Topic: Chutney

[tim]

If you can bottle Marmalade cold/cool, why hot for chutney??

[Obelixx]

I always thought it was to create vaccuum when it cooled and thus help it keep for longer.

I do marmalade hot too, and jam and jelly.

[Duke Ellington]

Yes if you bottle things hot it creates a vacuum which is a good thing...however there are some things where the recipe requires you to cool things down slightly before placing the lid. I believe its useful for things where you have pieces of fruit, chilli or rind suspended in the jam/marmalade/jelly etc. When you allow it cool slightly the liquid thickens and you can distribute the pieces throughout the jam. When its too hot sometimes the bits float to the top! which has been my experience when making chilli apple jelly!
 
Duke

[tim]

Nail on head, Duke, but............since Marmalade keeps, why, with all its sugar & vinegar, shouldn't chutney??

[Duke Ellington]

Mmmm.... well when I learned to make jam or chutney I was always taught to put the hot jam, chutney or jelly into hot jars...except when trying to distribute fruit etc. ( as I mentioned above). I use this method because it creates a good seal. Maybe your instructions come from the days when wax discs etc were used and not metal lids...just a thought that just came into my head :)
I am sorry that this isn't helping you much as you must have other instructions. Hopefully we have a jam or chutney making guru on the forum.
Sorry I have been about as much help as a chocolate tea pot !!

Duke

[tim]

Agree - but why the exception for Marmalade? Keeps for years!

[Obelixx]

I suspect the various ingredients in chutney are more likely to ferment than Seville oranges or other citrus fruits used in marmalade.

[tricia]

When I make marmalade or jam with fruit pieces in them I always fill the jars and screw the lids down immediately. Then I upend the jars for five minutes or so. This distributes the fruit, although I must admit that I sometimes turn the jars more than once - depends on how thick the contents are. I also make sure the jars are filled as full as possible and have never had any problem with this method.

They last for years. I'm still trying to use up marmalade, jams and chutneys from 2007! For that reason I haven't made much of anything this year - one exception is strawberry jam which, of course, I need for cream teas  ;D.

Tricia

[jennym]

All the jams, marmalades, chutneys etc that I make are sealed into the jars when hot. If the consistency (density) is right, the pieces of fruit don't usually sink or rise too much.
The only exception I find is for items where the fruit used is of a significantly higher density than the medium it's in - for example, I make a ginger preserve using an apple based jelly and pieces of chopped crystallised ginger. In that case, I follow the same method as Tricia, upending the already sealed jars. With this preserve, it can take half a dozen turns over a period of half hour or so to make sure the fruit is evenly distributed!
I never use the method of allowing anything to cool before it's sealed, as this can allow nasties to enter.
Preserves/chutneys won't ferment if they have the correct proportion of sugar and/or vinegar. I use malt vinegar of 5% acidity, and when using white sugar I use beet sugar (have found no difference in outcome between beet and cane for recipes that use white sugar) and when dark sugar is needed I use a good muscavado.