I have just been cooking and potting some rhubarb chutney and have dutifully covered them with waxed discs and then cellophane covers. But why? I use second hand commercial jars (properly washed and heated) which have very good screw covers, so why am I still using waxed discs and cellophane tops?

maybe youve lost the plot my dear mother-in-law
makes chutney and jams and she uses old jars also and she
has never had any problems.
ash

Dear Monika,
there is a caveat to re-using old lids. Chutnies and pickles should only be packed into jars with lids which have been used for P's, C's, mustard or mayo etc as they have lids which have been designed to withstand the acids in the contents. Jam jar lids will rust and spoil the contents as they have not been made to cope with the acids.
Regards Sally Wright.

Shhhhhh don't tell everyone, the wax on the wax discs melts and forms an airtight barrier on the top of the gloop. Cheers, Tony.

Can I have your recipe for the chutney? Please!

Westi

I have used screw top jam jars too, with no ill effects don't overfill the jars though. the seal is usually pretty good once the stuff cools you can hear lids pop sealed as they cool. If you do use the waxed papers and cellophane cut out some round bits of material with pinking shears to cover cellophane, as with rough handling the cellophane can easily be accidentally pierced. Looks pretty as gifts that way too.

Rhubarb Chutney recipe, as requested, Westi. It's from "The Garden to Kitchen Expert", one of the Hessayon books:

Let this mature for a few months in the pots. It will then be ready for you to enjoy with ham, cheese, chicken or pork.

1.5kg rhubarb
500g onions
2 cooking apples
5 cloves garlic
1 tbsp fresh chopped ginger
1.5 litres white vinegar
900g soft light brown sugar
500g sultanas
1 tbsp salt (I used slightly less because it seemed a lot)
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Put chopped rhubarb and peeled, chopped onions, apples, garlic and ginger in a preserving pan with vinegar. Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients and stir over very low heat until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat a little and simmer for an hour, or until thick, stirring occasionally. Pot.

Thanks for the reply to my queries, too, about the waxed discs etc.

I usually use the screw tops over the cellophane, NB, to protect the cellophane and also when the jar is in use, but I can see the reasoning about the specially treated lids, Sally! The trouble is that even dishwasher-washed glass jars which have contained pickles, chutneys (and honey!) never seem to lose the smell of their original contents completely, I find.

Cheers Monika - have excellent rhubarb this year & love pickles! Win Win I'd say!

x Westi