My grandfather was known informally as the Chutney King, thanks to his enviable knack of being able to make a tasty relish out of pretty much anything that grew in the garden, and this is my grandparents’ famous apple chutney recipe, carefully written out by my granny on the back of a recycled envelope. I have very fond memories of them standing by the stove, stirring away and chatting about batch consistency, and even now every year we still have Chutney Making Evening in their honour. This is usually the night after a particularly blustery storm, where all the windfalls in the orchard have come down but have yet to be attacked by chickens.
The chutney tastes best after being stored for 2 to 3 months in a dark cupboard, so if made with autumn windfalls it will be ready just in time for your Christmas cheese and biscuits. If you have been carefully saving your jam-jars all year ready for this moment, you might find that they still carry the odour of their original occupant. This is easily solved using good old bicarbonate of soda; make a paste of 3 parts soda to 1 part water, and smear over the jar and the lid. Leave overnight and rinse, and the smell of continental pickled gherkins will have vanished. Bicarbonate of soda can also be used to remove any persistent labels too. Mix with a little vegetable oil and smear over the label, before leaving for 24 hours. Give the tenacious sticker a vigorous scrub with a washing up cloth and it should come right off.
I like to fill a few little tiny jars as well, to pop in Christmas stockings or crackers… and if you are looking for more apple recipes, try our apple, marzipan and hazelnut strudel, Danish apple cake, Granny’s apple meringue recipe or an easy apple and campfire cobbler!
Ingredients (makes about 8 250ml jars)
2 kilos apples, peeled, cored and chopped (windfalls are perfect for this recipe, just cut away any bruised flesh)
500g onions, chopped
500g sultanas
500g soft brown sugar
500ml malt vinegar
1 crushed clove of garlic
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon Maldon salt
½ tsp ground black peppercorns
- Place all the ingredients in a large stainless steel jam pan or cooking pot.
- Bring to the boil and simmer gently, uncovered, for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon to prevent the chutney catching on the base of the pan.
- Cook until reduced in volume and rich, thick and a deep caramel brown. You can tell if it is ready by drawing your wooden spoon across the bottom of the pan; there should be very little liquid to fill the gap, and it should seep back in slowly.
- Pot while hot! Start preparing your jars when you have about 20 minutes of cooking time left. Wash the jars and lids in hot soapy water, rinse, and then place them upside down on a baking tray and pop into an oven which has been preheated to 160-180 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes before potting up.
- I find it easiest to use a small jug to pour in the chutney as it is quite sticky and once it has been spilt down the outside of the jar it can be a nightmare to remove. Take care as the sugar content will ensure it stays hot for a while, so use a tea towel to hold the jar while you fill it, leaving about a centimetre of space at the top.
- Cover with a waxed paper disc, screw on the lid and label when cool. It will last for up to a year in a dark cupboard; once opened, store in the fridge and consume within 4 weeks.
