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Homemade Plum and Tomato Ketchup - Heritage Preserve from the Garden

Plum and tomato ketchup is old-fashioned preserving at its best. Ripe plums, Roma tomatoes, garlic, vinegar and spices are cooked down into a smooth homemade ketchup with a deeper, more satisfying flavor than anything from a bottle. This plum and tomato ketchup recipe is made for water bath canning and is nothing like Asian-style plum sauce.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Resting time20 minutes
Course: Condiment
Cuisine: American, Heritage
Keyword: canning catchup, canning ketchup, homemade ketchup for canning, homemade plum ketchup, ketchup from scratch, ketchup recipe for canning, old fashioned ketchup, old fashioned plum ketchup, old fashioned tomato plum ketchup, plum ketchup, plum ketchup canning recipe, plum ketchup for canning, plum ketchup recipe, spiced ketchup, tomato catchup, Tomato ketchup from scratch, tomato ketchup recipe, tomato plum ketchup ingredients, tomato plum ketchup recipe, tomato plum ketchup recipe easy, unique ketchup recipe
Servings: 5 half-pint (~250 ml) jars
Cost: ~$1.71–$3.00 per jar

Equipment

  • 1 large pot
  • 1 Metal mesh strainer
  • Food mill or coarse grinder
  • Immersion blender
  • Garlic press
  • Water bath or Atmospheric Pressure canner
  • Half-pint canning jars
  • Funnel optional

Ingredients

  • 3 lbs plums - 1.36 kg - yellow, Italian prune plums, or a combination
  • 3 lbs Roma tomatoes - 1.36 kg - fresh, ripe
  • ⅓ cup pressed garlic - 50 g
  • ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar - 80 mL - 5% acidity
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar - 150 g - organic granulated
  • 1 tbsp salt - 20 g
  • ⅔ cup water - 150 mL
  • 1½ teaspoons fenugreek
  • 1½ teaspoons black pepper

Instructions

Cook & Strain the Plums:

  • Add the plums and water to a large pot.
  • Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cook until the plum skins have cracked and the fruit is soft enough to collapse easily when pressed with a spoon - about 5-8 minutes.
  • Remove the pot from the heat.
  • While the plums are still hot, press them through a metal mash strainer to remove the skins and pits.
  • Transfer the plum pulp to a clean pot.

Prepare the Tomatoes:

  • Cut the tomatoes in quarters and remove the seeds.
  • Pass the tomato flesh through a food mill to remove the skins and any remaining seeds.
  • Add the tomato pulp to the plum pulp.

Add the Remaining Ingredients:

  • Press the garlic through a garlic press and add it to the plum and tomato mixture along with the sugar, salt, fenugreek and black pepper.

First Cooking Round:

  • Bring the mixture to a boil.
  • Reduce the heat and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Blend & Rest:

  • Remove ketchup mixture from the heat.
  • Use an immersion blender to blend the mixture until completely smooth and homogeneous.
  • Let the blended ketchup stand for 20 minutes. This gives the mixture time to cool slightly and thicken; making it easier to judge how much further it needs to cook.

Second Cooking Round:

  • Add vinegar.
  • Return the pot to the stove and cook until the ketchup has reduced to about half of its original volume. Depending on how much water your tomatoes contain, this can take another 25–40 minutes.
  • Stir frequently to prevent scorching.
  • Check the consistency. The finished ketchup should be thick, smooth and cohesive, with no watery separation.

Can & Process:

  • Ladle the hot ketchup into prepared half-pint jars, leaving the required headspace.
  • Process according to the water-bath canning instructions provided with the recipe.