It's so easy to do, satisfying and you save so much money. With tomatoes recently at 99c/kg one jar of homemade relish will set you back just over a dollar, compare that to $3-$6 per jar in store.
I use a recipe that was on the back of the Ezy Sauce bottle. Ezy sauce can be found in the condiments section of the supermarket. It is normally on the top shelf and looks like a stubby. It is basically vinegar infused with cloves and other spices. You can use it to make tomato sauce, plum sauce etc.
I highly recommend you give it a go - it is really simple and preserving is really very easy. The hardest bit is remembering to save empty jars in order to have enough to fill! Salsa jars are great as they have a wider mouth so it's easier to fill and Dolmio and Five Brothers jars have easy to remove labels! Otherwise if you haven't collected any jars and you don't want to fork out lots of money for them at a kitchenware store check out your local op shop.
A Thermomix would be awesome for making relish given that it can stir and cook, however i wanted to make a big batch so the 2L bowl just wasn't going to cut it!
Tomato Relish - From Wild's Ezy Sauce
8kg tomatoes, peeled and sliced*
3kg onions, sliced
2 tbsp salt
3kg sugar
4 tbsp curry powder
4 tbsp mustard powder
375ml bottle Ezy Sauce
1 cup flour (i use cornflour so it's gluten free)
1 cup water
* to peel tomatoes easily, cut an X in the skin on the bottom and submerge in boiling water for a minute. The skin should peel off easily.
Method:
Combine tomatoes, onions and salt in a large bowl, cover and let sit for 12 hours.
Drain tomato and onion mixture, then pour into a large pot and bring to the boil.
Mix curry and mustard powder with 1/2 cup water then add to tomato along with sugar and Ezy Sauce.
Stir to combine and boil for about 2 1/4 hours or until liquid has reduced. (It will still be quite runny at this stage)
MIx flour and water together to form a slurry then add to relish mixture. Cook for about 15 minutes or until relish thickens.
Fill into sterilised jars and seal. Invert jars and leave to cool. If the little button does not stay popped in then your jars have not sealed properly and you must reseal, or put the jar in the fridge and use immediately.
Properly sealed relish will keep in the pantry for 12 months.
A WORD ON STERILISING: As your mixture is hot, your jars MUST be hot. If you are unsure about sterilising check out this article. It is simple but tells you everything you need to know.
Sarah xx
