This deep flavoured and rich Balsamic Cherry Tomato Chutney recipe is extremely simple to make and absolutely delicious to eat! It’s great for gifting, adding to sandwiches, serving with a cheese board or maybe you just want to go straight in with a spoon?!
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I made this chutney at the same time that I made the Fresh Cherry Tomato Chutney which is an almost identical recipe but uses white wine or cyder vinegar to keep it much lighter. The switch to using balsamic might not seem like it would make all that much difference but it really does.
I have also used cherry tomatoes to make this chutney. You can of course use larger tomatoes but I much prefer the flesh-to-seedy-bit ratio of cherry and smaller tomatoes. The apple element adds body and some tang but isn’t a dominant flavour in the chutney.
You can of course make delicious savoury chutneys from many other fruit, it is always worth experimenting or you can try some of my other recipes.
How to Serve Balsamic Tomato Chutney
Cheese will always be one of the greatest accompaniments to chutney. Especially on cheeseboards and ploughman’s lunches. This is how I’ve served the chutney in the images on these pages. Try to make a balanced plate using:
- Greens such as baby spinach leaves,
- At least one type of cheese – cheddar is a classic to start with,
- Crackers or fresh crusty bread (and butter),
- Sliced fresh or cured meats such as prosciutto, boiled ham and/or chorizo slices,
- Fruits like sliced apples or more vegetables like cherry tomatoes,
- And to make a more substantial meal, add a pastry like sausage rolls, quiche or pork pies.
You can also cook and bake with chutney. I love to add it as a layer in a classic style quiche. And of course it is an essential ingredient in my Chutney & Cheese Sausage Rolls with Puff Pastry.
You also can’t go wrong switching out the pickle for chutney in a cheese and pickle sandwich or cheese toastie.
Balsamic Cherry Tomato Chutney Ingredients
Tomatoes
You can use any tomatoes to make this chutney. But as I mentioned above, I prefer to use smaller cherry tomatoes because they have much less of the liquidy-seedy-middle. With more flesh per pound, the flavour of the chutney is more pronounced and I prefer the texture – I don’t like it being overly seedy.
If you are using larger tomatoes, just discard most of the tomato middles and most of the seeds. I have a tendency to do this with most things that I’m making anyway. You just need to make sure that you weigh your tomatoes after doing this, not before.
Onion
Unlike with my lighter chutney where I like to stick with using white onions to keep things fresh looking, I really don’t think it matters if you want to use red onions instead in this version. The darker colour and slightly sweeter flavour is only going to complement the dark richness of this chutney.
Apple
The apple in the recipe does two things. It adds body and texture to the chutney. And it adds to the sweet /sour elements of the flavour profile. But it doesn’t really make it taste of apple – I’m not a fan of apple but still love this chutney.
Which apple you choose will affect this a little. Cooking apples like Bramleys will be a little tarter. Regular eating apples will generally be a little sweeter.
You can use frozen apples if you wish but I do prefer the crunchier texture of fresh apples. You don’t need to peel the apples unless you really wish to, but the core, seeds and stem do need to be removed.
Balsamic Vinegar
There is quite the range of balsamic vinegar available at different price points. And some come with added flavours. Many of the most expensive options are well aged and are a little thicker and richer than the younger options.
There are only 2 things that I want you to worry about when choosing a balsamic. Firstly that you buy balsamic vinegar and not balsamic glaze. Glazes are cooked and reduced down to make them very thick. And secondly that unless it is your intention to add other flavours, make sure your vinegar is unflavoured. The price and age isn’t going to have a huge effect on this recipe.
Sugar
Light brown sugar is my preference which making chutneys. A chutney does ideally need those richer caramel notes of the brown sugar.
White is an acceptable substitute but I wouldn’t recommend using dark brown or demerara sugar. The flavour is too strong and the texture too crunchy respectively.
Be Flexible
This is a really simple rich tomato chutney with no added spices, herbs or strong additional flavours. This makes it extremely versatile to use but it also makes it ripe for adaption.
To make a spicy version, add chopped fresh chillies at the beginning of the cooking process. Taste a little bit of the chilli to see how hot it is and judge how much you should use depending on how much of a kick you want. You can alternatively add dried chilli flakes – be cautious!
To make something more wintery or festive, you can add spices – try starting with a little mixed spice, cinnamon or ginger. Adding some orange zest or swapping the water for orange juice can add another complementary flavour.
Adding raisins or sultanas is really common with tomato chutneys. You can also add other dried fruits like chopped figs. Or you can swap out some of the tomatoes for another fruit like peaches.
Vegetarian or Vegan Balsamic Tomato Chutney
This recipe is suitable for both vegetarians and vegans as written.
Make Allergy Friendly Chutney
This recipe is free from egg, dairy, gluten and nuts.
Please note that this recipe may contain other allergens not referred to above and any variations suggested have not been tested unless otherwise stated. For more information regarding any dietary information provided on this website, please refer to my Nutritional Disclaimer.
Equipment Notes for Balsamic Cherry Tomato Chutney
Unlike with jam, you don’t need to use an extra large pan to make chutney. As long as the ingredients fit in and there is room to stir without chutney spilling everywhere, a regular saucepan is big enough.
As always, basics like scales, measuring spoons and a silicone spatula will be needed. Silicone means that you can properly scrape chutney from the sides of the pan which will prevent burning.
A comprehensive list of the equipment used to make this recipe is included in the main recipe card below. Click on any item to see an example. There are no hard and fast rules so many items can be sensibly substituted to achieve the same results.
How to Sterilise Jars and Preserve/Can Chutney
There is a whole world of variations and advice for how you should prepare your jars and deal with the jars once they’re sealed. They vary from person to person and country to country.
Here in the UK we largely make sure that the jars are properly sterilised, fill the jars with the hot chutney, seal them and that’s that. In the US it is almost a given that the jars will then be “processed” to complete the “canning” process. I have purposely provided no links here – if you’d like to learn more about canning, Google is your friend.
There are a lot of strong feelings about this in the “canning community” (yes there is one) which I have no interest in being drawn into. All I know is that UK cooks have been making jams, chutneys and preserves for a very long time without any issues. Therefore I am more than happy to follow the UK process for my chutneys.
Jar Sterilisation Options
There are several ways that you can sterilise your jam jars.
- Run the jars and lids through a hot wash in the dishwasher.
- Bake the jars and lids in the oven on a baking tray.
- Microwave the jars and boil the lids in water.
- Boil the jars and lids in water.
Whichever method you choose the only important thing is to make sure that the jars and lids are left to dry without being touched. And that you do not under any circumstances touch the inside of the jars or lids as this can contaminate them and undo your sterilisation. Tongs are your friend.
For the record, I usually use the dishwasher method.
How to Tell if the Jar is Sealed
It is essential to add the lid to the hot jars filled with the hot chutney straight away. As the jar and contents cool, a vacuum is created in the jar and the lid will be pulled downwards. To help this, I often turn my jars upside down to cool.
This means that when you press the lid, it doesn’t move or pop. When you open a jar of properly sealed chutney, the lid will then pop. And an opened or not properly sealed jar will pop when you press it.
If your jars don’t seal properly, you can either keep the jar in the fridge and eat it relatively quickly or go though a canning process to seal them. The choice is yours.
Get Ahead
The chutney is best if left to mature for at least a few days so ideally you do need to plan ahead. You can eat it straight away, hot even, but its not going to be great. Once the chutney sits and matures, the vinegar sharpness starts to soften and all the flavours start to blend and become richer.
If you are going to properly can and seal the jars, you can make chutney many months in advance. This is ideal for gifting etc.
If you do want to make the jars shelf stable, you will need to sterilise your jars and follow procedures to make sure they are sealed properly.
It will keep for years sealed and many months in the fridge once the jar is opened. You must be careful to ensure that you don’t cross contaminate however – a bit of rogue butter on a knife or a crumb of cheese can make a preserve spoil much earlier than it should.
Balsamic Tomato Chutney Tips
You don’t need to stand and stir the chutney the whole time it is cooking. But it is important to make sure it is given a stir as everything is melting together. Then it’s best to hover a little more towards the end of cooking as it’s starting to thicken up.
The actual cooking time will vary depending on the quantity you make and the size pan you use. A pan where there is less visible surface area will take longer to evaporate some of the liquid. A wider pan will be quicker.
The trick is to make sure that the chutney cooks for at least half an hour. This gives the onion and apple enough chance to soften. If it is still quite thin after this time, then you can turn up the heat to boil off the liquids faster.
I cut the onion and apple very fine in this recipe because whilst they do provide bulk and body to the chutney, I don’t like large visible chunks. They also cook down faster. The hero of this chutney is the cherry tomatoes.
Don’t forget to let me know in the comments if you try making this recipe – I want to know what you think and if you made any substitutions, how did it turn out?
Still Have Questions?
Simple! Just contact me and I will do my best to help as quickly as I am able. Head over to my Contact Me page, any of my social media channels or post a comment at the bottom of this page and I’ll see what I can do.
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The Recipe
Balsamic Cherry Tomato Chutney Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 100 g White Onions
- 750 g Cherry Tomatoes
- 250 g Apple
- 150 ml Balsamic Vinegar
- 100 g Light Brown Sugar
- ½ tsp Sea Salt Flakes
- 50 ml Water
Instructions
- Finely chop roughly 100g White Onion.
- Halve 750g Cherry Tomatoes. If you want a less chunky chutney, cut them into quarters instead – I find this too tedious!
- Finely chop 250g Apple – do not include the core but there is no need to peel. Do this prep last to avoid the apple discolouring.
- Add the chopped onion, apple and the tomatoes to a large saucepan.
- Add 150ml Balsamic Vinegar, 100g Light Brown Sugar, ½ tsp Sea Salt Flakes and 50ml Water.
- Place on a medium high heat and keep stirring until the mixture starts to boil.
- Turn the heat down so it is just simmering and cook for around 30 minutes. Give it a stir every 5 or 10 minutes to make sure nothing is sticking. It is a good idea to keep a closer eye on it the thicker it gets.
- The chutney is ready once you can drag your spatula through and the gap doesn’t immediately fill with liquid. If you need to, you can turn the heat up a little and continue to cook any excess liquid away until it is done.
- Carefully spoon the hot chutney into jars or your preferred container.
- Ideally allow a minimum of 3 days to help the flavours develop before tucking in.
Cat says
I was given some cherry tomatoes so decided to make this. The flavours are absolutely delicious, I’ll be making a bigger batch next time!
Karen says
I loved the addition of balsamic vinegar to the tomato chutney, it added great acidity and depth of flavour.