Glutney

Makes 5 jars

• Spice bag – 1/2 teaspoon each of cloves, black peppercorns

  Black peppercorns

  Best used as a condiment.

  They can be lightly crushed and used to spice up a creamy sauce or to coat fillet steak or chicken breasts.

  • Although it might seem odd, grinding black pepper over a bowl of strawberries enhances the flavour of the fruit.
  • Pepper that is pre-ground is not fresh tasting and often has other ingredients mixed in.
  • Choose the type of mill that suits you, and if you want coarser pepper you can loosen the screw on the top of the mill or crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar
  and coriander seeds
• 675g courgettes and marrow or pumpkin, peeled and diced into 1cm pieces
• 675g over-ripe tomatoes, skinned and chopped OR
• 675g over-ripe plums, stoned and chopped
• 675g bruised or shrivelled apples
• 250g onions, peeled and roughly chopped
• 375ml white wine or cider vinegar
• 200ml water
• 1-2 teaspoons dried chilli flakes

  Dried chilli flakes

  Great for adding instant ‘hotness’ to sauces.

  Or for adding spice to curries.

  , depending on your taste for heat
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 250g raisins

  Dried fruits

  Sultanas, currents, and raisins are all dried grapes of different varieties.

  • They are a healthy snack on their own or with nuts. They also work well for fruitcakes and Christmas pudding, biscuits and buns.
  • When re-hydrated in water, tea or alcohol they can be added to mousses, fools and ice creams.
  • Their natural sweetness works well with Indian and North African recipes.
  • Keep the fruits fresher by resealing them with bag clips or transfer them to airtight containers.
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

  Salt

  Consider tablesalt, sea salt or crystals.

  Sea salt’s pronounced and salty flavour means less is required to season food.

• 250g light brown sugar

  Sugar and Syrups

  Try having in stock caster sugar, muscavado, honey and golden syrup

  • Once opened ensure they are tightly resealed with quick clips or bag clips.
  • If you have got rock-hard brown sugar, crystallised honey/syrup, place in a suitable non-metallic bowl and give a quick blast of about 30 seconds on high in the microwave to bring these back to their normal state.