Tuesday 13 October 2009

Yet more chutney !

We had a last picking of green beans and there were a lot ! So I made some chutney as an alternative way of preserving them.

2lb runner beans
4 or 5 onions
1 1/2 lb brown sugar
1 1/2 tbsp turmeric powder
1 1/2 tbsp english mustard powder
1 1/2 tbsp cornflour
1 1/2 pints malt vinegar

Firstly, peel and chop the onions, then slice the beans and boil together with the onions in salted water until both the beans and onions are soft.

Drain the onions and beans well and put back into the saucepan with 1 1/4 pints of the vinegar and boil for about 15 mins.

Mix together the turmeric, mustard and cornflour with the remaining vinegar and then add to the beans and onions.

Boil for about 15 mins, allow to cool then pot into sterilized jars and seal.

Getting Saucy !

Sorry for the lack of updates of late - tomatoes, lovely juicy and ripe, but there are so many...... what to do with them. Well I have made some tomato sauce and this is how I did it;

1.5 kg of ripe tomatoes (I used a mixture of red and yellow)
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped or grated
a large handful of basil, chopped
about a tablespoon of dried mixed herbs
salt and pepper
a pinch of dried ginger
200 ml red wine vinegar
70g soft brown sugar

Firstly cut the tomatoes in half and placed them in a large roasting tin with the onion, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper and about 2 tsp of the sugar. Place them in the oven gas 5 /190 C / 375 F to roast for about an hour and a half, gently stirring half way through.

After about an hour and a half the tomatoes should be really soft with some colour to them. Leave them to cool slightly and then liquidise the mixture until smooth.

Place the smooth mix into a saucepan with the remaining sugar and the vinegar and slowly bring to the boil. Stir continually until the sugar has dissolved and then simmer gently until reduced and thick.

Pour your sauce into sterilised jars or bottles and then seal tightly.

This sauce should keep for about 6 months

I also made another version of this sauce but I added 2 or 3 chillies to the tomatoes before roasting, yummy and what a kick !

Right where are the chips ??