I’m happy to say, this mushroom chutney went down very well at the Winter Mushroom Feast Supper Club. I paired it with a chunk of 
Dorset Blue Vinny (read more about that here), some homemade caraway bread and Lyme Bay Winery’s Elderberry and Port Liqueur, as the sixth course. The almost meatiness of the chutney is great with the mellow, salty blue cheese and the liqueur finishes off the earth tones nicely.
When it comes to cooking, don’t underestimate the time it takes to clean one kilo of wild mushrooms! Have a look at my Olive magazine article to get the lowdown on cleaning these ones listed below and allow half an hour at least (put some music on and just get on with it – it is worth it). You can buy the mushrooms from your nearest farmers’ market or market place, like Borough or Panzers in London or find your nearest farmers’ market here. After all the cleaning is done, it’s a very quick recipe, which then has to be reduced for two hours or so. Just cook until you have the consistency you’d like after about two hours, but remember the chutney will continue to cook even off heat whilst cooling. You can eat this chutney as soon as it’s cold and if stored in a sterlised jar it should be fine, unopened, for a couple of months – ideal for mushroomy Christmas presents, with a chunk of the cheese and a bottle of liqueur!
Wild Mushroom Chutney Recipe
Makes approx 1.5 kilo
- 1 kg chanterelle, pied de mouton, trompette, girolles and porcini, washed and torn up or sliced into similar-sized pieces
- 3 apples, cored and chopped
- 3 onions, chopped
- 2 garlic, chopped
- 15g piece of ginger, roughly chopped
- 250g raisins
- 300ml orange juice
- 650ml white wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tbsp allspice
- 2 tsp turmeric
- 450g soft brown sugar
- pinch of black pepper
In a large saucepan, place the mushrooms, apples, onions, garlic, ginger, raisins, orange juice and vinegar and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and down sweat for 5 minutes.
Add the salt, allspice, turmeric and pepper, then simmer for a further 5 mins. The add sugar and boil for 2 hr or until thick. Allow to cool then transfer to sterilised jars.
Sterilise your jars by washing used or new jars in hot soapy water, and then rinse. Fill with boiling water and stand for 3 mins, carefully discard the water. In a tub or bowl, do the same with the lids. They are now ready to fill with chutney. Fix the lids on firmly and keep in a dark, cool place. Once open, store in the fridge and eat within a week.