Slow Cooker Apple Cider

This slow cooker apple cider recipe yields a fragrant and comforting drink that captures the essence of autumn. Apples, cinnamon sticks, and cloves gently simmer for hours filling your home with an irresistible aroma.

Slow Cooker Apple Cider in glass mugs with cinnamon sticks.

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Why You’ll Love This

  • Deep Flavor – The slow cooker method allows the apple cider ingredients to slowly infuse, resulting in a rich and well-balanced flavor profile.
  • Aromatic Delight – Fresh apples, orange, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and brown sugar develop a warm inviting scent throughout your home. The house smells amazing while this is cooking!
  • Easy Preparation – This recipe is incredibly easy to prepare; simply toss the ingredients into the slow cooker and let it work its magic.
  • Holiday Gatherings – Perfect for parties, just keep it warm in the slow cooker and let everyone serve themselves a cup garnished with a cinnamon stick or orange slices.

Some of our other fall favorite recipes to make are Apple Cider Biscotti, Apple Cider Spice Mix, Apple Cider Sangria with Ginger Beer, Apple Strudel with Puff Pastry, and our popular Jumbo Pumpkin Muffins.

Ingredients for slow cooker apple cider on a dark surface.

Key Ingredients

It’s amazing how just a few simple ingredients can create such a fabulous comforting beverage.

  • Apples – Use your favorites just keep in mind the sweetness and tartness. Fuji and Gala are great for sweetness. Honeycrisp is one of our favorites. Granny Smith is great for tartness.
  • Oranges – Adding citrus counterbalances the sweetness of the apples and brown sugar.
  • Brown Sugar – Brown sugar enhances the natural sugars of apples and oranges in the cider.
  • Cinnamon, Allspice, And Cloves – These spices scream Fall and accentuate apple cider as nothing else can.

How To Make Slow Cooker Apple Cider

Wash the apples and oranges thoroughly. Slice into quarters and place them in the crock of the slow cooker.

Apples, orange, cinnamon sticks and spices in the crock of a slow cooker.

Toss the cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, dark brown sugar, and 12 cups of water in the crock pot. If you wish, you could make a spice bag, but it will all be strained later anyway.

Set to high for 4 hours (or low for 6).

Pro Tip

This is the kind of recipe where I use my small pieces of nutmeg. You know the pieces that if you keep trying to grate them, you will take a fingertip off.

Ingredients for apple cider cooked in the crock of a slow cooker.

After 4 hours, mash the apples and oranges with a potato masher.  Return the lid and cook on high for another hour.

Strain the solids from the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve, and discard the solids.

You can return the apple cider to the slow cooker and turn it to the warm setting for your guests to serve themselves.

Slow Cooker Apple Cider in two glass mugs with cinnamon stick garnish.

Wrap yourself in a cozy blanket and pour yourself a cup of this comforting warm slow cooker apple cider.

Slow Cooker Apple Cider in two glass mugs with cinnamon stick garnish.

Or make this for a party or family gathering, leave it in the slow cooker and just keep it warm for everyone to enjoy.

If you are in the market for a new slow cooker, we just purchased this one and are loving it so far!

Homemade apple cider is a very easy beverage that you can throw together, making the season all the better. Give it a try, you’ll love it!

Garnish

Serve this crock pot apple cider garnished with cinnamon sticks, apple slices, or orange wedges.

Tips

  • Choose a mix of sweet and tart apples, like Honeycrisp and Granny Smith, to create a balanced flavor profile.
  • Use whole cinnamon sticks, and whole cloves for them to slowly infuse their flavors. Avoid using ground spices, as they can make the cider cloudy.
  • You don’t need to peel and core the apples you will be straining the cider when it’s done.
  • Taste the cider periodically and adjust the sweetness by adding more brown sugar if needed. Some apples may be sweeter than others.
  • Feel free to switch up or add your favorite cider spices. Such as star anise.
  • Add some bourbon to turn this crockpot apple cider into an adult beverage.

FAQ

What kind of apples should I use for slow cooker apple cider?

We use Granny Smith, Gala, and Honeycrisp. A perfect blend of sweetness and tartness.

Can I keep my apple cider warm in the slow cooker?

Yes. Place on low, and it will be warm during your next party or family gathering.

How do I make my apple cider taste better?

If it’s too sweet, squeeze a little lemon into the batch to offset the sweetness. If it’s too tart, add a bit more brown sugar until you get the desired taste.

Storing

Place any leftover apple cider in a lidded jar or container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

More Apple Cider Recipes

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Slow Cooker Apple Cider in glass mugs with cinnamon sticks.

Slow Cooker Apple Cider Recipe

Oh, so fall fabulous! Fresh apples, orange, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and brown sugar make this apple cider irresistible.
5 from 1 vote
Print Pin Rate
Course: Beverage
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 hours
Total Time: 5 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 10
Calories: 126kcal
Author: Leigh Harris

Ingredients
 

  • 9 medium apples assorted types (we used Gala, Honeycrisp and Granny Smith apples)
  • 1 orange
  • 6 cinnamon sticks 3″
  • 1 whole whole nutmeg
  • 2 teaspoons whole cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon whole allspice optional
  • 12-14 cups water
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar (up to 2/3 cup, to taste)

Instructions

  • Wash the apples and orange, and then roughly cut into quarters. Don’t worry about removing peels, seeds, or stems. Place in the bowl of your slow cooker.
  • Add cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice.
  • Cover with water, filling the slow cooker until it is nearly full, leaving about 1/2 inch of space at the top of the pot.
  • Cook on high heat for 4 hours, or on low heat for 6 hours.
  • After the 4 hours, use a potato masher to mash the apples and orange slices.
  • Finish cooking for one more hour.
  • Strain the solids from the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve, discard solids.
  • Serve warm.
  • Store remaining apple cider in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

Notes

Originally Published 09/26/2017

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 126kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 20mg | Potassium: 218mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 124IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 1mg

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2 Comments

  1. Pinning and sharing on the Hearth and Soul Facebook page, Leigh! I love this warming, wholesome drink – a real treat the whole family can enjoy! thank you so much for being a part of the Hearth and Soul Link Party! Hope your week is going well 🙂5 stars

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