Over past two years I’ve become increasingly aware of a small child living in our house; a cheeky red haired girl who spoke very little until recently, but has begun to refer to me as “Da-da”. While not particularly forthcoming with rent, she has proved a welcome and enthusiastic companion in the garden - perhaps a little too so at times. Handfuls of green tomatoes are cast before me like jade marbles; I’ve learnt to dispel my horror at the premature harvest, and have whole heartedly embraced the concept of unripedom.
700g Green tomatoes
1 Green pepper
A small piece of root ginger, grated
2 Large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 Onion, finely sliced
A small handful of chopped carrot tops (optional)
100ml White wine vinegar
75g Light muscovado sugar
1Tsp Cumin seeds
Cayenne pepper (optional)
Groundnut oil
Salt and pepper
1 Finely chop the tomatoes and green pepper. Simmer the garlic, ginger, onion and cumin seeds in a shallow pan with some oil, then stir in the toms and pepper. Keep on the simmer for 10 minutes or so, stirring regularly.
2 Pour in the vinegar, then add the sugar, carrot tops, cayenne and some seasoning. Keep on the heat until everything has become soft and pulpy, then blitz in a food processor and squash through a sieve into a bowl. Pour the ketchup into sterilised bottles.
