Recently I have spent a lot of my time dicing pears! Thanks to the Tayvallich Cafe and General Store, and Isle of Bute Cheeses, Pear & Ginger Chutney has become very popular - so I thought I would share just a little bit about how I make it.
Firstly I peel and dice root ginger. This is then soaked overnight in water, then the next day boiled. Not just once but three or four times. That means bringing to the boil, simmering for some 10 minutes, draining the water out, adding fresh cold water and repeating. After the 'final' boil it is then boiled in water with added sugar, this time continuing until the liquid is thick and syrupy. It is then transferred to hot sterilised jars with the lids sealed tightly. Once cool it is labelled and stored away until I have almost forgotten about it! At least 2 months is a good time.
Next I spend a day coring and dicing fresh pears and a few onions. Along with this I use a potato peeler to peel a couple of lemons and then finely cut the lemon zest into slithers. This goes into the pan along with the freshly squeezed lemon juice and a few cloves of garlic - also sliced by hand.
All the fruit, including a generous handful of raisins, the onions and some spices are added to the pan with vinegar and brown sugar. This takes a while to come to the boil and then boils away for 2-3 hours until it is just the right consistency. The weather, the humidity and the ripeness of the fruit all affect how long it takes
Finally it goes into the jars - Massive jars for the cafes, 'normal' jars for the shops and Farmers' Market and baby jars to go into selection packs.
So, when anybody asks me 'how long does it take to make Pear & Ginger chutney?' the reality is that it is over 2 months!!
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