From the YummyYucky team, founded by Nancy Nash
Can Babies Eat Apricot? Pit It First
Soft, sweet, sunny, and a yes from around 6 months. Pull the hard pit, never the kernel inside, and serve very ripe fruit mashed or peeled.
Free, no account needed. Takes about 10 seconds.
- When to introduce
- Around 6 months, once baby is starting solids and can handle very soft mashed or thinly sliced fruit.
- Common allergen?
- Not a common allergen. Rare reactions can happen with any new food, so watch the first couple of tries.
- Texture
- Very ripe, soft, and yielding. Remove the hard pit, peel for young babies, and serve mashed or in thin soft slices. Dried apricots only simmered soft, from about 9 months.
- Key nutrients
- Vitamin A (as beta-carotene), fiber, some vitamin C and potassium, and natural sugar.
Yes, babies can enjoy apricot from around 6 months, once they are starting solids. A ripe apricot is soft, gently sweet, and one of the easier stone fruits to serve, as long as you deal with the pit first. The hard pit in the center is a choking hazard, and the kernel tucked inside that pit contains a natural compound that can form cyanide, so the pit comes out whole and the kernel never goes anywhere near your baby. Once it is pitted, choose the ripest, softest fruit you can find, peel it for a young eater, and mash it or cut it into thin soft slices. Dried apricots are a different story, sticky and concentrated in sugar, so those are simmered soft and mashed or finely chopped, from about 9 months. This page covers the age, the safety details, and easy ways to serve it.
Why it matters: A hard pit and its cyanide-forming kernel are the whole safety story, so the pit comes out whole and the kernel never reaches your baby.
Prep School: how to prepare apricot for baby-led weaning (BLW) and purées
🍴 Baby-led weaning
🥄 Purées
Is apricot safe? Choking & prep
Take the hard pit out before the fruit reaches your baby: the NHS says to remove hard pips and stones from fruit,3 and the USDA lists pits among the things to remove for young children.4 Separately, the kernel inside the pit should never be offered: apricot kernels contain amygdalin, which the FDA warns can lead to cyanide poisoning.2
Apricot day? Log the try in YummyYucky and tap yummy, meh, or yucky to remember exactly how those first soft, sunny bites landed.
Log apricot today →Free, no account needed. Takes about 10 seconds.
Nutrition
Apricots bring a nice dose of vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene, which is what gives them their warm orange color and supports healthy eyes and skin. They also offer fiber for digestion, along with some vitamin C, potassium, and natural sugar. Fresh apricots are mostly water and light in calories, so pair them with more filling, higher-fat foods at a meal. Dried apricots are more concentrated in fiber and sugar, which makes them a small addition rather than a main event.
Goes well with
Plain whole-milk yogurt · Oatmeal or infant cereal · Soft banana or ripe pear · A little nut or seed butter, thinly spread · Cottage cheese · Warm cooked oats with cinnamon
Storage & freezing
Keep whole ripe apricots at room temperature until soft, then move them to the fridge and use within a few days. Refrigerate any mashed or sliced flesh in a sealed container and use it within a day or two, and toss anything that sat out during a meal. Ripe apricot also freezes well once pitted and peeled if you want to blend it into purees later. Store dried apricots sealed in a cool cupboard.
More fruits to explore
Related reading
- Choking hazards for babies →
- Best first fruits for babies →
- How to cut food to prevent choking →
- Signs your baby is ready for solids →
- Baby-led weaning vs. purées →
Common questions
When can babies eat apricot?
Around 6 months, once your baby is starting solids, as long as you remove the hard pit and serve very ripe, soft flesh mashed or peeled. Cook firmer apricots until soft before offering.
Why do I have to remove the apricot pit?
The hard pit in the center is a choking hazard, and the kernel inside it contains a natural compound that can form cyanide.2 Take the whole pit out before serving and never let your baby near the kernel.
Is the apricot kernel dangerous?
Yes. The kernel inside the pit contains a cyanide-forming compound and should never be given to a baby or child.2 This is why the pit comes out whole and goes straight in the trash, kernel and all.
How do I prepare apricot for my baby?
Choose a very ripe, soft apricot, halve it around the pit and lift the pit out whole, then peel and mash the flesh for a young eater or cut it into thin soft slices for an older one.
Should I peel apricot for my baby?
For young babies, peeling makes the soft flesh easier to manage and gum. Once your baby is chewing well, usually around 12 months, you can leave the thin skin on ripe, pitted fruit.
Can babies eat dried apricots?
From about 9 months, cooked soft first. Dried apricots are sticky and chewy, and the CDC lists uncooked dried fruit, such as raisins, among choking hazards for young children.1 Simmer them in water until very soft, then mash them or chop them finely into a soft food, and offer only a little at a time. Uncooked pieces wait until about age 4.4
Do I need to cook apricot first?
Not if it is very ripe and soft. If the apricot is firm or a little underripe, cook it gently until it mashes easily, which softens the texture and makes it safer for a young eater.
Is apricot a common allergen?
No, apricot is not a common allergen. As with any new food, a rare reaction is possible, so offer it on its own the first couple of times and watch for anything unusual.
How much apricot can my baby have?
A small amount is plenty at first. Apricot has natural sugar and fiber, so offer it as a fun flavor alongside more filling foods rather than a large serving on its own.
Sources
- CDC: Choking Hazards (Infant and Toddler Nutrition)
- FDA: Warning about toxic amygdalin in apricot seeds
- NHS: Your baby's first solid foods (remove hard pips and stones from fruits)
- USDA Food and Nutrition Service: Reducing the Risk of Choking in Young Children at Mealtimes (FNS-877)
Further reading
- American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org): Starting Solid Foods
- CDC: Infant and Toddler Nutrition
Track it in YummyYucky
Log first tries and reactions, with an automatic allergen tracker when a food needs one, all in one place you can share with your pediatrician.
Start tracking for freeLast updated September 2026. Next review December 2026. How we write these: built from current published guidance from the AAP, CDC, FDA/EPA, NIAID, WHO, and other pediatric and public-health authorities, with sources cited on the page. See our editorial and medical policy for how we research, source, and update these, and how we double-check the food advice.
This is general information, not medical advice, and is not individualized for your baby. Always talk to your pediatrician about your baby's diet, introducing allergens, and any reaction. In an emergency, contact emergency services.
Some links in our guides are affiliate links: if you buy through them we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. We only suggest things we'd actually use, and it never changes our guidance.