Nectarine (or Peach) Chutney - Sweet, Spicy & Pickled

Monday, August 24, 2015

Nectarine chutney with fruit from WA State Stone Fruit Association's Canbassador program using Kevin West's recipe in Saving the Seasons by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

Late last month, we received a case of mighty tasty peaches and nectarines from the Washington State Stone Fruit Association as part of their "Canbassador" program. As a "Canbassador", I agree to can something and write about it and, in turn, they send me cases of fresh fruit to use - a mutually beneficial relationship which kicked off with a case of sweet cherries in June.

Peaches for chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

We ate quite a lot of them out of hand - in fact, our older son ate so many that I had to threaten to take away his dessert to get him to put the brakes on before he suffered any ill effects. Thus far, the power of dessert is unparalleled when it comes to "reasoning" with our children. Usually, it's the only thing that works...

I also made a delicious peach cobbler with biscuit topping and a delectable, gluten-free peach crisp (just substitute peaches for apples in this recipe) but a case contains rather a lot of fruit and it quickly became apparent that some canning was in order.

The Peaches by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2011

Chutney was our go-to choice since we use quite a lot of it in the course of the year. The combination of sweet, spicy and pickled goes so well with curries, fritters, meats and more. We've made loquat chutney, apple rhubarb chutney, sweet cherry chutney and plum chutney - all delicious. But this was our first time using nectarines and the results were very fine.

Nectarine chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

How can you really go wrong with perfect, sweet, ripe nectarines, fresh ginger, garlic, jalapenoes, bell pepper, onion and peppercorns plus plenty of vinegar and sugar to turn it into something that is both zingy and also shelf-stable. This recipe also calls for a few other spices and some Darjeeling tea which struck me as a novel way to add even more flavor.

Nectarine chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

I have to thank my college friend, Lexy who lives in New York and works in publishing for sending me a copy of Kevin West's beautifully written, wonderfully thorough book, Saving the Season: A Cook's Guide to Home Canning, Pickling, and Preserving from which this recipe hails.

Nectarine chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

It's a cookbook that reads more like a memoir and is nicely rooted in place - in his case, Greenvalley, CA where he lived when he wrote it. It's joined the ranks of my favorite canning and preserving cookbooks, along with Food in Jars by Marisa McLellan and Put 'em Up!by Sherri Brooks Vinton.


If you've never canned anything before or just need a little refresher, check out my Canning 101 post before you dive in.

Nectarine chutney with fruit from WA State Stone Fruit Association's Canbassador program using Kevin West's recipe in Saving the Seasons by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

-- print recipe --Nectarine or Peach Chutney
From Kevin West's delightful book, Saving the Season
Makes 4 pints

Ingredients

* 5 pounds yellow peaches or nectarines, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
* 3 cups organic or turbinado sugar
* 2 cups apple-cider vinegar
* 3/4 cup raisins
* 1 cup chopped Vidalia onion
* 1 sweet banana pepper or 1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
* 2 or 3 fresh green jalapeños, diced, or adjust to taste
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger root
* 2 teaspoons freshly grated turmeric, or 1/2 teaspoon ground
* 4 tablespoons mustard seeds
* 1 teaspoon garam masala (a ground spice mixture containing pepper, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, coriander, nutmeg, cumin, and star anise)
* 2 teaspoons Darjeeling tea (or 4 tea bags)

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a deep pot and bring to a boil, stirring a few times. Lower the heat to a simmer and reduce the mixture for up to an hour, until all the excess liquid has boiled away and what remains is thick and jammy. Taste it and adjust the seasonings to your liking. I am wimpy about spice so I tend to err on the mild side of things but you may like it hot in which case, you may want to add more chilis.

2. Ladle the hot chutney into four prepared pint jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Wipe the rims with a damp, clean cloth, top with the jar lids, add the rings and turn until tight but do not overtighten then process in a boiling-water bath for 10 minutes. For best flavor, let the chutney cure for a month before you eat it.

You might also like:


For more delicious recipes, gardening ideas, foraging tips, and food-related inspiration "like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter and Pinterest.

6 comments:

ariana said...

ooh! Kevin West came to my work/school last year and we sampled some delicious concoctions. I have never delved into canning before, but his demo and your writing are giving me the itch to try it!

Johanna said...

Why put tea leaves in the chutney?

Eve Fox said...

It adds an exotic, slightly smoky taste but if that does not sound appealing, by all means, skip it!

Mrs Mc said...

Thank you so much, this,sounds fantastic to try on excess fruits

Unknown said...

This sounds lovely! What would you use this kind of chutney on/with?

Eve Fox said...

hi Amber,
it's delicious with grilled or roasted meats - pork or lamb, especially. Or with any kind of curry. I like to have it and some raita whenever I make curried chickpeas. http://www.thegardenofeating.org/2012/02/cumin-scented-quinoa-with-grated-beets.html

I also like to put a little schmear on bread and cheese before toasting it.

Hope you like it!

Monday, August 24, 2015

Nectarine (or Peach) Chutney - Sweet, Spicy & Pickled

Nectarine chutney with fruit from WA State Stone Fruit Association's Canbassador program using Kevin West's recipe in Saving the Seasons by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

Late last month, we received a case of mighty tasty peaches and nectarines from the Washington State Stone Fruit Association as part of their "Canbassador" program. As a "Canbassador", I agree to can something and write about it and, in turn, they send me cases of fresh fruit to use - a mutually beneficial relationship which kicked off with a case of sweet cherries in June.

Peaches for chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

We ate quite a lot of them out of hand - in fact, our older son ate so many that I had to threaten to take away his dessert to get him to put the brakes on before he suffered any ill effects. Thus far, the power of dessert is unparalleled when it comes to "reasoning" with our children. Usually, it's the only thing that works...

I also made a delicious peach cobbler with biscuit topping and a delectable, gluten-free peach crisp (just substitute peaches for apples in this recipe) but a case contains rather a lot of fruit and it quickly became apparent that some canning was in order.

The Peaches by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2011

Chutney was our go-to choice since we use quite a lot of it in the course of the year. The combination of sweet, spicy and pickled goes so well with curries, fritters, meats and more. We've made loquat chutney, apple rhubarb chutney, sweet cherry chutney and plum chutney - all delicious. But this was our first time using nectarines and the results were very fine.

Nectarine chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

How can you really go wrong with perfect, sweet, ripe nectarines, fresh ginger, garlic, jalapenoes, bell pepper, onion and peppercorns plus plenty of vinegar and sugar to turn it into something that is both zingy and also shelf-stable. This recipe also calls for a few other spices and some Darjeeling tea which struck me as a novel way to add even more flavor.

Nectarine chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

I have to thank my college friend, Lexy who lives in New York and works in publishing for sending me a copy of Kevin West's beautifully written, wonderfully thorough book, Saving the Season: A Cook's Guide to Home Canning, Pickling, and Preserving from which this recipe hails.

Nectarine chutney by Eve Fox, the Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

It's a cookbook that reads more like a memoir and is nicely rooted in place - in his case, Greenvalley, CA where he lived when he wrote it. It's joined the ranks of my favorite canning and preserving cookbooks, along with Food in Jars by Marisa McLellan and Put 'em Up!by Sherri Brooks Vinton.


If you've never canned anything before or just need a little refresher, check out my Canning 101 post before you dive in.

Nectarine chutney with fruit from WA State Stone Fruit Association's Canbassador program using Kevin West's recipe in Saving the Seasons by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

-- print recipe --Nectarine or Peach Chutney
From Kevin West's delightful book, Saving the Season
Makes 4 pints

Ingredients

* 5 pounds yellow peaches or nectarines, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
* 3 cups organic or turbinado sugar
* 2 cups apple-cider vinegar
* 3/4 cup raisins
* 1 cup chopped Vidalia onion
* 1 sweet banana pepper or 1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
* 2 or 3 fresh green jalapeños, diced, or adjust to taste
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger root
* 2 teaspoons freshly grated turmeric, or 1/2 teaspoon ground
* 4 tablespoons mustard seeds
* 1 teaspoon garam masala (a ground spice mixture containing pepper, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, coriander, nutmeg, cumin, and star anise)
* 2 teaspoons Darjeeling tea (or 4 tea bags)

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a deep pot and bring to a boil, stirring a few times. Lower the heat to a simmer and reduce the mixture for up to an hour, until all the excess liquid has boiled away and what remains is thick and jammy. Taste it and adjust the seasonings to your liking. I am wimpy about spice so I tend to err on the mild side of things but you may like it hot in which case, you may want to add more chilis.

2. Ladle the hot chutney into four prepared pint jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Wipe the rims with a damp, clean cloth, top with the jar lids, add the rings and turn until tight but do not overtighten then process in a boiling-water bath for 10 minutes. For best flavor, let the chutney cure for a month before you eat it.

You might also like:


For more delicious recipes, gardening ideas, foraging tips, and food-related inspiration "like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter and Pinterest.

6 comments:

ariana said...

ooh! Kevin West came to my work/school last year and we sampled some delicious concoctions. I have never delved into canning before, but his demo and your writing are giving me the itch to try it!

Johanna said...

Why put tea leaves in the chutney?

Eve Fox said...

It adds an exotic, slightly smoky taste but if that does not sound appealing, by all means, skip it!

Mrs Mc said...

Thank you so much, this,sounds fantastic to try on excess fruits

Unknown said...

This sounds lovely! What would you use this kind of chutney on/with?

Eve Fox said...

hi Amber,
it's delicious with grilled or roasted meats - pork or lamb, especially. Or with any kind of curry. I like to have it and some raita whenever I make curried chickpeas. http://www.thegardenofeating.org/2012/02/cumin-scented-quinoa-with-grated-beets.html

I also like to put a little schmear on bread and cheese before toasting it.

Hope you like it!