Green Tomato Chutney

I now have 3 trays such as this ripening in the greenhouse. These tomatoes were grown outdoors among the veggies, and as its going colder would not finish ripening without help .. Looks like chutney is on the menu 🙂

I don’t know about any of you gardener’s out there but the Tomatoes have taken a while to ripen here in the UK at least.. Due to it not being a very warm Summer. The tomatoes which grew in the ground in the allotments were gathered up and I used some to make chutney with 

An Ideal job on a rainy day, to spend it in the kitchen .

So I thought I would share a very simple recipe with you all. 

The ingredients you will need all chopped and prepared

You will need. 

3lb-1-5kg of Green Firm Tomatoes- ( do not use damaged or soft ones ) 

1lb-450g of Cooking Apples 

1lb-450g Red Onions, peeled and chopped

1 head of celery chopped. ( discard the small leaves or save for soups or salads ) 

1 green jalapeño chilly pepper, de-seeded and chopped

2-3 large cloves of garlic peeled and chopped

1 and Half pounds -700g of Demerara Sugar 

1 teaspoon of coriander seeds, lightly pounded

1 quarter of a pint- 150ml of water

1pint-600ml of Malt Vinegar 

4 tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar

11 ounces-300g Raisins. 

Method

Rinse and chop the tomatoes, put into a preserving pan. Peel and core the apples, chop them and add to the pan along with the chopped red onions and garlic. 

Trim the celery, discarding leaves, and add to the pan with the chopped chilli ( I didn’t have any green jalapeño chilly pepper, so I omitted it. But I did have some chilli flakes so I added these to the coriander seeds which should be placed in a small muslin bag tied tight with string, which is then secured to the pan handle. ) 

Stir in the Sugar, add the water, place over a gentle heat and cook until the tomatoes and apples have collapsed. The recipe said for about 30 minutes it depends I guess on how the heat is… I cooked for 40 minutes before they softened.. ( Remember to Stir at regular intervals to stop it sticking)

Tie the Coriander in muslin to the pan handle

After the 30 minutes or so then add both lots of vinegars and the raisins.. return to the boil, remembering to stir, and reduce heat again and simmer for 35 to 40 minutes until the chutney consistency is reached.  (Don’t forget to stir during this simmer time, I left mine a little longer between stirring and just got to it in time as the raisins started to stick, another couple of minutes and they would have burned! ) .

Almost done!. see from the sides of the pan how its reduced 

Cool slightly and discard the coriander seeds. Then pot into sterilised Jars and label as normal..

All finished and these will make a lovely stocking filler for Christmas along with any Jam you have made

Enjoy! 

Happy Cooking!