Tag Archives: pomegranate

 
This recipe owes a lot to Hugh F-W, Delia, and my friend Moff.
This makes about 6lb (2.5kg) of delicious chutney. Damson is the king of chutney ingredients and this is a very dark, rich chutney.
 
This is an autumn task, since the apples & damsons will be ready around September/October.
 
Of course, tweak it to your own desires. I have a serious pomegranate habit, hence its inclusion here. You might not, so just leave it out or swap it with something else (cherries, figs). If you’re struggling to find damsons, swap them for plums.
 
1lb (450g) cored & chopped Bramley apples
3lb (1.3kg) damsons, stoned
2-3 large onions (around 1½lb / 680g), chopped
1 pint (600ml) cider vinegar
1lb (450g) seedless raisins
1lb (450g) soft brown sugar
1lb demerara sugar
2oz (60g) pomegranate seeds (fresh if you have the energy, dried if not)
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons sea salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground allspice
2 heaped teaspoons ground ginger
6 cloves, crushed
 

 
Somehow, you have to get the stones out of the damsons. So, either split each one with a knife and twist the stones out. Or, stew in half of the vinegar until soft, and then scoop the stones out of the mix.
 
Core & finely chop the apples. Don’t peel them.
 
Add the apples, damsons & vinegar to your largest, widest pan. Simmer on a low heat.
 
Finely chop the onions and add, along with all the remaining ingredients, to the pan. Stir well.
 
Simmer on a low heat for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally. The stirring dissolves the sugar – otherwise you will end up with a ‘crunchy’ chutney with clumps of sugar in it.
 
It is ready when you can drag a wooden spoon across the surface, making a trench that only slowly fills with vinegar. It will become firmer once cooled, so it’s best not to reduce/dry out the chutney too much.
 
Remove from heat and get your warm sterilised* jars ready. Whilst the chutney is still warm decant it into the jars. If your jars have plastic/rubber on the bottom of their lids, you can screw them on tightly now (most do – if you’re recycling old pesto/pasta sauce/jam jars). If not, you need to introduce a wax disc between the jar and the screw lid – the vinegary chutney must not come into direct contact with the metal lid.
 
Leave to cool & stand for at least 3 months somewhere cool and dark. If you can manage it, leave them for 4-5 months.
 
*NB – to sterilise your recycled jars you have two options – sterilising powder from the supermarket. Or, simply thoroughly wash out the jars (dishwasher if you have one) and then pop them in a low (120˚C/250F/Gas Mark 1-2) oven until dried.