What happens if you forget to put the Lemon juice in the apple pie filling when you can it? I accidentally ran a batch that way. How long are they good for w/o the acid in the lemon?

The wife always cold baths anything like that. Newer with lemon. I am Guessing it would be like adding lemon to avocado to prevent them from changing color in guacamole

It's a color thing.
Will last until seals fail/rust.
Speaking of acid,
I'm canning wild shrooms next.
Canning popo are now enroute.

Aren't some folks allergic to lemon?

The apples will darken some, it won't change the flavor

The lemon juice is to lower the pH........lower acidity.......so as to prevent botulism spores going active while in storage. The old "if the can is swollen don't use it". If botulism spores do go active, the lid will be found loose and jar not sealed. That is for water bath canners. If you used a pressure canner and processed long enough, the heat should have killed the spores.

Have never added lemon to applesauce or pie filling that are canned. Never noticed a color change even in two year old jars. While canning apple slices sometimes I put them in lemon water first so they don't brown before I can. Other times I put them in my simple syrup while cutting them up. Both ways they don't brown. Both look the same in the jars two years later. I've never had jars get older than two year old because we eat them up pretty regularly. Especially with all the grand kids

I did put the slices in lemon spiked water to prevent browning while I peeled and sliced the apples. But like HayDay says, adding lemon juice to the sauce brings the acidity into check to avoid botulism. I water bath can so it might still be a problem….idk. I have that batch marked and will use first.

Been canning applesauce and apple pie filling for fifty years and my parents longer than that. Put up about 100 quarts a year with a absolutely no lemon juice. No problems. Don't know any other canner around here that adds it to applesauce.

Applesauce has a ph in the 3's
You need a ph below 4.5 to be safe with water canning

I freeze all of my apple sauce. I cook the apples in a slow cooker, mash with a potato masher, put in plastic containers and freeze. I have never added lemon juice to any of our apple products, but we don't can any of the products.

Bryce