Tomato chutney is a great way to store that glut of tomatoes that happens every time this year. And best of all it's delicious!

I picked up this recipe for free at my local supermarket. It's fast, simple, cheap and tasty, perfect for eating with cheeses and cold meats, or added to sandwiches to make them more interesting.

Had a bad, wet summer? Tomatoes not ripened? You might like my green tomato chutney instructable instead.

Step 1: Ingredients

Ingredients:

1kg ripe tomatoes
1 large onion (I used several small ones, 100g)
a knob of butter
a pinch of salt
100ml white wine vinegar
130g demerara sugar
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbshp wholegrain mustard

Kitchenware:

a large pan
2 400ml jars
something to stir with

Preheat your oven to 100 Celsius

Step 2: Onions

Chop the onions fairly finely.

Melt a knob of butter in the pan with a pinch of salt.

Add the onions to the butter and fry gently until soft.

Step 3: Tomatoes

Roughly chop all of the tomatoes.

Add them to the pan.

Step 4: In With the Rest...

Add the rest of the ingredients then stir.

Bring to a gentle boil and then simmer on a low heat with the lid off for 40 minutes to 1 hour.

The aim at this stage is to reduce the tomato chutney until it's thick and changes colour to a more golden brown.

Step 5: Preparing Jars

At this point you'll want to chuck your jars in the oven.

100°C should do the trick, just enough to kill any germs from your pre-cleaned jars and remove any water you haven't dried out.

I forgot to take a picture for this step so you'll have to make do with one I took last year....

Step 6: Is It Done Yet???

You can tell it's done a few ways.

It should be darker than when you started. It shouldn't be runny. A good indication is if you can drag your spoon/stirrer through it and it doesn't all collapse back in on itself then it's probably done. A little bit of liquid is good, too much and it might separate out in the jar.

If you taste it right now it'll probably taste horribly vinegary. Fear not, it'll get better when it's jarred, cooled and aged a wee bit.

Step 7: Filling Jars and Capping

Now the tomato chutney's finished, fill your jars up as high as you can to get as little air in the jar as possible. If anything mine are slightly under full.

If you have wax paper and plastic disks, you probably know what you're doing so carry on as normal.

If you're lacking these things, a double layer of cling film (saran wrap) over the top while it's hot should do the trick. As the chutney cools the wrap will get sucked down and keep any bacteria out.

Once cool add the lid, or rip the plastic off and enjoy with some cheese or cold meats. If you have the patience (I don't) you can leave it to age for a few weeks and the taste should be even better.