Friday, August 31, 2012

In a pickle

So, it's that time of year when the veggies are a plenty. Too plentiful to be honest, if there is such a thing. All my feeding, pinching out and nurturing has paid off and now I am faced with a daily basketful of red and yellow marbles. Well cherry tomatoes actually. They are at their best in a salad, or just popped in the mouth whilst being harvested, but when it comes to preserving them, there is a dilemma. To roast, to freeze, to bottle, to...? Well, what about to pickle? Or to jam to be precise as tomato is a fruit after all.





Jamming the little red poppets provides the perfect solution to the glut. There is not enough flesh to pad out the waiting jars and I can't be doing with faffing about drying them so I have found a recipe that can be adapted depending on what else is available and this solves the problem. The bonus is that they don't have to be skinned which was also presenting various time consuming issues. Whack a bit of chilli in and you have something that will spice up a cheese sarnie or is a perfect accompaniment to a curry. Great with sausages and burgers too.


This is what I did to them...


Cherry Tomato Jam



Ingredients

  1. 2 tsp cumin seeds
  2. 2 tsp coriander seeds
  3. 750g ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
  4. 2 onions, finely chopped, (apples and courgettes optional)
  5. 2 fat garlic cloves, crushed
  6. 5cm piece fresh ginger, grated
  7. 250ml white wine vinegar
  8. 300g soft light brown sugar
  9. 2 tsp soy sauce
  10. 2 large mild red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped ( optional)

Method

  1. 1. Put the cumin and coriander seeds in a small frying pan and toast over a low heat for 1 minute, then crush in a pestle and mortar.
  2. 2. Put the tomatoes and onions (a couple of windfall chopped apples or courgettes can be added at this stage) in a wide pan with the garlic, chillies and ginger. Add the spices, vinegar and sugar. Bring to the boil, then simmer until reduced to a jam-like consistency - can take 3 -4 hours. Add the fish sauce and cook for 2 more minutes before spooning into sterilised jars.
  3. 3. Seal the jars while hot, then allow to cool completely before labelling and storing.

1 comment:

  1. Wow, great recipe! If only we had a glut of cherry tomatoes here, life in France is tough!! :)

    I might try this as it sounds delicious. xx

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