Raw Fermented Tomato Ketchup :OR: Catsup Recipe/Experiment :: Fermented Condiment Chronicles

Ketchup or Catsup? I don't care. The giant white cat doesn't care, either. But he does eat chickpeas!

hehe.
:)

I have been wanting to make more prepared condiments. I don't like commercially prepared ones, they are all full of chemicals and HCFS, are cooked to death, etc. I just like having them and I enjoy making things. Especially fermented things.

They are delicious and there is always that chance that they could go bad and give me botulism.*

Live on the edge, that's my motto!

As you know, I make my own sauerkraut. I love that stuff. So easy, so delicious, so nutritious, crunchy and tangy. mm mm. I put it on everything, soup, salad, sandwich, wraps, a fork...

I go through approximately two jars a week which translates into about a medium sized head of cabbage and a tbs of salt. With cabbage at 49c/lb, it's pretty darned economical, too.

I have been looking for a ketchup recipe. There are lots of raw ones. Basically, tomatoes , sweetener of some kind, salt, vinegar. Boo. I want to ferment my own with no sugar. There are plenty of fermented recipes, too. They all call for canned or cooked tomatoes. Boo x 2.

Today I was searching again for a recipe and all of a sudden it dawned on me. Why not take a couple of roma tomatoes and some salt and put it in a jar and wait a couple of days and see what I get? Why not?
I didn't take photos of the making process.

I did get a photo of my measuring spoons.
















Recipe:

2 roma tomatoes
2 tsp sea salt
half clove of garlic
put them in the blender and liquefy.
Put in a CLEAN glass jar with the lid on loose. Leave at least an inch at the top so there is room for it to... well, to swell.














That is where I am now. I will wait three days and then check it to see if it made ketchup (or catsup, I don't care).

I will let you know!

Footnotes:
* actually, the acidity of fermented foods keeps bad bacteria from growing. If a you are trying to ferment food and it goes bad, you will KNOW it. It looks funny, smells funny, has a funny texture. Toss it out if it looks even slightly off, it's not worth it.
Do some research, I am not responsible if you poison yourself. Cheers!