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Runner bean and apple chutney

Transform a glut of late summer veg into Gill Meller’s runner bean and apple chutney. This tangy pickle will last you well into winter. Root, Stem, Leaf, Flower by Gill Meller is out now (£27, Hardie Grant).
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 1.5 litres
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 500 g runner beans de-stringed and cut into 1cm lengths
  • 1 kg bramley apples peeled, quartered, cored and roughly chopped
  • 500 g ripe tomatoes roughly chopped
  • 2 onions roughly chopped
  • 150 g sultanas
  • 2 tsp coriander seeds bashed
  • 1 tsp caraway seeds bashed
  • 2 green cardamom pods bashed
  • 350 g light brown soft sugar
  • 500 ml cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp fine sea salt

Method
 

  1. Put all the ingredients in a preserving pan over a medium heat. Slowly bring the mixture up to a simmer, stirring regularly until the sugar has dissolved.
  2. Reduce the heat and gently simmer the chutney for 1½–2 hours, stirring every so often to stop it sticking to the base of the pan. The chutney will thicken as it cooks; you’ll know it’s ready when you can draw a wooden spoon across the bottom of the pan and it leaves a path behind it for a few seconds before the chutney collapses back down and covers the base. Be extra-careful it doesn’t catch and burn at this point.
  3. Remove the chutney from the heat and spoon carefully into jars, still warm from sterilising. Seal with the lids and cool. Store in a cool, dark place for several months before eating – although you can eat it earlier, if you like. Once open, store in the fridge and use within a month.