This year my little vegetable garden yielded a very modest crop of tomatoes. If you have never eaten a home grown tomato before you’re missing out … they really do have the most amazing taste! I was so proud of my little harvest that when dad offered his grandmother’s homemade tomato chutney recipe, I jumped at the chance to try it out for myself. Wish me luck…

The below recipe will make about 4 jars of chutney. I only had 1 kilo of tomatoes, so I halved the ingredients.

Ingredients:

• 2 kilos of tomatoes … green or red (4.5 pounds)
• Salt
• 4 medium brown onions
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 0.5 kilos of sugar (1 pound)
• 1.5 teaspoons dry English mustard powder
• Small pinch cayenne pepper
• Malt (brown) vinegar

Method:

1. Skin red tomatoes in boiling water or peel green ones.
2. Once skinned, cut the tomatoes and place in a large earthenware bowl.
3. Sprinkle liberal amount of salt on the tomatoes to draw out the liquid; cover with a cloth; leave overnight.
4. The next day, drain the liquid (which I freeze and add to stock later).
5. Cut the onions thinly and place with the tomatoes in a heavy based saucepan, just cover with vinegar and bring to the boil.
6. Mix the sugar and spices in a bowl and add to the tomato and onion mixture when boiling.
7. Simmer gently for an hour or more, until the liquid has mostly evaporated and the mixture has thickened.
8. Place in warm jars and cover.
9. Once cooled keep in the refrigerator.

So how did I go? Pretty good! Although I did walk away from the simmering chutney mixture and got completely sidetracked, forgetting all about the chutney. This is such a frequent re-occurrence when I’m cooking that Paul always keeps a watchful eye on the stove. 

A watched pot never boils … but a forgotten one is sure to burn!

My chutney was saved at the very last minute but does have a slightly caramelised taste! 

Do you have a family favourite recipe?

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