Home Made Tomato Ketchup

Mark's home grown tomatoes this year have been amazing - I say "have been", that should be "are". They are still groaning with fruit and it's almost October. Our freezer is full of sauce, we've had baked tomatoes or a tomato salad with practically every meal, our granddaughters have left clutching bags of cherry tomatoes after every visit and still there are trays of tomatoes all over the dining room table.

This week I decided to have a go at making tomato ketchup. Much as we love the well-known-brand variety, with so many tomatoes available it really seemed a pity not to.

The recipe I used came from the River Cottage Meat book and can be found on the River Cottage website. I omitted the red peppers, as Mark can't eat them, and the celery seed as it's not something either of us is fond of so we don't keep it in.

At the start of the week, I made a half-quantity to see how it worked. That filled two jars - and one of them is already gone. The sauce is absolutely delicious - rich, sweet and tangy, and as a bonus it has far less added sugar and salt than the bought variety. So today I made a full quantity, four jars. That gives us five jars in the fridge, and once the initial novelty has worn off, I expect we will use it at about the same rate as the bought stuff so it will last us several months.

A tip - if you have no muslin (or, as in my case, know very well that you have, but can't find it), that sort-of-fabric like semi disposable cleaning cloth you can buy makes a great substitute. Make sure the kind you buy isn't impregnated with any chemicals and only use it fresh from the pack. You don't want a piece that's just been used for wiping the floor!

The tomatoes and onions, ready to cook

The seasonings and spices are added