Homemade Ketchup (without vinegar)

 

Before the 19th-century, "ketchup" was what people called sauces with a thick consistency. An American scientist named James Mease is believed to have invented tomato-based ketchup sometime in 1812. His formula was tweaked over the years and in 1876, Heinz, introduced bottled ketchup. Heinz is still the leading ketchup maker to this day. They sell over 650 million bottles every year. Ketchup is a staple of American cuisine, from hamburgers, and hot dogs to French fries, This version eschews vinegar for soy sauce, pineapple juice and lemon juice. 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups tomato sauce

• 2 ½ tsp salt

• 2 ¼ tsp onion powder

• ¼ tsp cumin

• ¼ tsp oregano

• ½ tsp paprika

• ¼ tsp garlic powder

• ½ tsp soy sauce (to make it healthier use 1 tsp Braggs Liquid Aminos)

• 3 tbsp pineapple juice

• 4 tbsp lemon juice

• 8 tbsp honey

Directions:

1. Mix 1 cup of water with each can of tomato sauce in a bowl.

2. Mix up all the liquids. Add the spices and seasonings, then stir to combine.

3. Pour mixture into a crock pot and bring it to 160 degrees in a slow cooker Cook on high until the mixture is reduced and thick (10 to 12 hours), stirring frequently. Smooth the finished ketchup in a blender. Not only does the Crock-Pot take out a lot of the legwork, it also ensures the perfect thick consistency every time.

4. Pour into containers (preferably glass). Refrigerate or freeze.

Uncle Tom's Puyallup Style Barbecue Sauce

Makes great barbecued Tender-Bits

I ran out of KC Masterpiece and Bull's Eye barbecue sauce the other day after my wife had put in her order for barbecued something chicken-like. I already had some Fri-Chik in the oven, so I ran upstairs, jumped on the Internet and found some interesting looking recipes. Unfortunately, I didn't have all the right ingredients.

So, typical man, I decide to wing it. I call this Puyallup Style Barbecue Sauce so that people in Kansas City, Memphis or St. Louis won't be offended. This barbecue sauce is my own invention. Try this at your own risk. I take no responsibility if you try it and think your vege-chicken is ruined. But trust me. It won't be. This stuff is great and you can adjust it to your own taste if you are any good at all as a cook. It also eliminates the need for Worcestershire sauce (a common BBQ sauce ingredient) which often has anchovies in it.  If you want to stay strictly vegetarian, this version is the way to go.

It takes about 10 minutes to mix up and maybe 15 minutes to cook. This makes about two cups of a nice tangy barbecue sauce. 

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1/4+ cup water
• 1/8 to 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
• 1 tablespoon grape jelly

Directions:
Put 3 tablespoon olive oil in a little pot on medium-high heat.  Add the garlic powder. Stir just a bit till the garlic powder starts turning brown. Add the brown sugar, vinegar and ketchup. I like Delmonte, but I used Hunts for this time out because you can get it in bulk at Cosco. Add the rest of the seasonings and reduce the heat to medium.

I adjust the recipe to taste. I like a little less vinegar and a little more ketchup. The original recipe called for 2 tablespoons paprika, but I cut it in half because the Cajun seasoning has paprika in it. The Cajun seasoning has chili powder and cayenne.  The Cajun seasoning can be increased to make the sauce hotter. My bunch likes a milder barbecue flavor, but you can add more Cajun seasoning or a touch of plain cayenne if you like it hot. I'm not sure who came up with the grape jelly, but I transmigrated it from another recipe and it got rave reviews, so I ain't messin' with the magic.

Simmer the sauce for 15 minutes until it thickens.  If it's too thick, just add a bit more water to get it to the thickness you like.

I poured the rest into an empty KC Masterpiece bottle and stuck it in the fridge. I think I'll make some more to keep on hand.  I like it with vegetarian Wham, Tender-Bits, Vege-steaks and chili beans too.

Enjoy.

Tom

Homemade Sweet & Sour Sauce

Leftover sauce stores perfectly in a Mason Jar

I adapted this from a Better Homes & Garden Cookbook one day when I was making Chinese Vegetables with Tender-Bits. It's a nice gingery sweet and sour sauce that I like really well. You can play around with the ingredients if you like. I've made it when I was out of some of the stuff I needed, but it came out fine. The key ingredients are brown sugar, conrstarch, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger and garlic. You can experiment with other things like pineapple juice in place of vinegar, cherry juice off a jar of maraschinos in lieu of syrup or other varieties of sweet peppers. It takes just 10 to 20 minutes once you have everything in the pan and really adds a nice touch to Chinese food.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 4 tsp. cornstarch
• 1-1/2 teaspoons ginger
• 1/2 cup McKay's Chicken Seasoning made into a broth
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup red wine vinegar or pineapple juice
• 1/4 cup finely chopped green sweet bell peppers
• 2 tablespoons chopped pimento
• 2 tablespoons corn syrup or cherry juice
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:

1.  In a small saucepan over low to medium heat, stir together brown sugar, cornstarch, broth, vinegar, sweet pepper, pimento, corn syrup, soy sauce, ginger and garlic in small saucepan over low to medium heat.
2. Cook and stir until the mixture thickens and starts to bubble.
3. Continue to stir for two minutes and then remove from heat.
4. Leftover sauce can be stored in the fridge in a glass jar for several days. It may gel on you after a few days, but stick the jar in the microwave and add a little water. Heat for a minute and then stir it to return it to its original consistency. If you put it in the fridge while it's warm in a mason jar or small recycle fruit jar, the jar will seal itself and the sauce will stay nice of quite a long time.

© 2015 by Tom King