INGREDIENTS (measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)
- 2.5 kg or approx 5.4 lbs tomatoes
- 3 to 4 grams garlic - 15 to 16 medium garlic cloves
- 3 to 4 grams ginger - 3 pieces of about 3 inch ginger
- 5 to 7 dry red chilies - deseeded and halved
- ½ cup golden raisins
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
- 1 tbsp rock salt
- 6 to 7 tbsp organic unrefined cane sugar
- ¼ tsp sodium benzoate dissolved in 1 tsp hot water
INSTRUCTIONS
- rinse the tomatoes well in water.
- slice the top eye parts of the tomatoes. roughly chop the tomatoes.
- discard spotted parts or peels.
- peel and rinse the garlic, ginger. later roughly chop them.
- halve and deseed the dry red chilies.
- rinse the raisins and keep aside.
- in a huge pot or casserole or a 4 to 5 litre pressure cooker, take all the chopped tomatoes.
- add the ginger, garlic, red chilies, raisins, vinegar, salt and sugar.
- mix well and keep the pot or cooker on a low to medium flame on the stove top.
- keep on stirring at intervals.
- when the tomatoes soften, switch off the fire. the softening takes about 25 to 27 minutes.
- when the mixture is slightly hot or warm, blend the puree with an immersion blender or in a regular blender. if using a regular blender, then don't add too hot of the tomato mixture.
- make a smooth puree.
- with a strainer which is not very fine, strain the puree very well directly into a pot or a large sauce pan.
- strain very well.
- now you can sterilize the jar.
- first rinse the jar.
- in a large sauce pan heat water till it reaches its boiling point... meaning it has begun to boil.
- immerse the jar and its lid in the hot water.
- continue to boil the water along with jar for 8 to 10 minutes.
- remove the jar with the help of clean tongs and place the jar inverted on a thick towel kept on the kitchen tabletop.
- let the jar dry naturally.
- keep the pot or pan with the strained tomato pulp on the stove top,
- on a low to medium flame, simmer the pulp till it starts thickening and reaches a ketchup like consistency. takes about 35 to 40 minutes.
- heat 1 tsp of water in a small bowl.
- add ¼ tsp of sodium benzoate to the hot water.
- stir and dissolve the sodium benzoate.
- the preservative should be dissolved in the water.
- pour the sodium benzoate solution to the hot tomato ketchup.
- stir very well.
- pour the hot tomato ketchup in the sterilized jar.
- close tightly with the lid.
- let the ketchup cool and be kept aside for some hours or a day.
- then keep in the refrigerator and use after 1 or 2 days.
- serve tomato ketchup with any snack or appetizer.
