Making chutney is a great way to use green tomatoes that haven’t managed to ripen by the autumn. This recipe is a sweet and spicy chutney – you can adjust the spice levels depending on how hot you like it. It’s also optional to add fresh ginger to this recipe – one thumb sized piece, grated, will do.
This chutney makes a great accompaniment to cheddar cheese, or cold ham or stirred into rice.
It is essential to make sure your jars are spotlessly clean. There’s no need to water bath chutney. Instead you can either pour boiling water into the jars, let them sit for a few minutes before carefully pouring them out and allowing them to dry. Or you can put your jars into a warm oven for 10 minutes, and fill them up with the chutney while they’re still warm.
Makes five x 250ml jars
Quarter the tomatoes and roughly chop all the onions and mince the garlic.
Combine all the ingredients in a large stainless steel or enameled pan. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and leave to simmer uncovered, giving the occasional stir to reduce the risk of it sticking.
Cook for about an hour until the chutney has turned brown and reduced to a satisfying thickness. Spoon the chutney into warm, sterilised jars and seal with lids.
Label the jars when cool and store in a dark cupboard for up to a year. Refrigerate the jars once opened.
1kg green tomatoes
1kg onions
150g raisins, (or 75g raisins & 75g apples)
3 garlic cloves
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper or 1 medium red chilli
2 tsp yellow mustard seeds (optional)
1/4 tsp roughly ground black pepper
2 tsp salt
500g light brown muscovado sugar
1 litre malt vinegar