I am taking a foods class at the University of Memphis, and we went over apples in one of our class periods. I thought there were a few interesting takeaways in the lecture. We went over the 3 types of apples: Cooking, eating, and combination. The main difference between the apples is the sugar/fiber content. In this article, I will be focusing on a few specific apples, the granny smith, honey crisp, and red delicious.
*All nutrient analysis from ndb.nal.usda.gov
Cooking apple: Granny smith
These apples are tart/sour in flavor, due to the lower amount of sugar than other apples. They are also crisper in texture in comparison. This makes them a good apple to cook with, because they maintain their structure well after cooking, and do not have a very dominantly sweet taste.
(Per 100g)
Carbohydrate – 13.61g
Sugar – 9.59g
Fiber – 2.8g
Eating apple: Red delicious
These apples are very sweet tasting and have a “grainy-like” texture, due to the higher sugar and less fiber, compared to the granny smith apple. These are typically called eating apples, and commonly consumed raw. They typically become mushier when cooked compared to other types of apples, which makes the red delicious a popular eating apple.
(Per 100g)
Carbohydrate – 14.06g
Sugar – 10.48g
Fiber – 2.3g
Combination: Honey crisp
These apples are sweet tasting, like the red delicious, however it is crispier, and less grainy compared to the red delicious. They are called a combination apple because they have a firm texture which makes them a good option to cook with, but they are also sweet tasting and commonly consumed raw.
(Per 100g)
Carbohydrate – 13.74g
Sugar – 10.44g
Fiber – 2.2g
White rice(Cooked):
(Per 100g)
Carbohydrate – 28.17g
Sugar – 0.05g
Fiber – 0.4g
In terms of dieting, a granny smith would be a good choice for a carb source, esp. if your calories are low and you want to eat a large volume of food. 100g of white rice is more than 2x dense compared to 100g of a granny smith apple. The granny smith is higher in fiber than the other apples, which has numerous health benefits, and fiber will slow digestion, helping you feel fuller, longer. Apples have the added benefit of being rich in micronutrients. A cool thing to note is that granny smith apples are high in potassium, around 120mg per 100g. I am going to write an article soon about potassium more in depth, but a meal high in potassium will signal to the body to release the hormone aldosterone. Aldosterone will signal to the body to reabsorb sodium and it does this by replacing sodium ions in the urine with potassium ions via the sodium-potassium pump. Potassium Ions “swap” with sodium ions, and get excreted, lowering potassium levels in the blood. Sodium ions will be pumped back into the bloodstream. This is the environment you want for glycogen synthesis and can benefit bodybuilders trying to be more “full” on stage, or helping strength athletes increase intracellular swelling, which helps their leverages on lifts. If your calories are low, and you want a larger volume of food, a granny smith apple is a good choice to keep in mind.
