Apple Chutney

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide, heavy-bottomed preserving pan or large saucepan
• •Wooden spoon
• •4 sterilised jars with vinegar-proof lids (about 300ml each)
• •Funnel for filling jars (helpful but not essential)
• •Ladle

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the apples

   Peel, core and roughly chop the apples. Don't be too neat about it. The Bramleys will collapse into the chutney and the eating apples will hold a bit of shape, which is what you want. Some chunks, some softness. As you go, drop the chopped apples into a bowl so they don't sit on the board browning.

   Windfalls are perfect for this. Bruised, scarred, knobbly apples that no one would put in a fruit bowl turn into the best chutney. Just cut around the worst bits.
2. 2

   Start the base

   Tip everything into a wide, heavy-bottomed pan. All of it. Apples, onions, sugar, sultanas, vinegar, garlic, ginger, spices, salt, pepper. Stir it through with a wooden spoon. It will look like a mess. Don't worry, this is the right way for it to look at this stage.

3. 3

   Bring to a gentle boil

   Set the pan over a medium heat and bring it slowly to a simmer, stirring now and then so the sugar dissolves and nothing catches on the bottom. The kitchen will start to smell of vinegar and spice and apples, sharp and warm at the same time. That's the smell of an October afternoon worth staying in for.

4. 4

   Cook it down slowly

   Lower the heat so it bubbles gently rather than boils, and let it cook for an hour to an hour and a half. Stir it every ten minutes or so, more often as it thickens. The apples will collapse, the onions will turn translucent, and the whole thing will gradually darken from pale gold to a deep, glossy amber. Trust your nose. When the harsh edge of the vinegar has softened into something rounder and sweeter, you're getting close.

   The test is the wooden spoon. Drag it across the bottom of the pan. If the chutney parts and you can briefly see the base of the pan before it slowly closes back over, it's ready. If liquid floods straight back in, give it another ten minutes.
5. 5

   Sterilise the jars

   While the chutney is cooking, wash your jars and lids in hot soapy water, rinse them, and put them upside down on a tray in a low oven, about 120C, for twenty minutes. They need to be properly hot when the chutney goes in. Cold jars and hot chutney is how jars crack.

6. 6

   Jar it up

   Take the chutney off the heat and let it sit for five minutes to settle. Spoon it into the warm jars while still hot, pressing down gently to get rid of air pockets, and right up to within a few millimetres of the rim. Wipe the rims clean with a damp cloth, screw the lids on tightly, and leave them to cool on the counter. You'll hear the lids ping as they seal. A small, satisfying sound.

   Label the jars with the date. You'll thank yourself in February when you find one at the back of the cupboard and can't remember if it's six weeks old or six months.
7. 7

   Wait

   This is the hard part. Put the jars somewhere cool and dark and leave them for at least a month before you open one. Six weeks is better. The vinegar needs time to mellow and the spices need time to settle into the fruit. Chutney eaten too young tastes raw and pointed. Chutney left to rest tastes of itself.

Chef Tips

• •Bramleys are the right apple for the body of this chutney because they collapse into a soft, fluffy mass as they cook. Mixing in some firmer eating apples at the same time gives you a bit of texture, so it's not all one note. If all you have is one variety, that's fine. The market decides.
• •Don't skimp on the cooking time. The difference between a thin, watery chutney and a thick, glossy one is just patience. Keep it on a gentle simmer until you can drag a spoon across the bottom of the pan and see a clear track. That's the only test that matters.
• •Cider vinegar is my first choice because it has a softness that suits the apples, but malt vinegar works too if it's what you have. Avoid white wine vinegar here. It's too delicate for the job and the spices will overwhelm it.
• •The chutney will taste sharp and slightly raw the day you make it. Don't be alarmed. A month in the cupboard transforms it. This is one of those rare cases where waiting is the recipe.

Advance Preparation

• •The chutney must rest for at least one month before eating. Six weeks is better still. The flavours need that time to settle.
• •Sealed jars stored in a cool, dark cupboard will keep for up to a year. Once opened, refrigerate and use within a month.
• •If you want to get ahead in autumn, this is one of those rare recipes you can genuinely make six months in advance and have it improve in the meantime.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 15g)