ¼ cup water
- 1 ½ cups sugar
Instructions
- In a 12 inch iron skillet or non-stick, cook butter over medium heat until it begins to turn brown.
- Add apples that have been cut into thick 1 inch slices, do not peel. Add water and sugar and stir to combine. Bring to a boil and simmer over medium heat for 30-45 minutes depending on the firmness of the apples. Do not stir or they will get mushy.
- Let cool slightly before serving.
