For a batch we made in France:

3 kg apricots (this quantity allows it all to fit into the copper pot we have)

1 litre white vinegar

1.25 kg sugar for jam making (contains pectin). See photo on the left.

22 g salt (2 tsp)

1 large onion, chopped (julienne), and 1 medium onion, chopped and added halfway through cooking

11 g strong chilli powder (1 tsp). See photo on the left. Amazingly, I can’t get fresh or dried chillies at my local supermarket, as the French don't like chilli. You can get them, but you need to go to hypermarkets or specialty shops in the big towns. So I used a good flaky chilli powder - not one that was ground into a fine powder.

About 15 cloves and 10 allspice berries, both ground in a pestle and mortar. Then about 35 g dried coriander seeds (2 tbsp), ground and sifted to discard the husks.

250 g raisins (I use a pack of semi-moist raisins that are a mix of dark and blond varieties). See photo on the left.

Boiled in a decent-sized pot. Since my copper pot was much larger than the gas ring, it took a while to heat up. The big central ring is out of action, so I only had the medium rings to work with. I boiled this all for about 40 minutes, stirring frequently. The apricots break down, and the onions go translucent.

When you bottle the chutney, you'll see there are still some good chunks of fruit, so it's not totally smooth.

We made a baker’s dozen jars of chutney: a few large jars, nine medium jam-jar sized ones, and one small jar. Sterilised (cleaned) in the dishwasher on a short hot cycle.

Results were pretty good! We’ve done this a few times in the past. Always meant to write it up - like I’ve done now. Hope it helps.

The chutney needs to sit for a while. 3 to 6 months is ideal. This allows the flavours to blend and the acidity to reduce.

Doug