Easy Addictive Tomato Chutney Recipe (Can or Freeze)
A delicious tomato chutney recipe that's basically a ketchup substitute, full of complex flavors and a little heat. Everybody who tries it agrees it is amazing - be prepared to give lots away!
Servings: 6 half-pints (or 3 pints)
Calories: 42kcal
Equipment
- Food Processor, knife & cutting board
- Measuring cups and spoons
- 6 to 8-quart stock pot
- Canner and canning jars (use the jars for freezing, too)
Ingredients
- 4 pounds tomatoes, peeled, cored and chopped*
- 1 cup chopped onions
- 1/4 cup minced garlic (about a medium sized head)
- 1/2 cup raisins, (chopped in processor)
- 3/4 cup brown sugar, (LOWER SUGAR VERSION: 1/2 cup)
- 3/4 cup white sugar (LOWER SUGAR VERSION: Use only 1/4 cup honey - no white sugar)
- 1½ cups apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon canning salt or pure sea salt
- 1 lime, zested and juiced
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 to 3 teaspoons hot pepper flakes or to taste**
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Prep the tomatoes, chopping either by hand or with a food processor: Core and quarter the tomatoes and add them - unpeeled - in batches to a food processor, whirring until evenly chopped (fairly fine). Alternately, core, peel and chop the tomatoes by hand. You should have 7 cups of chopped/pureed tomatoes.
- Combine the tomatoes and all the remaining ingredients in a heavy, nonreactive 4-6 quart pot (if doubling the recipe, use an 8 to 12-quart stockpot).
- Bring to a boil over high heat (I cover the pot to help it boil faster), then lower heat and cook at a low simmer, uncovered (just a few bubbles here and there) for 1-1/2 to 2 hours until thickened.*** Stir often as it thickens to prevent scorching.
- To Can: Prepare water-bath canner, lids and jars. (Refer to this complete water-bath tutorial here.)
- Ladle the chutney into 1/2 pint canning jars leaving 1/4" headspace and attach the two-piece canning lids. Transfer to canner as you fill and seal.
- Once all the jars are added, bring the canner to a boil for 10 minutes (half-pints - 15 minutes for pints), adjusting heat as needed to keep a medium boil (not too hard).
- When timer goes off, turn off burner, remove lid and let jars sit for 5 minutes before removing the jars to a towel-lined surface to cool for 12 to 24 hours. Check seals and store in a dark, cool place.
- To Freeze: Ladle into freezer-safe containers (canning jars are okay to freeze), label and store in the freezer up to a year.
Notes
*I now simply core and quarter washed tomatoes after weighing for chutneys and salsas and then chop in a food processor, peels and all! It saves SO much time and we didn't notice any difference in the final product.
**We like this spicy, so I use 1 tablespoon. Note that it will taste really spicy when fresh, but after canning and storing it is a lot less. I started with the smaller amount and then upped it each year until we liked it, so don't be afraid to experiment with the spice.
***Some years our tomatoes are juicier or we have more slicers vs. paste tomatoes and the chutney will take longer to cook down (up to 3 hours) to get as thick as we like it. Cook it until it's thick like the photos, however long that may be.
High Altitude Adjustment: If processing at an altitude of higher than 1000 feet above sea level you'll need to adjust the processing time according to this chart.
Nutrition Note: the amounts below are for the REGULAR chutney.
As a comparison, the LOWER SUGAR chutney nutrition is: Serving: 2tablespoons | Calories: 27kcal | Carbohydrates: 6.4g | Protein: 0.5g | Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 123mg | Fiber: 0.6g | Sugar: 5g
Nutrition
Serving: 2Tablespoon | Calories: 42kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 150mg | Potassium: 126mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 329IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 1mg
