A Confit of Redcurrants, Orange and Mint

Remember the last few straggler leeks, where we began our year in the kitchen? Six months on there are some new stragglers on the block, namely redcurrants, right. After 6lb of redcurrant jelly (made, I must add, by Michael) and 6lb of redcurrant and raspberry jam (made by me), we have also dined richly on summer puddings, redcurrant and raspberry Eton Mess, meringues with summer berries and so on and so on. We also have summer berry crumbles tucked away in the freezer, to give us some winter cheer if things get tricky weather wise (or F-word wise)…Yet after all this a bowl of stragglers was left sitting in the fridge with all their dazzling beauty challenging me every time I opened the door to get something. 

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Method

Start off by heating the oil in a medium-sized saucepan, then add the chopped red onion and cook gently for 5 minutes or so. After that add the redcurrants, mint, orange zest and sugar, then pour in the wine and wine vinegar. Season with a little salt and pepper, give everything a good stir and simmer gently for 1 hour.

Keep an occasional eye on it and after the hour is up, check the consistency of the confit. It should have just a little syrup left in the bottom – if there is too much continue to cook for another 10 minutes. Pour into a serving bowl, leave to cool then pass round for everyone to help themselves.

Note: we like it quite tart, but you may care to check the sweetness before leaving it to cool, and add a little more sugar if it needs it.