5-Minute Homemade Ketchup
While I’m not one of those people who douses their entire plate of food with ketchup, I do enjoy ketchup on all the usual foods like Carrot Dogs, plant-based Bratwurst and of course air-fried potato wedges. Up until a couple of days ago I purchased organic, oil and sugar free ketchup that most closely resembled the flavor of Heinz ketchup, the brand mom served our family when I was growing up. Since I was close to emptying my current bottle of ketchup, and I dreaded going out into the polar vortex, I figured this was as good of time as any to whip up my first batch of this saucy, homemade goodness. While nothing will precisely replace the flavor and consistency of Heinz, so ingrained in our psyche, this one comes pretty darn close! Needless to say it passed the test and it will definitely become a staple in my refrigerator.
Ingredients
3/4 cup dates, pitted and packed to measure
1 cup boiling water
1 - 6 ounce can tomato paste
5 Tbsp white vinegar
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp yellow mustard or 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/8 tsp ground allspice
pinch ground cloves
Instructions
Place the pitted dates in a bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let the dates soak in the water for 5 minutes as you assemble the remaining ingredients in a blender.
In your blender measure in the remaining ingredients. Then add the soaked dates and their soaking water, then blend until smooth. You’ll need to periodically stop and scrape down the sides of the blender to make sure everything is blended in. If your sauce is too thick and not blending, add fresh water a tablespoon at a time to achieve your desired consistency.
Taste the mixture and adjust seasonings if you feel you need to, some people who use salt in their diet may want to add salt, but again this is based on your own preferred taste. Keep in mind that the flavor will mellow once it chills in the refrigerator, so I recommend that you make it once as stated in the recipe, chill it, and then taste and make adjustments on your next batch. I thought it was perfect the way it was.
Store the ketchup in a pint jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 to 3 weeks.
Yields: 20 ounces
