What Are Sour cherries and How Can I Use Them?
Here's everything worth knowing about sour cherries and how to pick them, what they are, how to store them, and what to use instead, plus 40 recipes to cook tonight.
Key Points
- Sour cherries are tart pie cherries, like Montmorency, grown for cooking not snacking.
- Their acid survives baking, keeping pies and preserves bright where sweet cherries go dull.
- Pit them, sweeten to balance, and use less liquid since they release juice.
- Not a straight swap for sweet cherries; add lemon if substituting sweet ones.
- Frozen, canned, and dried all work; fresh fruit lasts only a few days.
What are sour cherries?
Sour cherries are the tart, soft, bright-red cherries grown for cooking rather than snacking. Montmorency is the variety most people know, and you will also see them sold as pie cherries or tart cherries. Bite one raw and your mouth puckers.
That sharpness is the point. Where sweet cherries go flat and dull once baked, sour cherries keep their lively tang and red color, which is why pies and preserves call for them by name.
How to Use Them
Pit them first, then decide how to cook. For pies and crisps, sour cherries need sugar to balance their acid, but far less liquid than you would think, since they throw off a lot of juice as they bake and can flood a crust.
They are a classic in baked desserts. They carry the Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte (Black Forest Cherry Cake) and turn up in homey bakes like Cherry Crisp with Oatmeal & Nut Topping, where their tartness cuts the sweet topping.
Beyond dessert, simmer them down into preserves and syrups. Blueberry Sour Cherry Jam leans on their natural acid and pectin for a good set, and Sour Cherry Syrup reduces them with sugar into a pour for pancakes and cocktails.
Their bright acidity also makes a fine sauce for duck and pork.
Sweet Cherries Versus Sour
The two are not interchangeable straight across. Sweet cherries like Bing are firm and dark and meant for eating out of hand, with low acid that turns muddy when cooked. Sour cherries are soft and pale red and too sharp to eat raw, but built for heat.
If a baking recipe says sour cherries and you only have sweet, cut the sugar and add lemon juice to fake the tang. Going the other way, sweetening sour cherries for a fresh bowl, never quite works; the acid is just too high.
The mistake to avoid is treating canned sweet cherries as a one-for-one swap in a pie. You will get a cloying, slack filling that lacks the cherry tartness the dessert was designed around.
Substitutes
Frozen sour cherries are the best substitute for fresh and are available all year; thaw and drain them, and use the juice in your filling. Canned tart cherries packed in water work too, just hold back on added liquid.
Dried sour cherries bring concentrated tartness to cookies, granola, and grain salads. For a pie in a true pinch, sweet cherries plus a good squeeze of lemon get you partway, but the result is softer and less vivid.
Buying and Storage
Fresh sour cherries have a short summer season, often just a couple of weeks in early summer. Look for plump, glossy fruit with green stems still attached and no soft brown spots.
They are delicate and bruise fast, so refrigerate them unwashed and use them within three or four days.
To keep them longer, pit and freeze them in a single layer on a tray, then bag them; they hold their quality frozen for up to a year and go straight into pies and jams.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 cup, without pits (155g)Quick facts
Where to find sour cherries: Sour cherries are usually found in the fruit section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.
Food group: Sour cherries are a member of the Fruits and Fruit Juices US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.
- In Chinese
- 酸樱桃
- British (UK) term
- Sour cherries
- en français
- griottes
- en español
- guindas
How much do sour cherries weigh?
| Amount | Weight |
|---|---|
| 1 cup, without pits | 155 grams |
| 1 cup, with pits, yields | 103 grams |
Related
Fruits and Fruit Juices
Recipes using sour cherries
There are 40 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Breakfast Cherry Oatmeal Muffins
Cherry oatmeal muffins with sour cherries, orange juice concentrate, and oats. A naturally sweetened breakfast muffin with bright citrus and tart-fruit punch. No added sugar.
Almost Cherry Garcia Cookies
Cherry-studded cookies loaded with white and dark chocolate, inspired by the iconic ice cream. Kirsch-soaked cherries deliver a boozy punch in every bite.
Cherry Crisp with Oatmeal & Nut Topping
Easy to make cherry crisp with oatmeal and nuts. Great with sour cherries or make cherry crisp with pie filling if you're in a hurry.
Blueberry Sour Cherry Jam
Blueberry sour cherry jam made with crushed ripe blueberries, pitted sour cherries, sugar, and powdered fruit pectin. A small-batch homemade jam for canning with deep purple-red color and bright fruit flavor.
Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte (Black Forest Cherry Cake)
A German classic, rich and delicious and not too sweet!
Black Forest Pudding
A puffed, soufflé-like baked pudding with semi-sweet chocolate, ground almonds, kirsch, and whole sour cherries. Beaten egg whites give it lift while the cherry brandy brings authentic Black Forest flavor.
Yarborough Pie
Retro fruit pie with sour cherries, crushed pineapple, bananas, and cherry Jello in a graham cracker crust topped with whipped cream. A vintage no-bake dessert that brings the church potluck right to your kitchen.
Delicious Holiday Mince Pie with Beef
Holiday mincemeat with chopped beef, suet, apples, sour cherries, dried fruit, and broken nuts simmered slowly with brandy and warming spices. A massive 48-serving batch for Christmas baking and gift-giving.
Peppered Pork Roast
Peppered pork roast with sour cherry salsa: coarsely pepper-crusted pork loin roasted simple, served with a sweet-hot relish of cherries, green chiles, peppers, and cilantro. Holiday-worthy and easy.
Sour-Cherry Soup, Hungarian Style
Hungarian sour cherry soup (meggyleves) with sour cream, flour, and sugar. A traditional chilled fruit soup that's tangy, creamy, and served cold as a starter or dessert.
New Granola
Homemade granola with oats, slivered almonds, coconut, dried cherries, and golden raisins bound with apple juice concentrate and cinnamon. Crunchy, naturally sweetened, oil-free.
Sour Cherry Fruit Slump
Sour cherry fruit slump: tart cherries and summer berries bubbling under tender buttermilk dumplings, finished with cinnamon sugar. An old-school stovetop dessert that's faster than a pie.
Sour Cherry Soup
Hungarian sour cherry soup (meggyleves): a chilled summer soup of cherries, sugar, cinnamon, dry red wine, and heavy cream. Served cold, sweet, and tangy as a starter or light dessert.
Bleeding Heart Cherry Pie
A show-stopping sour cherry pie with a hint of almond extract, topped with overlapping heart-shaped pastry cut-outs instead of a traditional crust. Gorgeous for Valentine's Day or any day you want to impress.
Pork Chops with Cherry Sauce
Breaded pork chops braised until tender, topped with a warm sour cherry sauce spiked with cinnamon, cloves, honey, and Madeira wine. An elegant but approachable dinner.
Easy Crumb-Topped Cherry Pie
Cherry pie with a cinnamon crumb topping made by crumbling a frozen pie crust over sour cherry filling. A clever shortcut that uses two frozen crusts in completely different ways.
Cold Cherry Soup with Red Wine & Cherry Liqueur
Elegant chilled sour cherry soup with dry red wine, heavy cream, and cherry liqueur. Cinnamon-spiced fruit course served cold in summer with mint and sour cream.
Cherry Apple Pie
Double-crust pie layered with sliced apples and tart sour cherries, spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg, and dotted with butter. The best of two classic pies in one.
Cherry Pinwheels
Flaky biscuit dough rolled with sour cherries, sliced into pinwheels, and baked golden. Served warm with a homemade cherry sauce and ice cream or sherbet.
Fried Wild Game Ravioli
Fried wild game ravioli stuffed with duck, pheasant, leeks, praline, sour cherries, and demi-glace, finished with a Frangelico hazelnut butter. A restaurant-caliber game dish.
Apple or Cherry Doughnuts
European-style apple or cherry fritter doughnuts with kirsch-scented batter and folded egg whites for a light, airy crumb. Dropped by the spoonful and fried golden, dusted with sugar.
Schwarzwaelder Kirschtorte
Schwarzwaelder Kirschtorte is the authentic German Black Forest cake: three genoise layers soaked in kirsch syrup, filled with kirsch buttercream and sour cherries, and draped in whipped cream with chocolate curls.
Chocolate Sour Cherry Cake
Chocolate sour cherry cake with melted semi-sweet chocolate, butter, separated eggs, and tart cherries baked on top. Dense, rich, and elegant with minimal flour.
Chanterelle & Shiitake Black Bean Chili with Sour Cherrie
A gourmet vegan black bean chili loaded with chanterelle and shiitake mushrooms, five types of chiles, spelt berries, fresh corn, and dried sour cherries. Simmered in tomato and orange juice for layers of earthy, smoky, sweet heat.
Pilaf with Sour Cherries & Lentils
Persian-style pilaf with basmati rice, red lentils and sour cherries perfumed with turmeric and cumin, finished with a buttery golden crust. A sweet-tart, aromatic side or vegetarian main with real character.
Sour Cherry Syrup
Homemade sour cherry syrup with just four ingredients. Stir into sparkling water for a tart refresher or drizzle over ice cream, mousse, and frozen desserts for a burst of cherry flavor.
Chocolate Cherry Torte
Layered chocolate torte with a dried sour cherry and Marsala filling, coffee-soaked cake layers, and a cream cheese whipped cream. A multi-component holiday showpiece that tastes like Black Forest cake's sophisticated Italian cousin.
Russian Stuffed Pumpkin
This spectacular stuffed pumpkin can be the centerpiece of your Thanksgiving table.
Chicken with Cherry Sauce
Chicken breast with sour cherry sauce, cracked peppercorns, and coriander in a white wine-brandy reduction. A French-inspired pan sauce built right in the skillet.
Black Forest Bars
Diabetic-friendly Black Forest bars made with just three ingredients: no-sugar chocolate cake mix, sour cherries, and sugar substitute. Quick, simple, and guilt-free.
Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte.
Schwarzwalder kirschtorte (Black Forest cake): a three-layer German chocolate-almond sponge soaked in kirsch, filled with whipped cream and sour cherries. The classic Schwarzwald showpiece.
Cherry ChocolateTrifle
Layered chocolate pound cake soaked in kirsch, topped with sour cherries, rich homemade chocolate custard, and clouds of whipped cream. A showpiece trifle for 18.
Gluten Free Cherry Crisp
Gluten-free cherry crisp with sour cherries, almond extract, and an oat-walnut crumble topping. Easy dessert, no flour required, ready in under an hour.
German Sour Cherry Chocolate Cake
German sour cherry chocolate cake: a dense, fudgy chocolate cake crowned with tart pitted cherries that sink into the batter as it bakes. The sharp cherries cut the rich dark chocolate beautifully.
Sour Cherry Streusel Coffee Cake
This easy to prepare coffee cake comes out moist, fluffy and absolutely delicious. Sour cherries give the cake fruity flavor with some sourness and sweetness zing in every bite.
Irish Christmas Cake
Irish Christmas cake soaked in whiskey with dried fruits, almonds, candied orange peel, and a marzipan coating. A rich, dense celebration cake that starts with an overnight whiskey fruit soak.
