Why You Need To Have A Go At Homemade Sweet Chilli Jam

There are some condiments which are not always worth making at home. I appreciate some people will disagree with this. But if you, like me, have ever spent several hours standing over an enormous bowl, frantically whisking together eggs and oil in an attempt to make mayonnaise and periodically FaceTiming your mum when it goes wrong, you will know what I mean.

Such experiences are why I am a fan of genuinely easy recipes for condiments, ones which require only a little of your time, a minimal ingredient list, and which offer guaranteed success. This sweet chilli jam is the product of one such recipe. Most jams take hours to cook and cool, but this is ready in twenty minutes, and it’s a genuinely satisfying thing to see every time you open the fridge. It’s not really a jam, because it’s essentially a savoury product, creating a gently hot, red-peppery flavour and a satisfying jelly texture which makes it very versatile. Most recently I had it in a grilled cheese sandwich and with breakfast eggs. It also goes beautifully with cold cuts of meats and cheese boards.

Two important tips: Make it in big batches and give lots to your friends. They will love you for it. Also, it’s easy to vary the heat in this recipe. If you are a chilli aficionado(the sort of lunatic who goes for Hot or Extra Hot at Nando’s) then you might like to spice things up by using a few scotch bonnet chilis in place of milder ones.