Joined: 09 Feb 2005 Posts: 9 Location: Northumberland
Posted: Wed Aug 31, 05 6:59 am Post subject: Help Chutney hasn't set
Hi everyone
Made some Mango Chutney yesterday and it hasn't set. To be honest I was running out of time and I thought it was still too runny when I bottled it, although I had cooked it for longer than the time in the recipe. Can I tip it back in the pan and reboil it and do I need to add anything else to thicken it.
Hope someone can help.
Thank You
Guest
Posted: Wed Aug 31, 05 7:06 am Post subject:
Unlike jam, chutney can be put back into the pan and successfully rescued. Just tip it all back int he pan, and bring it to the boil again; it's ready when a gap is left and the chutney won;t meet again when a wooden spoon is drawn across the pan. It won;t set solid, but when ready, most of the actual liquid is evaporated off.
it's also possible that you'll need to adjust the recipe as you may be adding too much vinegar or not taking into account the liquid in the items you're using
i don't use recipes, i just make chutney but i'm also mindful to just add enough vinegar to coat the bottom of the pan to start with
once the ingredients start to reduce and lose their water content i judge from there how much more vinegar to add and that's also when i add my sugar
you don't have to have a lot of vinegar in chutney, because my sil can't handle anything too acidic i make my with as little vinegar as possible now and they still taste good and keep very well
just make sure that your jars are very clean. i wash mine in a clean sink full of my hottest tap water and drop in a few drops of bleach, lids go in too
then i use tongs to pull them out of the water and put them in a baking tray and put them in the oven on a low setting for about 15 minutes, til they're quite warm. then i pour my chutney in while it's still hot and put the lid on. i've never had a seal fail yet, in fact i often have to have my dh open them because they make such a tight seal! you need to fill them nearly to the top though to get the best seal!
mine keep fine this way even without a lot of vinegar. my last batch filled 3 of the cornichon jars from lidl so a decent amount, i only used about 1/2 cup of vinegar at most for that, probably less (i just eyeball it, giving recipes is a nightmare for me!)
just cook til it's reduced and thicker but not too thick!
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