*Special* Christmas Caramelized Red Onion Chutney

There are many red onion chutney recipes out there on the internet, for example this, however there is much more you can do to it to make it different from the rest. In this recipe we add fruit, a variety of onions (easy to buy from any supermarket), aubergine and red wine to really add a twist to this tasty condiment. Goes perfectly with homemade Burgers and Thick Cut Chips or a DIY Sub Sandwich.

If you don't want to eat it all by yourselves, you can put them into sterilized jars and give them as gifts to friends and family.



Ingredients:

• 6 Red Onions, roughly chopped
• 2 White Onions, roughly chopped
• 10 Pickled Onions, sliced into quarters/halves depending on large/small onions
• Apple, cored and thickly sliced
• 5 Apricots, cored and roughly sliced
• Aubergine
• 250g Brown Sugar (depending on preference for sweetness)
• Cup Red Wine/Balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbs dried Thyme
• 1 tbs dried Rosemary
• 1/4 bottle Red Wine
• Cup water
• Salt and Pepper

Begin by slicing the aubergine into medium thick (1cm) slices - keep the skins on. Lay out, lightly salt the tops to extract water and leave to one side.

Fry the red and white onions in a pan on a medium heat with a decent amount of oil for 10 minutes. Introduce the sliced apple and apricots and continue to fry for a further 10 minutes or until it all looks sticky. Add the brown sugar to the onions, fry for 5 minutes and then pour in the vinegar. Add in dried thyme and rosemary.

While you leave the onions and fruit to caramelize with the brown sugar and vinegar on a medium heat, use a paper towel to dab up the liquid produced on top of the aubergine and grill 10 minutes or until the skin around the edges have crinkled up. Roughly cut up and add to the pain with the other ingredients. Add red wine.

Now you just need to leave on a low/medium heat for 2 hours, stirring ever 20 minutes. As it loses water and goes dry, just keep adding from the cup to keep the mixture moist (but not soaked). As it nears the end of the 2 hours, let the mix dry up so it's thick and sticky at the end. Add salt and pepper to season. Have a taste and if you prefer it to be sweeter like we do, particularly to counter the bitterness of the red wine, then add in some more brown sugar and cook for a few minutes longer.

If you want to jar up your chutneys to keep for longer or give to friends, sterilize the jars like this. Spoon the chutney into the jars (while both are still warm), avoiding air bubbles in the chutney when finished. Cut out some lid-sized circles of oven paper, push down on the mixture to again avoid any air bubbles and tightly put the lid on. As the air cools inside, the jar should be airtight after 6-12 hours. 

Decorate how you wish - check out our example with just some labels and a dish towel cut into small circles (photo at the top)!