Cornish Apple & Damson Chutney Recipe | Orchard Preserve for the Larder

Cornish Apple & Damson Chutney — From Elowen's Kitchen

Cornwall has a rich but undersung cider apple heritage. The orchards around the Tamar Valley, Millbrook and the quieter parts of the Roseland produce old English apple varieties — Browns Apple, Dabinett, Yarlington Mill — that make excellent cider. For chutney you want a sharp cooking apple rather than a cider variety (too tannic), which is why this recipe uses Bramley. In September when the crop comes in, making chutney is the best way to preserve it.

Damsons are wild or semi-wild plums that grow in Cornish hedgerows and cottage gardens. They are intensely tart fresh — not really eating fruit — but cooked with sugar they develop a deep, jammy richness that works beautifully with apple. Together they make a chutney with real depth: sweet-sharp, warmly spiced, slightly jammy. It goes with everything.

This recipe makes roughly 6-8 standard (350ml) jam jars. It keeps for 12 months in a cool dark larder.

Ingredients

1kg Bramley apples (or sharp eating apples), peeled, cored and roughly chopped 500g damsons, stones removed (or use plums if damsons aren't available) 500g onions, finely chopped 400g soft dark brown sugar 300ml cider vinegar (Cornish if you can find it) 150g raisins or sultanas 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground allspice 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, gives a gentle heat) 1 teaspoon fine sea salt

Method

Sterilise your jars before you start: wash in hot soapy water, rinse well and place in the oven at 140°C for 20 minutes. Leave in the oven until ready to fill.

Put all the ingredients into a large heavy-based pan — preserving pan or large casserole. Stir to combine.

Bring slowly to the boil over a medium heat, stirring frequently to help the sugar dissolve before it can catch.

Once boiling, reduce the heat to a steady simmer. Cook uncovered, stirring regularly, for 1.5-2 hours. The chutney is ready when it is thick and jammy and a wooden spoon drawn across the base of the pan leaves a clear channel that holds for a moment before closing.

Watch it carefully in the last 30 minutes — thick chutney can catch on the bottom. Keep stirring.

Pot into the warm sterilised jars immediately, filling to the top. Seal and label.

Leave for at least 4 weeks before eating — the chutney improves significantly as the vinegar softens and the flavours meld. At 8 weeks it will be noticeably better than at 4.

Elowen's Tips

Stoning damsons is tedious but necessary. The best method is to simmer the damsons briefly in a little water first until they soften, then pass through a sieve to remove the stones and skin before adding to the main pot. It adds 20 minutes but saves you picking stones out of chutney for the rest of the season.

If you have access to Cornish cider vinegar (several farm shops and small producers across Cornwall make one), use it — the apple-on-apple pairing adds another layer of flavour.

This chutney is excellent with: mature Cornish Cheddar on sourdough, salt beef, cold roast pork, Cornish cheese boards, or a pasty that needs a bit of company.

For Your Events?

Salt Wind Catering creates Cornish-inspired grazing boards and cheese platters for events across Cornwall. House-made preserves feature on our more bespoke menus. Call 01209 206255 to discuss.