Our Fujis are not particularly gorgeous. However, they provide an adventure in taste and texture. Fujis have a light green base color with a scarlet-red blush that can cover most of the apple. They can be large and irregularly shaped. The original strain of Fujis ripened in early October. More recently, mutant strains have been developed that ripen up to a month earlier. We grow both types, so we have Fujis ripening in early September and in October.

History: Fuji was developed as a cross between Red Delicious and Ralls Janet, another American cultivar. It was developed by the Tohoku Research Station in Japan during the late 1930s. It was brought to market in Japan in 1962. Since that time it has become the dominant apple in Japan. Recently it also accounted for 70% of Chinese apple production.*

Taste Profile: Fuji is known as the sweetest apple variety. Its taste is very complex, like that of a fine wine. It has a firm, crisp texture that it will retain even when stored for several months. It is by far the best “keeper” of any sweet apple.

Suggested Uses: Fujis are most often eaten fresh. Because of their sweetness they are not that widely used in cooking. They can be blended in cider to add additional sweetness and flavor.

*Information taken from Wikipedia and Roger Yepsen. Apples. New York: W. W. Norton, 1994. p. 110.