Sour Cherry

Sour cherries may be introduced as soon as baby is ready to start solids, which is generally around 6 months of age.

Sour cherries, also known as tart cherries, have a long culinary history throughout Central and Eastern Europe and parts of Western Asia. Unlike sweet cherries, sour cherries are rarely eaten raw and are instead prized for their bright acidity in cooked dishes. They appear in foods such as meggyleves, a Hungarian cherry soup, Persian rice dishes, stews throughout the Mediterranean region, and European pastries and preserves.

• If you can’t find fresh sour cherries, canned or frozen work just fine too.

• Check frozen and preserved sour cherries for pits before cooking with them or serving. While these cherries have typically had their pits removed before packaging, no process is perfect and some pits may remain.

Yes. Sour cherries are firm, round, and slippery, and contain a hard pit, which are qualities that pose an increased risk of choking. Dried sour cherries also pose an increased risk, as they are small and challenging to chew. To reduce the risk, prepare and serve sour cherries in an age-appropriate way as described in How to Serve. As always, make sure you create a safe eating environment and stay within an arm’s reach of baby during meals. 

Learn the signs of choking and more about choking first aid in our free guides, Infant Rescue and Toddler Rescue.

No. Sour cherry is not considered to be a common food allergen, although allergic reactions have been reported, some of which are severe.^[1] Individuals who are allergic to the pollen from birch trees or who have Oral Allergy Syndrome (also called pollen food allergy syndrome) to other foods in the Rosaceae or stone fruit family may be sensitive to sour cherries.^[2] Oral Allergy Syndrome typically results in short-lived itching, tingling, or burning in the mouth and is unlikely to result in a dangerous reaction. Cooking and peeling the fruit can help to minimize the reaction. However, sour cherries can be difficult to peel due to their small size.

Yes. Sour cherries are packed with nutrition, and offer significant amounts of fiber, and vitamins A, B6, C, E, and K, as well as important carotenoids like beta carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin. Plus, they offer flavonoids and polyphenols which may offer antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.^{[3] [4] [5]} Together, these nutrients help support baby’s developing gut microbiome, vision, metabolism, iron absorption, immunity, normal blood clotting, and more. Research also suggests that they may help support restful sleep and recovery.^[6]

Some forms of sour cherry are very high in sugar or salt. Hold off on serving these preparations regularly until a child is older, but occasional tastes of salted or sweetened sour cherries served in an age-appropriate way are not a cause for concern.

Small amounts of cherry juice may be shared as a drink after 12 months of age. That said, it can be beneficial to wait for when a child is older to regularly share juice and other sugary drinks, even sour ones like tart cherry juice. Research suggests that regular intake of juice and other sweet drinks tends to increase the risk of dental cavities and take up space in the belly, which may decrease a child’s motivation to eat other foods at mealtime and may negatively affect the child’s growth over time.^{[7] [8]} However, occasional servings of juice after one year of age generally isn’t a cause for concern. Learn more about serving juice to babies and toddlers.

Yes, but only after the dried cherries have been rehydrated in hot water until fully softened to reduce choking risk. Hold off on serving unmodified dried cherries until sometime after the second birthday, when the child has molars for chewing more challenging textures and is consistently chewing well and not stuffing their mouth with food, as dried fruit is challenging to chew and a potential choking hazard.