Tomato Relish

This tomato relish is very simple to make.

It's great with cheese or meats.

This quantity makes about a pint of relish - you can easily make more or less by adjusting the quantities.

It will keep for about a month in the fridge and as it's so quick to make, you can easily prepare some more.

I doubt it would last a month in my house!

You can use up your overripe tomatoes in this or even green ones off the vine that haven't had time to ripen before winter sets in.

You would need to taste and adjust the sweetness after cooking, as it would be a little tart and the point of a relish is to mix sweet, savoury and tart together.

This is essential if you're storing chutneys, jams and preserves for a long time, but not so critical if the storage is going to be less.

Tomato Relish
12 ripe tomatoes
1 medium onion - finely chopped
3 garlic cloves - crushed
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
2 teaspoons allspice berries
1 tablespoon thyme
7 oz (200g) caster sugar
1/4 pint (150ml) cider vinegar
salt and pepper

Chop the tomatoes - remove the cores.

Put into a large heavy based pan with the onion and mustard seeds.

Tie the allspice and thyme into muslin - drop into the pan.

Bring the mixture up to a simmer - simmer without the lid for about 45 minutes.

The mixture should be reduced to about two thirds.

Add the sugar and stir to dissolve.

Add some sea salt and black pepper and the vinegar.

Increase the heat and cook for about 30 minutes.

The mixture should be quite thick by now.

Remove the allspice and thyme. Allow the bag to cool, then squeeze it out to get the flavor into the relish.

Store the relish in very clean jars - you can use it immediately and it will keep in the fridge for about a month.

For an explanation of gardening terms that you might not understand, please check out the Growers Dictionary section.

I found that I was either skimping on explanations or giving too much information on the individual pages so I have posted all relevant terms in one section - if there's anything you need to know, please drop me an email.

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