Put your apples to good use this October whilst they are in season and so delicious by making your very own Apple Chutney. If there’s too much for you then give them out as your special seasonal gifts to family and friends. In fact they be just delicious for eating at Christmas!
Kumud’s favourite apple chutney
The word chutney is derived from the word ‘chatni’, from India which is where the methods of combining fruit and spices to create tasty preserved food, comes from. The most famous Indian chutney is Mango chutney. Although chutney was shipped to Britain as long ago as the 1600s, it wasn’t until Victorian times that the recipes came to be known and developed in the UK and people started regularly making then in their kitchens.
Serving size – makes about 6 average jars
Ingredients:
500ml cider vinegar (or malt or wine vinegar)
1.25kg apples chopped into small pieces
500g onions, peeled and chopped
500g brown sugar
25g yellow mustard seeds
1.5 tsp sea salt
375g chopped stoned dates
125g yellow sultanas
Cooking Instructions:
Place the apples, dates, onions, sugar and cider vinegar in a large deep saucepan. Bring to the boil then lower the temperature and simmer until apples and onion are soft. Stir occasionally to ensure the mixture is not burning
Now add the sultanas, mustard seeds and salt and continue to simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
The mixture is ready when it is dark and quite thick. At this point remove from heat and allow to cool.
Carefully spoon the apple chutney into the jars and seal with a lid
Put away in the cupboard for at least a month before using.
Cooks tip 1: You can add a little and other spices to the chutney – perhaps a little chilli powder or nutmeg. Ginger also works very well.
Cooks tip 2: I used cider vinegar in this Apple chutney recipe, but it is fine to use malt vinegar or wine vinegar. They will all produce slightly different flavours and it just a matter of personal preference and what you happen to already have in your cupboard. Most importantly the vinegar should be 5% acetic content.
Cooks tip 3: Use jaggery instead of brown sugar, this will give the chutney a more toffee and mellow taste.
Cooks tip 4: Chutneys do, of course, keep for a very long time, potentially years if stored correctly and they are best kept for a month or two before consuming as they will improve with age.
Cooks tip 5: Sterilising Jars – Rinse your jam jars and the place then upside down in the oven at about 140 degrees C for about half an hour. You can turn the oven off after 15 minutes as they will continue to be hot. Remove them from the oven (using oven gloves) when you are ready to use them. I place the lids alongside each jar in the oven too. Alternatively put them through the dishwasher or in the microwave.
Kumud Gandhi is a Nutritional Food Scientist bestselling Author, Broadcaster, and Keynote Speaker on the subject of nutritional health for productivity & performance in the workplace. In 2010 Kumud founded ‘The Cooking Academy’ a cookery school that focusses on cooking for nutritional health and wellbeing. Kumud regularly presents to international audiences on a variety of topics such as ‘Eating for Immunity and a Lifetime of Wellness’. She is an expert in the field of Wellness in the Workplace and works with organizations to create transformational change in employee health & well-being through nutrition and health coaching.
