Yummiest Green Tomato Chutney

If you’d have told me five years ago I’d be googling recipes to use up a glut of tomatoes from our garden, I would have laughed. It wasn’t the cooking, though you know I’ve never been one for anything that takes time unless we have guests coming. I just never really wanted to, I guess. That said, this green tomato chutney recipe is the yummiest thing I’ve tasted in ages. Take a bit of time out of your day, follow the process and give it a try. It’s tangy and sweet at the same time, perfect for cold meat. You’ll love it!

Why Did I Make Green Tomato Chutney?

As I’ve said in previous posts, Spring andSummer at the farm this year were not good. We had a few nice days but it was mostly overcast. Our crop of tomatoes just would not ripen so we decided to harvest what we had. I couldn’t bare to see the tomatoes go to waste so I was forced to find a way to use them.

Having no family recipe handed down, I went straight to Pinterest and google. I finally decided on the recipe below. It took longer to make than some of the other recipes as the tomatoes have to soak overnight. It wasn’t difficult at all, though, and the resulting chutney is flavourful. I’ll definitely be making more of this chutney in years to come.

How to Make the Yummiest Green Tomato Chutney

Ingredients:

• 2.5kg green tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 0.5kg onions, finely sliced
• 4 tsp / 30g salt
• 1L malt vinegar
• 0.5kg soft light brown sugar
• 250g sultanas, roughly chopped
• 3 tsp / 20g ground pepper

Equipment:

• Preserving pan or another large lidless pan.
• 7 – 10 jars with lids
• Food wrap/cling film

Method:

• Finely slice onions and washed green tomatoes
• Cut out any bad bits.
• Add to a large bowl and stir.
• Add salt, stir again and then cover with food wrap or a large plate and leave overnight. You will need a VERY LARGE bowl for this. I seriously underestimated the amount of tomato and onion I had.

Leaving the tomatoes and onions overnight will draw out lots of the tomato juices. This step can be skipped if you don’t want to leave it overnight, just reduce the salt by half.

I was going to skip this step (because I am impatient) but thoroughly recommend doing it now. This step reduces the time you need to cook your chutney for and helps enhance the flavour. Much of the cooking time is just reducing the liquid down so it’s a thick enough consistency for chutney.

The Next Day

• Place vinegar into a large pan.
• Add light brown soft sugar and stir over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved.
• Bring to the boil.
• Roughly chop the sultanas and add to the simmering vinegar and sugar. Bring the whole lot to a gentle boil.

• Drain the tomatoes and onions well but do not rinse. Rinsing will add more water and the goal of leaving overnight with salt was to remove as much water as possible without pulping them.
• Add to the vinegar mix and stir in.
• Add the white pepper.
• Bring to a gentle boil

Once the ingredients have been added they need to be boiled gently for 1.5 to 2 hours until thick and golden. The goal of this cooking time is to reduce the liquid down so the chutney’s thick and to soften the tomatoes and onions until they take on the sugar and turn brown.

All you’re doing for the next 1 – 2 hours is stirring occasionally and adjusting the heat if they start to boil too vigorously. I boiled mine for a little over two hours, so don’t be afraid to let it cook longer. The green tomato chutney is ready when you can drag a spoon across the bottom of the pan and it leaves a ‘clean’ trail.

While the chutney is cooking, prepare your jars.

I did this by washing and then putting in the oven on low heat for around 20 minutes.

When your yummy green tomato chutney has reduced by almost half and is thick and golden brown, it is almost ready. Remove your sterilised jars from the oven and place on a chopping board.

Holding the hot jars in an oven mitt in one hand, spoon the chutney into the jars with the other. When full give them a quick tap on the bottom against the work surface to knock out any air bubbles then fill the next jar.

When the jars are full, place a double layer of cling film or food wrap across the top of each jar and then trim around it. As the chutney cools the air below the wrap will contract, sucking the cling film down against the surface, protecting it from mould.  Your chutney should last around six months if you don’t eat it first. It’s ready to eat straight away but tastes even better if you leave it for a week or two for the flavour to intensify.

Want more Rustic Recipes?

Try this homemade Beer Bread

My Farmhouse Baked Beans are simple and hearty.