Crab Apple

Name: Crab apple, also called crabapple or crab (various Malus species, including Malus sylvestris, M. coronaria, and M. baccata, among others). Not one single species but a broad group of small-fruited, wild and ornamental apple trees, as distinct from the cultivated common apple, Malus domestica.

Description

Crab apples are small trees in the rose family, native across North America and Asia, grown as much for their showy spring blossoms and decorative winter fruit as for the fruit itself. Compared with the common apple, crab apple trees are stiffer and spinier, and their pome fruits are usually under 5cm across — noticeably smaller and far more tart.

Because of that tartness, crab apples are rarely eaten fresh; instead they have long been valued for jellies, preserves, and cider, and several wild crab apple species were among the ancestors that hybridized with the domesticated apple over the centuries. Ornamental crab apple cultivars, many bred from the Japanese flowering crab apple, remain popular landscape trees for their fragrant flowers and fruit that persists on the branch well into winter.

Main nutrition value

Per 100g, raw crab apple:

Crab apples pack noticeably more potassium and calcium than common apples for the same weight, along with a useful amount of vitamin C and manganese, though their natural tartness means they are rarely eaten in large raw servings.

How best to be consumed

Crab apples are almost always cooked rather than eaten raw, since their high acidity and tannin content make most varieties too sharp and astringent to enjoy fresh. Their natural pectin content makes them especially good for jellies and preserves, often blended with milder fruit, and they can also be pressed into cider or juice.

Overconsumption could cause…

Crab apple flesh is safe to eat once cooked, but the seeds, like those of the common apple, contain a small amount of a cyanide-producing compound and should not be eaten in quantity. Because crab apples are so tart, eating a large amount raw is more likely to upset the stomach or irritate the mouth and throat than to cause any specific nutrient overload; sweetened crab apple jelly and preserves, on the other hand, can be a significant source of added sugar if eaten often.

GroupsApples and PearsRose family (Rosaceae)Low fatLow sodiumFresh

Related foodsRed AppleGreen ApplePearQuinceAppleLoquat

U.S. Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central — Crabapples, raw (FDC ID 171721), 100g portion: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/171721/nutrients Encyclopaedia Britannica — crabapple: https://www.britannica.com/plant/crabapple