Gramma s Cili Sauce

An old fashioned recipe that used to be very commonly canned is chili sauce.

We are fortunate to be able to use all fresh ingredients from our garden to make it this year.

We start by cutting up several green peppers and some jalapenos for spice.

Then the onions are chopped. This little chopper is a life saver when it comes to chopping vegetables.

The various heirloom tomatoes that we grew this year were cored and put into the freezer. A few days before using them, they were moved to the refrigerator to thaw out. Freezing tomatoes before canning has a couple of advantages: first, the peels slip off easily as the tomatoes thaw...and second ... most of the water comes out of them which greatly decreases the amount of time they need to boil down.

Once the tomatoes are peeled and drained, they are added to the pepper and onion mixture...along with some sugar, vinegar and spices.

When the sauce is the desired consistency, it is ladled into prepared canning jars. The tops of the jars are wiped and the lids applied, then the jars are put into the boiling water bath.

After processing, the jars are allowed to set, undisturbed, overnight. The next morning, they are rinsed, the bands removed, and labeled with the date and the contents.