Last week following my post Sauce for your Chips, wisewebwoman asked if I had a recipe for a similar sauce with Chilli like her mother used to make. It has taken me almost a week to locate this one and I hope it comes close to the mark.
Tomato and Chilli Sauce
3 lbs firm and ripe tomatoes,
1 small onion, cut into chunks,
1 large or two small tart apples, cut into chunks,
12 ozs brown sugar,
½ bird’s eye chilli, minced,
¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper,
¼ teaspoon ground paprika,
¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black peppercorns,
12 fl ozs malt vinegar,
salt to taste,
1 teaspoonful corn flour dissolved in
½ teaspoonful water
Reduce any spices you think will make the sauce too hot for you.
Put the halved or quartered tomatoes, onion and apple chunks in the food processor. Process until smooth. Pour into a large saucepan on a medium heat. Put in the rest ingredients
Stir to dissolve the sugar. Let the mixture bubble and keep stirring to avoid the fruit mixture sticking on the bottom of the pan. When the mixture is reduced and the colour is darker, have a taste. You can add more spices, salt or sugar, to give the correct balance, according to your preference.
Line a large bowl or jug with a muslin cloth. Remove the saucepan from the heat, then, pour the hot sauce through the muslin. Press to get more moisture from the sauce and scrape any residue on the outside of the muslin into the bowl. Discard the leftover tomato mixture in the muslin and return the sauce to the saucepan and put it back on the heat.
Simmer on a low heat until bubbling again. Add the cornflour dissolved in the water, and cook for another 10 minutes to thicken. Pour immediately into the prepared sterilised jars or bottles leaving ¼ inch headroom.
When cold, cork tightly and store. Mark with name and date.
Grannymar,
I’ve been chasing birds around the garden all morning but I can’t catch one for my bird’s eye chilli sauce.
Is there another sort of chilli I could use? 😉
I need to get my eyes checked i read “1 large or 2 small apple tarts, cut into chunks” instead of “1 large or two small tart apples, cut into chunks”
Still i will be giving this one a go.
Steph – Come in outa that rain before you catch pneumonia! The burds can wait until tomorra! 😆
BTD – I have days like that too where the words dance and skip about the page!
thank you thank you thank you GM!!
Been chasing this one for years, I’ll let you know how it works out, hard to get ‘tart’ apples here but I may substitute ‘crab’.
XO
WWW
WWW – You are welcome, I look forward to hearing if it matches up to your mother’s recipe.
Steph and Belfast Taxi Driver there are tears in my eyes laughing at the two of you.
Wise web woman good idea about the crab apples. I have a tree full. Never thought of that.
Before I go Thank you Grannymar for the recipe 🙂
RG – You are welcome, let me know how it goes!
What is a Birdseye Chili? I didn’t chase birds like Steph, but I am curious. I presume it’s a green pepper of some sort?
Alice – A birds eye chilli is tiny, pointed and extremely hot. I have never seen garden birds with eyes like that! 😉