Sacred Flame Chutney

Ingredients:

• 1 cup diced finger bananas
• 2 large yellow onions
• 1 cup dried apricots, diced
• 3 large mangoes, peeled, seeds removed and fruit diced
• 1 Tablespoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon ground mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 Tablespoon turmeric
• 1 envelope (.13 g) Roland saffron powder
• 1 package (as sold in Panama) sweetened maracuya (passionfruit) pulp
• 1 package sweetened mango pulp (again, as sold here)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup fresh ginger root, peeled and diced
• 10 aji chombo peppers,* minced (use gloves unless you like that burning sensation on your hands for a few hours)
• 3 cups vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar

Directions:

• Combine everything but the sugar in a big cast iron pot and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to keep things from sticking to the bottom and burning.  Stir in the sugar, turn down to simmer.  Simmer for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, uncovered, stirring regularly to avoid burning
• Put up in sterile jars (owing to the scarcity of mason jar lids in Panama, I have sometimes used paraffin to seal the jars)
• Store on the pantry shelf for at least two months, to let the flavors of the various ingredients meld.

 

This is extremely hot --- use sparingly unless you're a hardcore flame eater

* Aji chombo peppers are also known as scotch bonnets or habaneros, although in certain regional dialects distinctions are made