The season of abundance is upon us, and whether you have own home grown vege-patch or you simply want to make the most of the tomatoes while they are fresh and cheap then this recipe is the way to go.
Making preserves is a pretty straight forward process, the main thing you need to think about is building up a supply of jars. This can be easily done by recycling your old glass jars with seal/screw top lids (make sure you clean them as you go). But if you already have a glut of Tomatoes filling your fridge and you need a more immediate solution you can get preserve jars at most of your local home decor / kitchen suppliers, and even a lot of cheap shops now stock them.
BOTTLING AND PRESERVING
It is important to use sterilised jars for the bottling process. This is not as complicated as you may think. Start by washing the jars in hot soapy water, then there are two options for bringing it up to temperate that will kill off any bacteria.
- Put the jars on a rack in an oven that has been preheated to 12oC.
- Put the jars in a large pot of boiling water for 10 minutes then drain upside down on a clean tea towel and dry in the oven.
The method for making this particular recipe doesn’t take long, around 1 and half hours, however it is recommended that you let the tomatoes stand for 4-12 hours prior to putting them on the stove. So we suggest that you get your tomatoes prepped and ready, let them sit over night in the fridge, and while that is happening sort out all of jars, wash them and have them ready to steralise.
RECIPE FOR ORGANIC HOME GROWN TOMATO RELISH
INGREDIENTS:
2kg ripe tomatoes, cored and chopped (you don’t need to peel them)
2 large onions, chopped
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp mustard powder
1 tsp chilli flakes (optional)
1 cup white wine or malt vinegar
1 cup sugar
METHOD:
- Prepare to tomatoes and onions, sprinkle with salt and leave to rest for 4-12 hours before draining excess liquid.
- Put all of the ingredients, minus sugar, into a heavy bottomed pot and bring to the boil for 20-30 minutes, as the mixture becomes thicker add the sugar and continue to boil down for another 20-30 minutes stirring regularly to avoid sticking on the bottom.
Bottle into sterilized jars with seal lids and label with the date.
It is as simple as that! This recipe is D E L I C I O U S! Don’t be surprised if you munch through a few jars in as many weeks. Try it with cheese and crackers, as a side to rice dishes, on sandwiches, with poached eggs, the list goes on, you will want to eat it with everything!
Enjoy!
