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Grandma’s Homemade Ketchup can be made with fresh tomatoes and onions or canned tomato juice for a condiment that will remind you of the good old days. With a mixture of cinnamon and ground cloves, this catsup – as Grandma called it – is delicious on everything.
This is our grandma’s favorite condiment. Growing up, we ate it on everything, even homemade dumplings. It has a unique flavor from cinnamon and ground cloves. To this day, every recipe that has ground cloves reminds us of Grandma and this recipe.
Table of Contents
Old-Fashioned Catsup
Barbara decided to try her hand at making Grandma’s catsup (that’s what we grew up calling it) earlier this year. One bite of this took us right back to our childhood.
Grandma made her homemade ketchup from garden fresh tomatoes. She would boil down the tomatoes and onions until she had 2 gallons of fresh tomato juice. You can definitely do this and then just add the rest of the ingredients.
Since tomatoes were out of season when Barbara decided to make Grandma’s Homemade Ketchup, she used canned tomato juice. Grandma’s version was a thinner, runnier texture; while Barbara’s has more of a consistency of the ketchup you buy at the store.
Please note, all Barbara had was whole cloves which she ground herself. You’ll notice the flecks of cloves in our photos.
Ingredient List
Fresh Ripe Tomatoes
Fresh Onion
Salt
Ground Cinnamon
Ground Clove
White Vinegar
How to Make Homemade Ketchup
Step by Step Instructions
Cook tomato and onion in large pot or large saucepan until onions are translucent.
Run juice through a sieve and discard onions.
Add juice back to pot and mix in salt, cinnamon, cloves and vinegar.
Boil until reduced by one-third.
Mix together sugar and cornstarch and then add to the liquid mixture.
Turn down heat and whisk constantly until thickened.
Cool and then refrigerate.
Full recipe for gourmet ketchup is at the bottom of this post.
Recipe FAQs
Isn’t it cool that old fashioned ketchup is really a gourmet ketchup?
The distinct flavors of this homemade catsup are ground cloves and ground cinnamon.
You can use fresh garden tomatoes or take a shortcut by starting with canned tomato juice.
This homemade catsup stores great in the refrigerator.
Try using the leftover homemade catsup in pulled pork like this Crock Pot Sweet Pulled Pork Recipe.
Small Batch Ketchup Recipe
You can also do a smaller quantity if you are only wanting 1 quart of ketchup. Here’s the ingredient measurements for the smaller batch of Grandma’s Homemade Ketchup:
46 oz. tomato juice
1/2 onion, shredded
2 Tablespoons salt
1/2 Tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 Tablespoon ground cloves
3/4 cup vinegar
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch
Why is my homemade ketchup not thickening?
If your homemade ketchup is not thickening, it could be due to a few reasons.
The first thing to check is your patience. Make sure you have cooked it for a sufficient amount of time. The reduction process takes a long time; let the mixture simmer until it reaches the desired thickness.
Secondly, the ratio of cornstarch to liquid in your recipe may be off. If you added too much liquid or too little cornstarch, it may not thicken properly.
Lastly, be sure you whisk constantly while the ketchup is simmering on low heat. This will help the cornstarch to activate and thicken the mixture.
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4 from 3 votes
Grandma’s Homemade Ketchup
Grandma's Homemade Ketchup can be made with fresh tomatoes and onions or canned tomato juice for a condiment that will remind you of the good old days. With a mixture of cinnamon and ground cloves, this catsup – as Grandma called it – is delicious on everything.
Ketchup will keep 3 weeks in the fridge or 6 months in the freezer. Ketchup can also be water bath canned using the hot pack method. Leave 1/4” headspace and process the 1/2 pint jars for 15 minutes.
But if you want a thicker texture, whisk two tablespoons of cornstarch into 1/4 cup of cold water. Once the ketchup has been run through the sieve twice, return the ketchup to the stove and bring to a low simmer. Slowly whisk the cornstarch mixture into the ketchup until you have the consistency you want.
Delicious – This easy ketchup recipe tastes fresh and better than anything that you can buy at the grocery store! It has no artificial ingredients or corn syrup, so it's healthier too!
Distilled white vinegar is essential for ketchup's signature tanginess. Plus, it elongates the shelf life. White sugar cuts the acidity of the tomatoes and vinegar while offering a hint of sweetness.
Ketchup is highly acidic and does not need to be kept on ice at a picnic or cookouts. Some claim the condiment tastes better when cold, but this is really the only consideration for keeping it on ice. How do you know when ketchup has gone bad? Ketchup that smells off or looks moldy or discolored should be tossed.
In summary, expired ketchup can often be consumed safely if it has been stored correctly and passes a sensory check for spoilage. However, the quality of the product may not be at its peak.
Fancy is a qualification from the USDA that certifies it as high-quality ketchup (Heinz is also considered Fancy ketchup). Fancy ketchup is a U.S. grade A ketchup that has good color, good consistency, good flavor, and is free from defects, according to the USDA.
You may see a layer of water appear when ketchup is left alone for long periods. Excess water can eventually separate out of this molecular matrix on its own; this is known as leaching [1]. What you need to do is to shake to hom*ogenize it – to redistribute the molecules of the ketchup.
When you don't use ketchup all the time, why does a tiny bit of water form on the top of the ketchup inside the bottle? The same happens with mustard. It is separation due to gravity, like un-hom*ogenized milk or peanut butter, the lighter components rise above the heavier solids.
According to the McDonald's website, its ketchup is made from "Tomato Concentrate From Red Ripe Tomatoes, Distilled Vinegar, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Corn Syrup, Water, Salt, and Natural Flavors." Meanwhile, the recipe on the back of the Heinz bottle includes all of the above, plus onion powder and an unnamed spice.
Since glass bottles do not affect the taste or smell of sauces and ketchup, their owners do not have to worry about this. Glas' material and shape are not affected by external temperatures, such as heat, as opposed to plastics, which can melt and affect product quality.
The homemade version, on the other hand, is cheaper and all about natural flavouring, ingredients and spices. It really takes very little effort to make and tastes so much better than supermarket ones. Some pretty good reasons to choose to make homemade ketchup over buying it!
Ketchup and catsup are both Westernized terms for a condiment that has origins in China: fish sauce. Ketchup as we know it today is a modernized version of fish sauce, which was made in port towns on the South China Sea with salted and fermented anchovies.
The ketchup contains vinegar, which is dilute acetic acid. The acetic acid reacts with the baking soda to produce carbon dioxide gas. The gas bubbles expand and rise through the liquid, bubbling out the ketchup. II.
How do you increase the shelf life of ketchup? By adding preservative Sodium Benzoate (INS211) 600 PPM. By use of retort technology after filling in pouch / bottle so no need to add preservatives.
Food safety experts say that while ketchup is shelf-stable, it generally tastes better when kept cold. “I'm shocked there's a controversy,” said Martin Bucknavage, a food safety specialist at Penn State University. “If you want to maximize the quality of your ketchup, you keep it in the fridge.”
How Long Homemade Tomato Sauce Lasts in the Refrigerator. Homemade tomato sauce isn't made with shelf-stable preservatives so it has a shorter life in the refrigerator and generally will last for three to five days.
Introduction: My name is Fr. Dewey Fisher, I am a powerful, open, faithful, combative, spotless, faithful, fair person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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