Chutneys are not something I make that often, and when I do they are usually the quick variety that don’t require hours of cooking. This one is somewhere in the middle. The cooking time is about 90 minutes, the majority of which is just gentle simmering that frees you up to get on with something else. I write this in rhubarb season, at a time when I have several pots of tiny rhubarb seedlings just poking their young heads out of the soil, that I can look forward to harvesting at a later date. For now, I have shop-bought bunches of reddish-green stems that I am eager to cook with.
If you enjoy the recipes here, please show your support for this blog by clicking on the ads to help keep the free content coming!
A rhubarb chutney struck me as an interesting and timely choice, and red onion makes the perfect accompaniment to give it the sweetness and depth it deserves, as well as adding to the richness of colour. It is better to make this the day before you want to eat it, to allow for full flavour infusion and a properly chilled preserve. It’ll keep in the fridge for up to 4 weeks without proper canning. There’s enough in this recipe to last you that long, and even enough to give some to a friend.
Prep time: 15 minutes. Cooking time: about 90 minutes, plus overnight chilling time.
Gluten Free
Make about 1kg
Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
6 medium red onions (about 500g) sliced
2 mild, red chillies, deseeded and thinly sliced
3 large cloves garlic, chopped
600g rhubarb, cut into 1-inch pieces
400g golden caster sugar
300ml water
¾ tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp salt
Method:
Heat the oil in a large saucepan and gently fry the onions for about 10 minutes, stirring often. Add the sliced chillies and the garlic and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring a little more frequently as they begin to cook through.
Now put in the rhubarb and the rest of the ingredients and bring the pan to the boil. Simmer gently for about 1 hour 20 minutes, stirring it from time to time to prevent sticking, until you have a thick and reduced chutney. Allow to cool before transferring it to a storage container, then refrigerate overnight.

Roasted Asparagus, Basil and Walnut Pesto Served with Baby Potatoes and Broad Beans
You can get asparagus imported all year round in most supermarkets, but British asparagus has its growth season between May and July, with early appearance often at the end of April. Now is the perfect time to make use to these green spears in your everyday cooking. My choice for this recipe was to roast…
Asparagus, Mushroom and Leek Pastries
April 23rd marks the start of asparagus season and we are now starting to see British asparagus appear on the shelves. Young asparagus is a thin and tender vegetable that is perfect for cooking a variety of dishes. It cooks quickly, so you must keep an eye on it. The more mature plant is thicker…
Vegan Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
What is it about a plate of plump vegan meatballs in a rich tomato sauce, nestled comfortably on a soft pillow of spaghetti that is so satisfying even before a single mouthful is taken? It is a dish where even the sight and smell of it has its own umami. It creates thrilling anticipation from…
Vegan Enchiladas
To veganise something like Enchiladas now is incredibly easy with the variety of ingredients available in most supermarkets. For this one I have used fresh vegan mince, along with mushrooms and onions for the chilli base. Don’t worry if you don’t like eating vegan mince, you can always substitute this chilli for my Sweet Potato,…
Spanish Lentils with Vegan Chorizo and Black Pudding
I first tried this dish about 25 years ago, when my Spanish girlfriend made it for me in a bedsit we shared in North London back in the mid-nineties. It was cooked on one of those old Baby Belling stoves that you would often see in bedsits back in those days (they might still have…
Vegan Fudge Cookies
We’ve been enjoying packets of vegan fudge in our house for quite a while now and a recent conversation with my wife got me thinking about how great it would be to have the fudge in a cookie, just like it was chocolate chip. This recipe is the product of that discussion: a very simple…