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Diana Henry showed Jane how to make two contrasting chutneys from her book on preserving, ‘Salt, Sugar, Smoke’.

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COCONUT AND CORIANDER CHUTNEY

Fills 1 x 225g (8 OZ) jar

1/2 tsp cumin seeds
50g (1 3/4 oz) coriander leaves
100g (3 1/2 oz) creamed coconut from a block, or fresh coconunt, grated
2 green chilies, halved, deseeded and roughly chopped.〶Ä
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2.5cm (1in) square piece of fresh root ginger, roughly chopped〶Ä
finely grated zest of 1 lime and juice of 2
salt
3 tsp caster sugar, for a sweet version (or to taste)

1. Put the cumin seeds in a pan and toast until fragrant (about 40 seconds). Put everything except the sugar in a food processor and whizz to a paste. For a sweet version, whizz again with the added sugar.

2. Transfer to a sterilized jar (if you are going to eat it on the same day you can put it in a bowl and cover with cling film). This is delicious fresh, but can be stored for four days in the refrigerator.

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TERESA'S DATE AND APPLE CHUTNEY

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Fills 2 x 500g (1 1b 2 oz) jars
1.5kg (3lb 5oz) cooked apples, peeled cored and very finely chopped or cut in to small chunks
500g (1 1lb 2oz) onions, finely chopped,
500g (1 1lb 2oz) stoned dates, finely chopped
1/2 tbsp salt
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
500g (1 1b 2oz) demerara sugar
300 ml (1/2 pint) malt vinegar

1. Put all the ingredients into your preserving pan except the sugar and half the vinegar. Turn the heat to medium and allow to cook, stirring every so often. The apples will soon start to throw out their own juice and provide enough moisture to keep the whole thing going. Reduce the heat to very low and cook for an hour, until everything is really soft.

2. Add the sugar and the rest of the vinegar and stir well. Continue to cook, stirring every so often and keeping an eye on it, for another one and a half to two hours. The chutney should be thick, dark and very soft. It is ready to pot when, if you drag your wooden soon through it, a slight channel is formed that doesn't immediately fill up. Don't take it too far though, you want a moist chutney.

3. Pot in warm sterilized jars, cover with waxed paper discs and seal with vinegar-proof lids. Leave for at least two weeks before eating and preferably longer. The flavour will get better over time. It will keep for a year.