Ketchup

Before having a preschooler, we went through a bottle of ketchup every couple years.  Now we allow ketchup with all kinds of meals because the boy loves to dip everything in it, and if it means that he’ll eat a variety of foods, I’m okay with that.  I usually buy the Simply Heinz that is corn syrup free.  Our bottle is getting a little low after the last batch of baked beans, so I thought I’d give ketchup a shot.  I found all kinds of recipes online, and the ingredients were all over the place- some used fennel bulbs, some had cinnamon and cloves, and others had garlic and paprika.  I took the simplest path, using a recipe from allrecipes that I already had most of the ingredients for. 

You will need

2 6oz cans of organic tomato paste ($.99 per can, $.99 x 2 = $1.99)

½ cup frozen apple juice concentrate ($1.79 per 12fl.oz, $1.79/12fl.oz = $.15 x 4fl.oz = $.59)

1 Tbsp white vinegar ($3.69 per gallon, $3.69/128fl.oz = $.03 x .5fl.oz = $.01)

¾ cup water (free)

1 tsp paprika ($11.99 per lb, $11.99 x .00625lb = $.07)

½ tsp salt ($.47 per 26oz, $.47/30.69tsp = $.02 x .5 tsp = $.01)

¼ tsp thyme ($3.79 per .37oz, $3.79/12.75tsp = $.29 x .25tsp = $.07)  

¼ tsp garlic powder ($6.99 per lb, $6.99 x .00194 = $.01)

1/8 tsp onion powder ($3.99 per 2.62oz, $3.99/2.62oz = $1.52 x .01555oz = $.02)

1/8 tsp ground allspice ($4.25 per .9oz, $4.25/12.75tsp = $.33 x .125tsp = $.04)

1/8 tsp ground cumin ($4.65 per .9oz, $4.65/12.75tsp = $.36 x .125tsp = $.05)

All the ingredients.  We keep refilling the vinegar and some of the spice containers.

 Combine all liquid ingredients in a bowl.  Whisk in remaining ingredients, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

I actually ended up trying two versions of this recipe, but only made quarter batches.  The first one was the original recipe, and the second omitted the apple juice concentrate and white vinegar, and replaced them with 7 Tbsp water, 1 Tbsp honey, and 4 tsp apple cider vinegar, as a commenter suggested.  Both sat in the fridge overnight before anyone tasted them.

Apple juice, vinegar, and tomato paste.

Taste test

Try It

$3.85 for about 22 fl.oz, or $.18/fl.oz.

Buy It

$3.25 for a 32oz bottle of Simply Heinz, or $.12/fl.oz.

Verdict 

I had a couple people taste them, and no one really liked the honey version.  It was too vinegary and not sweet enough.  Everyone liked the apple juice version better than the honey, my sister said it was more tomato-saucy than ketchup.  All of us sadly preferred the Heinz.  I guess since the Heinz is cheaper anyway it’s not too sad.  Next time I’ll give this lady’s recipe a try, and if I still don’t like it, I’ll have to say Buy It for good.  

NEXT WEEK: Frozen Mocha!