Dad's Chilli Lilly-Pilly Sauce

Time to prepare: 40 Minutes    Difficulty: Medium   Serves: Four Jars

Vegetarian Friendly  Gluten Free

(Take into consideration before cooking that this can be used as a jam or a sauce recipe)

The Ingredients: 

- 2kg of Lilly Pilly (Can be replaced by pitted plumbs or pitted cherries) 

- 1kg of raw sugar (Can use jam sugar to create jam instead of sauce)

- 1 cup of white vinegar

- 1/2 tablespoon of cinnamon powder

- 3 Bay leaves

- 2 Cardamon pods

- 1 tablespoon chilli flakes

- Salt & Pepper

1) Wash and cover the lilly pilly fruit with a few inches of water and then boil until the fruit is soft, following this put the pot aside. 

2) Once the fruit is cool, squeeze with your hands to loosen the fruit and flesh from the seeds. Put the mixture through a sieve so the juice and the pulp remains. 

3) Place the juice and pulp into a pot, add a cup (or two) of water. Following this add the cinnamon powder, the three bays leaves, two cardamon pods, the salt and pepper, the chilli flakes and the vinegar.

4) Simmer the ingredients until reduces and the majority of water is gone in the pot. Once the water has gone, add the sugar and then hard boil for 20 minutes. 

5) Make sure your jars have been boiled or are appropriately sanitised. Bottle your sauce hot into the jars and seal the lid at once. 

6) Wait for your jars and its contents on the side to cool, then you can refrigerate. 

I'm currently visiting my dad who lives in Kensington in Victoria, Australia. He gets super excited in the summer to make his marmalades, jams & chutneys and enjoys brewing his beer at home in the sun! This is his lilly-pilly recipe, the fruit actually grows on the trees down his road. He uses the lilly pilly sauce to serve with a variety of meats & fish and even his cheese platters.