Chef in Residence
Dip Dip anyone?
Thursday, March 04, 2010
As Suzy's little one says - I need Dip Dip mommy, then proceeds to dip everything (grapes or blueberries and bbq sauce anyone?) in whatever i put on his plate from old fashioned ketchup to thai chile sauce to pesto. So it's really only fitting that Chef Lisa from simple earth cuisine is talking about making your own condiments at home. Love the idea!
MAKING YOUR OWN CONDIMENTS
Have you ever thought about making your own ketchup. Probably not as Heinz and Hunts has done that job for us at an affordable price. But let me tell you, for the little effort, making your own homemade condiments beats those store bought commodities hands down in flavor.
I started making my own ketchup a while back. I read through a recipe I had found in Nourishing Traditions Cookbook, by Sally Fallon and thought to myself, this is really easy, I think I'll give it a try. Lo and behold, I've not gone back to store bought since. Now don't get me wrong. As a child, I lived on Heinz ketchup (sorry Hunts) and even toured the factory in Pittsburgh, PA, proudly wearing my pickle pin for many years on a favorite jean jacket. But the fact is, regular Heinz ketchup, with the addition of high fructose corn syrup and corn syrup in the ingredient list is a nutritionally inferior food. Heinz came out with an organic version of the product that I will recommend if you decide to stay with store bought, but you will never know the true taste of this indispensable product until you make a batch at home. It's a great project to do with you kids on a weekend. Think of it as a science project and then, when you have your batch ready to go, do a blindfolded taste test between homemade and store-bought. Homemade always wins!
Before we begin however, I want to say a few words about one special ingredient in the recipe. Whey is the liquid that you strain out of milk or yogurt solids. It is wonderful source of minerals, aides with digestion and keeps your joints limber. Whey also acts as a natural preservative and gives the finished product a longer shelf life. It can be used for many other uses in the kitchen including soaking grains before cooking them, making other familiar condiments such as mayonnaise and added to smoothies and drinks for it's rich nutrient content. The by-product, curds, can be made into cream cheese by just beating it until smooth. I use my curds to make cheesecake squares in a graham cracker crust. Yum!
KETCHUP (Makes 4 cups)
3 cups of canned tomato paste (I recommend Muir Glen Organic)
¼ cup of whey (recipe below)
1 Tablespoon sea salt
½ cup maple syrup (real stuff, not imitation)
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cloves garlic (pressed through pressing tool or finely minced)
½ cup fish sauce (Thai Kitchen brand is very good)
Mix all ingredients until well blended. Place in a quart size, wide-mouthed mason jar. The top of the ketchup should be at least 1 inch below the top of jar. Cover loosely with cap. Leave at room temperature for 2 days before transferring to the fridge. This will give the ingredients a chance to meld together and ferment, providing a rich and intense flavor. Ketchup will keep for at least 3 months or longer.
HOMEMADE WHEY (Makes about 4 cups)
1 Quart organic whole-milk buttermilk, yogurt or raw milk
If using buttermilk, transfer to a glass jar and let it stand for 1-2 days on the counter (room temperature) until the milk visibly separates into white curds and yellowish whey. Raw milk will take 1-4 days for a clear separation to occur. If using yogurt, there is no advance preparation needed and you do not need to let it sit out. Line a strainer with a clean dish towel or cheese cloth and set it over a large mixing bowl.
Pour milk or yogurt into lined strainer and cover with a large dish or towel. Let stand for several hours until all the liquid has dripped to the bottom of the bowl leaving the milk solids in the strainer.
Take up the sides of the dish towel or cheese cloth, making sure you do not squeeze the solids. Tie to a wooden spoon or stick and leave for a few more hours or overnight to let the solids release the rest of the liquid to the bowl.
The liquid in the bowl is the whey and can be used immediately or stored in the refrigerator for at least 6 months. The milk solids are the curds and can be spread on bagels in place of cream cheese, or, if using yogurt, mixed with cucumbers and garlic to make a condiment for lamb, chicken or beef kebobs.
Next week we will explore mayonnaise and relish!
Send your favorite homemade condiment recipe to and we will feature it in an upcoming article.
Chef Lisa
MAKING YOUR OWN CONDIMENTS
Have you ever thought about making your own ketchup. Probably not as Heinz and Hunts has done that job for us at an affordable price. But let me tell you, for the little effort, making your own homemade condiments beats those store bought commodities hands down in flavor.
I started making my own ketchup a while back. I read through a recipe I had found in Nourishing Traditions Cookbook, by Sally Fallon and thought to myself, this is really easy, I think I'll give it a try. Lo and behold, I've not gone back to store bought since. Now don't get me wrong. As a child, I lived on Heinz ketchup (sorry Hunts) and even toured the factory in Pittsburgh, PA, proudly wearing my pickle pin for many years on a favorite jean jacket. But the fact is, regular Heinz ketchup, with the addition of high fructose corn syrup and corn syrup in the ingredient list is a nutritionally inferior food. Heinz came out with an organic version of the product that I will recommend if you decide to stay with store bought, but you will never know the true taste of this indispensable product until you make a batch at home. It's a great project to do with you kids on a weekend. Think of it as a science project and then, when you have your batch ready to go, do a blindfolded taste test between homemade and store-bought. Homemade always wins!
Before we begin however, I want to say a few words about one special ingredient in the recipe. Whey is the liquid that you strain out of milk or yogurt solids. It is wonderful source of minerals, aides with digestion and keeps your joints limber. Whey also acts as a natural preservative and gives the finished product a longer shelf life. It can be used for many other uses in the kitchen including soaking grains before cooking them, making other familiar condiments such as mayonnaise and added to smoothies and drinks for it's rich nutrient content. The by-product, curds, can be made into cream cheese by just beating it until smooth. I use my curds to make cheesecake squares in a graham cracker crust. Yum!
KETCHUP (Makes 4 cups)
3 cups of canned tomato paste (I recommend Muir Glen Organic)
¼ cup of whey (recipe below)
1 Tablespoon sea salt
½ cup maple syrup (real stuff, not imitation)
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cloves garlic (pressed through pressing tool or finely minced)
½ cup fish sauce (Thai Kitchen brand is very good)
Mix all ingredients until well blended. Place in a quart size, wide-mouthed mason jar. The top of the ketchup should be at least 1 inch below the top of jar. Cover loosely with cap. Leave at room temperature for 2 days before transferring to the fridge. This will give the ingredients a chance to meld together and ferment, providing a rich and intense flavor. Ketchup will keep for at least 3 months or longer.
HOMEMADE WHEY (Makes about 4 cups)
1 Quart organic whole-milk buttermilk, yogurt or raw milk
If using buttermilk, transfer to a glass jar and let it stand for 1-2 days on the counter (room temperature) until the milk visibly separates into white curds and yellowish whey. Raw milk will take 1-4 days for a clear separation to occur. If using yogurt, there is no advance preparation needed and you do not need to let it sit out. Line a strainer with a clean dish towel or cheese cloth and set it over a large mixing bowl.
Pour milk or yogurt into lined strainer and cover with a large dish or towel. Let stand for several hours until all the liquid has dripped to the bottom of the bowl leaving the milk solids in the strainer.
Take up the sides of the dish towel or cheese cloth, making sure you do not squeeze the solids. Tie to a wooden spoon or stick and leave for a few more hours or overnight to let the solids release the rest of the liquid to the bowl.
The liquid in the bowl is the whey and can be used immediately or stored in the refrigerator for at least 6 months. The milk solids are the curds and can be spread on bagels in place of cream cheese, or, if using yogurt, mixed with cucumbers and garlic to make a condiment for lamb, chicken or beef kebobs.
Next week we will explore mayonnaise and relish!
Send your favorite homemade condiment recipe to and we will feature it in an upcoming article.
Chef Lisa
