We have combined some of our favourite festive flavours into this lower sugar Christmas Chutney, along with some hidden vegetables too. The perfect chutney to go with a Christmas cheeseboard. Ginger, cinnamon and a hint of chilli add tonnes of flavour to this tomato based chutney, to give it a festive twist.
Some kind of chutney is a must at Christmas. Once that jar gets opened, you can have it on a leftovers sandwich, stirred into Greek yogurt to make a dip, use it as a salad dressing, put it in a burger, or have it with your cheeseboard. The options are almost endless with how to use this Christmas chutney recipe.
There are so many different chutneys out there, but this festive chutney is a firm favourite in our house. We have used cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger to give it a festive flavour, but also added a little bit of chilli so there is a kick of spice in there too.
We have used cranberries to bulk it out, add a vitamin boost and some more colour. What says Christmas more than cranberries?
Homemade Christmas chutney is much easier to make than you might think. You just leave everything to cook in a pan.
Looking for some other homemade sauce recipes to try? Why not try our easy Coriander Chutney, quick Fruit Dip, delicious Marie Rose Sauce (Perfect with a festive prawn cocktail), verdatile Cheddar Cheese Sauce, tasty Easy Pizza Sauce or our zingy Healthy Teriyaki Sauce?
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Ingredients and Substitutions
A full ingredients list, along with US Customary and Metric measurements, can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Tomatoes - Use a good quality can of tomatoes, as the cheaper ones tend to be really watery and you want a thick chutney. We recommend Mutti Tomatoes.
- Aubergine (eggplant) - This adds a nice chunkiness to the Christmas chutney. You could swap it for courgette (zucchini) if you prefer.
- Onion - We used a small brown onion, but you could swap it for shallots which would be sweeter.
- Red bell pepper - Any colour bell pepper works, but red peppers are sweeter.
- Garlic - Freshly crushed garlic is best, but you could use a jar of crushed garlic to save time.
- Cranberries - This is what gives it a real Christmas feel. You can use frozen cranberries if that it all you have.
- Honey - This is how we sweetened the Christmas chutney. You can use maple syrup if you want to keep it vegan.
- Vinegar - This isn't just for flavour, but it helps to preserve the chutney.
- Spices - Ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg give it a real Christmas flavour.
- Salt and pepper - Generously season.
Variations
Delicious chutney usually falls into three categories - onion based, fruit based or tomato based. We went with a tomato based chutney so the bulk of it was fairly mild, and the Christmas flavours could shine through. But you could vary it depending on your tastes.
We kept things simple and just used a tin of chopped tomatoes (the best quality you can find will give the best flavour), but you could chop up fresh tomatoes and use those instead with a little extra liquid. You could also make the base mainly thinly sliced onions.
Not only is there lots of festive flavour in this chutney, but some added vegetables too. Red pepper and aubergine make this tomato chutney recipe nice and chunky, with some extra vitamins too. You could add other chunky vegetables like courgette (zucchini) too.
How to Make Christmas Chutney - Step by Step
- Step 1: Put the tomatoes, red pepper, aubergine (eggplant), onion and garlic into a pan.
- Step 2: Smash the tomatoes with a back of a spoon. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Add a little bit of water every 10 minutes if it gets too dry.
- Step 3: Add the rest of the ingredients to the pan, stir well and bring to the boil again.
- Step 4: Simmer for a further 10 minutes.
- Step 5: Leave to cool and pour into a jar to store.
Serving Suggestions
The obvious way to serve this Christmas chutney is on a cheese board, which is our favourite. However it has so many other uses. We love it in a Christmas leftovers sandwich or dolloped on a burger. We even make a dip out of it by mixing it into some Greek yogurt.
Why not try adding this festive chutney to our Grazing Platter, Vegetarian Charcuterie Board or Anitpasto Platter?
Extra Tips
- The cayenne pepper is added for taste, so adjust it depending on how spicy you like things.
- This chutney will keep in the fridge for 5 days. But leftovers are great in sandwiches and burgers.
- You can swap the tinned tomatoes for fresh tomatoes, just add a bit more liquid.
- Make this a vegan chutney by swapping the honey for maple syrup.
- This also makes a really nice homemade Christmas gift. Add it to sterilised jars and then put a nice square of cloth on top of the jar lid and wrap string around it. You could add it to a little homemade food hamper.
Frequently Asked Questions
This chutney will last in the fridge for about 5 days, but it honestly doesn't last that long with us at Christmas! If you are having guests over, you might want to make a bigger batch to share it around. If you are going the homemade Christmas present route this year, then these would make lovely gifts. Put it in a nice jar and put a bow round it and ta-da! Give it with a cheese board bursting with cheese too and you would be my best friend for life!
We wouldn't recommend freezing this as the chunky vegetables aren't great once defrosted. So, try to only make as much as you could eat in 5 days so that none of it goes to waste.
No, this recipe isn't vegan because it uses honey. However, you could swap it for maple syrup to keep this recipe vegan.
More Christmas Recipes
If you’ve tried this Christmas Chutney recipe, let us know how you got on in the comments below.
Tag us in your creations on Instagram @hungryhealthyhappy - Use the hashtag #hungryhealthyhappy too.
Recipe
Christmas Chutney
Ingredients
- 400 g (14 oz) Plum tomatoes - canned
- 1 Red bell pepper - diced
- 4 Garlic cloves - crushed
- 1 Onion - diced
- 1 Aubergine (eggplant) - small; diced
- 20 Fresh cranberries
- 120 ml (0.5 cups) Malt vinegar
- 3 tablespoon Honey
- 1 pinch Sea salt
- 1 pinch Ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Paprika
- 1 teaspoon Ground coriander
- 0.5 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 0.5 teaspoon Ground ginger
- 0.5 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 0.5 teaspoon Ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Put 400 g Plum tomatoes, 1 Red bell pepper, 1 Aubergine (eggplant), 1 Onion and 4 Garlic cloves into a pan.
- Smash the tomatoes with a back of a spoon. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Add a little bit of water every 10 minutes if it gets too dry.
- Add 20 Fresh cranberries, 120 ml Malt vinegar, 3 tablespoon Honey, 1 pinch Sea salt, 1 teaspoon Paprika, 1 teaspoon Ground coriander, 0.5 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 0.5 teaspoon Ground ginger, 0.5 teaspoon Cinnamon and 0.5 teaspoon Ground nutmeg to the pan, stir well and bring to the boil again.
- Simmer for a further 10 minutes.
- Leave to cool and pour into a jar to store.
Recipe Tips
- The cayenne pepper is added for taste, so adjust it depending on how spicy you like things.
- This chutney will keep in the fridge for 5 days. But leftovers are great in sandwiches and burgers.
- You can swap the tinned tomatoes for fresh tomatoes, just add a bit more liquid.
- Make this a vegan chutney by swapping the honey for maple syrup.
- This also makes a really nice homemade Christmas gift. Add it to sterilised jars and then put a nice square of cloth on top of the jar lid and wrap string around it. You could add it to a little homemade food hamper.
Nutritional Information
The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
As all appliances vary, cooking times are a guide. Please note that by changing the serving size, the cooking time may also need to be altered.
Lorraine says
I love this combination, i still have peppers & tomaroes in the garden. You say it only lasts 5 days, is this once opened or in total, as im thinking of making it in advance for gifts,
Paula says
What a delicious sounding chutney, my husband loves his chutneys so I’ll share this with him.
Thanks!
Charli Bruce says
I love a cheese board and this chutney sounds absolutely gorgeous, I shall definitely be making it over the festive season x