Green tomato chutney recipe
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Chutney and Pickles | 40 comments
Green tomatoes – our red brandywine crop
A couple of days ago I discovered that our Red Brandywine tomato plants in the front garden were showing all the early signs of blight. They were ripped out immediately before the blight could spread to the other plants and I was left with 3 kilos (over 6 1/2 pounds) of giant green tomatoes.
I’ve been meaning to develop a recipe for green tomato chutney for ages and this was the final kick up the butt to actually do something about it. I repaired to bed with the trusty Min Pins and submerged myself in a green tomato chutney recipe shaped world. I wanted to make a summery sort of chutney that could be used with fish and chicken dishes as well as with curries and cheese.
Eventually I spent the evening in the kitchen making this – it’s light, tangy and the zingy mix of spices works extremely well. It’s delicious already although I’d recommend leaving it for a month to mature and the flavours to develop even more. Incidentally the lemon in the recipe adds a sparkle and takes away the need for salt as an ingredient. So this tasty chutney is ideal for those on a low salt diet.
| Green tomato chutney recipe |
- 1 kilo (2 1/4 pounds or 6 1/4 cups) of chopped green tomatoes
- 35g (1/4 cup) of chopped red onion
- 1 Thin skinned lemon (mine was 100g – 3 1/2 ounces) quartered (skin on) and sliced as fine as you can (remove pips)
- 100g (1/4 pound or 2/3 cup) of sultanas
- 250g (1 1/4 cups) of pale brown sugar
- 10g (1 tablespoon) of fresh ginger (skinned and finely chopped)
- 10g (1 tablespoon) of fresh garlic (peeled and finely chopped)
- 10g (1 tablespoon) of green chilli pepper (deseeded and sliced fine)
- The juice from one small orange (mine weighed 150g or just over 5 ounces)
- 250ml (1 cup) of white wine vinegar
- 2 cloves
- 5 cardamom pods (just the seeds)
- 1 small star anise
- 2 heaped teaspoons of coriander powder
- 2 heaped teaspoons of turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon of mixed peppercorns
- 1 heaped teaspoon of coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon of yellow mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon of allspice berries
- In a large heavy bottomed saucepan/Maslin pan combine all the ingredients except the sugar.
- Heat gently.
- When the chutney starts to simmer add the sugar and stir constantly until you are certain that it has dissolved.
- Simmer the chutney stirring every now and then (and more towards the end of cooking) until the chutney has thickened.
- Ladle into warm sterilised jars and seal with plastic lined lids. Label when cool and store in a dark dry place.
Tips and Tricks
How do I get rid of tainted smells in pots?
If your cooking pot or container is tainted with the smell of the last resident (curry, tomato sauce etc). Sprinkle with a good tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda into it and add a good splosh of boiling water. Rub the solution over all surfaces and leave for two minutes. Rinse well in cold water.
How do I sterilise jars and lids?
The sterilising method that we use is simple. When the chutney is cooked, I quickly wash and rinse the jars and place them upside down in a cold oven. Set the temperature to 160c / 140c fan assisted (320f / 285f). When the oven has reached the right temperature I turn off the heat. The jars will stay warm for quite a while. I only use plastic lined metal lids for preserves as the all-metal lids can go rusty. I boil these for five minutes in water to sterilise them. If I use Le Parfait jars, I do the same with the rubber rings.
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Made the chutney & have it stored in kilner type jars. very pleased with myself, however I am now worried I may have filled the jars too much & some of the chutney may be on the rubber seals. will this effect the seal & destroy my masterpiece ?
Hi Anniemay
Don’t worry it will be fine and the rubber rings will survive too!
Making a batch of this from 2.2Kg of green tom’s tonight.
Should be ready for eating in time for Christmas. Will let you know how it tastes then.
Hi, the recipe looks great and I am trying it as we speak. One thing concerning me is the quantity of red onion as all the other recipes it is much greater. Could you tell me whether 35g is correct? I thought maybe it should be 350g.
Hi Simon
Yes 35g is correct – it’s just used to add flavour rather than bulk.
I have never done any preserving before What is the shelf life of the unopened jars & how long will the contents of an open jar stay fresh . Thanks for the recipe
Hi Anniemay
This chutney will keep for a year or two at least (unopened) and months in the fridge when opened – the sugar and vinegar are natural preservatives.
Thanks for the recipe. Hope it tastes alright as I have had to omit a few ingredients as I can’t get them here in Latvia
Just getting ready to plant some tomatoes… will try your recipe next Autumn as I always have a tonne of green toms when the frosts come.
Gave a jar of my courgette relish & a jar of my green tomato chutney to the chef at work last week. He called me to tell me I should be selling it.. what a compliment.
Thanks for all the inspiration Fiona!
Your timing was sadly two days too late for me. What a pity as I really could have used this recipe even though mine wasn’t a green tomato recipe. We had such a glut this year that I’ve been making everything: sun dried, bottled for use as a pasta base sauce and now chutney. I looked on the net for a recipe, but then fiddled with it and am certain I put in too much vinegar and not enough sugar. I’ll have to wait a few weeks and then see if there’s anything i can do to rescue it.
To answer your question on the previous post: I planted marigolds with the tomatoes this year – it worked a treat as companion planting – hence the glut, I suppose!
Perfect timing on the recipe Fiona! I have had a lousy summer with tomatoes, very little has ripened. This will save the day and not let all go to waste!
This looks like a lovely recipe, as usual, although it’s a shame about the blight. I have made 2 batches of yellow courgette chutney and am about to do my third. I will definitely be making chutney again – I find it has the most amazing taste.
I looked at the caption to the picture and thought “Those are green Brandywine tomatoes, not red Brandywine tomaties”. Then the penny dropped!