Create your own, and make sure its high enough in acid by adding vinegar or bottled lemon/lime juice, or citric acid. Process as you would do with regular tomato based salsa. Also, using dried onion and peppers can help too.

I have to disagree. Never make up your own canning recipes. That is about the number one safe guideline to home canning.
The reasons behind the other added things is to insure not only the safe ph level, but for density, too.
Adding low acid vegetables will make the whole product low acid. Keep looking. I only saw the recipe from USDA with peaches, tomatoes, and apples so far.

Common sense is the most important ingredient for any recipe, or even if it was made from no recipe and has taken advantage of the acid level. You can disagree all you like, but when you consider the ingredients, and use simple common sense it can make a safe product. We all know that high acid foods preserve well as to ones with lots of sugar salt, and or vinegar. Apples by themselves with added cider vinegar and some dried hot peppers and onions will simply make a salsa which could easily be canned. I don't even use recipes anymore as I make everything from common sense. A good example is dill pickles, tomato sauces apple pie fillings and even jams and jellies. I bet that if you put two jars are jelly that had no added sugar next to each other a 'recipe' version would spoil quickly, while mine would not. Simply common sense and the knowledge of using acids in food preserving. Same with meat cures and sausage making. I even make all kinds of bread and rolls without any printed recipes of any kind. Low acid vegatables that are DRIED can absorbe all liquids including vinegar. Apples by themselves are fairly high in acid, but when adding peppers and onions, usin dried ingredients will help reduce added water/liquids, but will also soak up acid and liquids already in the mix. Obvioulsy a salsa isn't made to be as thick as a pudding. Many millions of recipes started out from nothing but common sense. Still many more can be safely canned prodided the basics are followed. Common sense = high acid + low density. Adding some dried cranberries will also raise the acid level.

Commercial apple salsa- http://www.mainegoodies.com/gourmet/apple-salsa.shtml

Here is a link that might be useful: Canned pach apple salsa

I have had a look in my recipes but I can't find one but have a look here

Here is a link that might be useful: apple recipes

Thanks all. The chutney recipes seem to be very similar to what I am looking for - less the raisins and with different spicing. And I would really like something more chunky than mushy.

Ksrogers, what you say makes sense to me, but without a ph meter and the knowledge of what my ph should be, it is doubtless safer to work with a recipe.

I continue my search....and will bump this thread if I need to!
Kay.

I was thinking whether you can just substitute apples for tomatoes, since apples are more acidic. But they also make a much thicker product, with reduced heat penetration, so I don't think that would be a safe substitution.

You can change the spices in the chutney. You can add dried herbs, but not fresh. Leaving out the raisins is no problem. I would think substituting a small amount of jalapeno for part of the onion would be safe, since onions and peppers can usually be tinkered with as long as the total amount of low-acid ingredients remains the same.

If you think of any other changes to the chutney recipe, just post them in this thread and we can all use our scientific knowledge of canning to assess the risk of each one.

Melissa

Common sense isn't telling people to an anything what want to. Its easy to know if something is acidic, maybe not without a pH meter, but taste can also tell you if its sour or highly acidic. Many people follow recipes recipes to the exact letter and 'assume' its safe or will have a good flavor and texture. They quickly realize that recipes are not exact science when it comes to the ingredients used. Preaching about home canning safety and using 'scare tactics' only make many people afraid to can anything even though there are many recipes out there that are safe and can even accept suntitutes for some of the ingredients. Maybe not everyone who does come canning for years knows that eggs, dairy, pasta, and oils are all considered unsafe, but for a recipe that is based on acidic based fruit like apples, its sure to be safe enough if the low acid components are added in dehyradted state, and soal up acid and all te rest of the liqids. Making a salsa with apples, apple cider vinegar, a few onions, and a few hot peppers will most definatly be something that can be made safe enough to home can. I'm not taking about a half cup of apples, and 6 cups of hot peppers and onions. Obviosuly thats way too much low acid. Adding cider vinegar like a cup to two cups, with 2-3 cups of apples, and a half cup of onions, an a quarter cup of hot peppers will suffice as bsic recipe. Were not making a hot pepper and onion salsa here, but an apple based one. The main reason most all my home canning has been safe for many years is not because I follow recipes, but know, by their nature what things can be added to increase acidity, and go structly by taste BEFORE its canned. Common sense tells us that we know there are toxins out there that need to be avoided, and improper home canning can encourage some safety issues. A good example of following a pickle recipe that calls for vinegar, salt and water and spices. I do NOT add water, so anything I pickle will be much safer when it comes to an actaul acid level, as far as I am concerned. Adding water to dilute things only adds more unsafe factors to an otherwise safe recipe or a procedure. Tinkering with other ingredients amounts also factors in, but for a salsa, I wouldn't even think of using a lot of hot peppers, as it can spoil many recipes if you can't eat a lot of hot stuff. I made a large batch of sugar free orange sauce, not for canning, added just a tablespoon of jarred garlic and chili paste and it was way too hot for me. I had to dilute the sauce with more orange and its grated peel to dilute the heat. I bet if I wanted to safely can it, I could. It was cooked, and the thickener used was Clear Jel. Because it was sugaress and used Splenda, I also added citric acid to increase the acidity. If I were to test its pH it would probably be down below 4. Obviously, home canning that would require more than 'common sense', and would require me to do a bit more research about what can go into it, to keep it safe. I don't tell people to can everything, and don't intend to hold hands to guide them through every facet and detail. If that were the case, I would tell them to forget about attempting to home can anyuthing as they simply lack common sense. ANY recipe, no matter how safe, can still be dangerous if the ingredients were incorrectly added in amounts that can change the overall results. You said that what we do in our kitchens is our own business, and you can rest assured that I don't have things like pickled eggs. I do make pickled pepperoncini peppers without any added heat only because I use full strength vinegar and a process that will force the all vinegar brine into each pepper's insides, by means of a strong vacuum. Common sense tells me the process I use is quite safe, and is the exact same way they are pickled commercially, but there, they use 20% vinegar and water it down to the 5%. No heat used in commercial pickled peppers either.

For some people who have been canning a wide variety of foods for many years, they probably can forgo using a recipe because their experience had taught them what is safe and what is not. I rarely use a recipe when I cook or bake but when I try something new, I use a recipe the first time I try to make it and then feel free to play around with it in the future. This is especially true with something forgiving like bread. What I worry about is that someone who does not have years of experience will read comments like Ken's and think they can be safe making up or modifying canning recipes. I have been canning jams for years, but I wouldn't dare change a recipe for something that could possibly be unsafe in any way.
Donna

I have well over 40 years of home canning and also food chemistry and know a lot about the many processes used commercially to make canned items. My intent isn't to tell anyone that its fine to can anything they like. It simply states common sense needs to be the main consideration. Without common sense where would most of us end up? Common sense and the knowledge of proper canning ingredients and methods are always paramount. Yet I still wonder about that person who said canning pickled eggs was safe. Even I know thats not true, nor is the use of gelatin to make home canned jellies and jams. My bread making is a good example of using no recipes. It started out many years ago with making Danish pastry dough. It soon evolved into a Polish bubka which I make every year. The ingredients are the same, and the end resut is a big round loaf of sweet bread with a few golden raisins it it. That, with a thin orange flavered glaze, makes for a festive holiday bread. My pastrami started out as a store bought corned beef, and was modified with spices and coated with them when it was baked very slowly in the oven. No recipe, and it comes out perfect every time. All my sausage making and gardening also use common sense and a good amount of knowledge about the things I make and grow. Jams for me are super easy and can start out with a frozen concenrate, using as much as I want, as well as a good quaility pectin that is unaffected by sugar. I add extra acid to my jams and jellies and none hae ever proven to be bad, or have ever spoiled even after several months in the fridge after opening. Jams and jellies are so simple: juice, sugar, and pectin. Using regular pectin and no sugar can cause a set failure, and so I choose the proper ingredients including a specific pectin to give me what I want. All common sense...

Here's a salsa recipe I LOVE and don't see why you couldn't sub the peaches for apples.

Peach Salsa

Recipe By :Katie Modified by me, Kathy (I added the lime juice, honey, and salt)
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Preserving
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

6 cups peaches  diced (I use frozen)
1 1/4 cups red onion -- chopped
4 jalapeno pepper -- chopped*
1 red pepper -- chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro -- loosely packed
1/2 cup white vinegar
¼ cup fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons honey
3 cloves garlic -- finely chopped
2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 tsp canning salt (to taste)

Combine all ingredients and simmer for 5 minutes. Pack into hot pint jars, leaving a 1/2 inch headspace, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes (0-1000 ft.), 15 minutes (1001-6000 ft.), and 20 minutes (above 6000 ft.).

Makes 6-8 pints.

*We like it a little spicy, so I leave in some of the ribs and seeds of the jalapenos.

Wow.

Kathy, that does sound like the type of recipe I would like to try. I can only hope that using apples will taste as good as using peaches for salsa. I am still looking at jars of apple sauce from 3 years ago. No sense in making more of something that my family just isn't in to.

Kay

Kay, I'm thinking the apples would be wonderful! The simmering time might need to be adjusted for apples, but maybe not since you don't want them to become mushy.

Let me know if you make this...heck I might give it a try myself!

I have an apple salsa recipe. Adjust the peppers to the heat you like.

6 cups tomatoes (Roma about 3 lbs) peeled, chopped & most seeds removed
2 1/2 cups chopped onion ( I use white sweet onions)
2 cups bell peppers (This is where you adjust your 'heat' by the type of peppers you use)
10 cups apples (Wide variety) peeled, cored & chopped
4 tbls mixed pickling spice
1 tbl canning salt
2 tesp curshed red pepper flakes (Again, adjust your heat with different types of pepper flakes or use jalapeno juice)
3 3/4 cups packed brown sugar
2 1/4 cups cider vinegar

Simmer tomatoes, onions & peppers together about 1 hour. Remove about 1/2 of the mixture & puree (this will thicken the sauce & make for a smoother taste)

Add pickling spice bag & simmer about 30 minutes.

Add the rest of the spices, brown sugar & vinegar & simmer about 1 hour, making sure to scrape the sides of the pot.
This is also where you can add more heat if desired.

Remove spice bag & process as you normally would when canning. Process in water bath for 15-20 minutes.

The beauty of this is being able to adjust the heat of the salsa with the peppers you choose & still keep the safety of the recipe.

Hey Grammiet. Sure didn't expect to see this old thread. Your recipe sounds interesting. It turns out that I did not like the recipe I made. Love peach salsa. Love tomato salsa, but the apple was just not "right." Maybe I can use it for seasoning pork or something, but it isn't for munching.

I wonder if mixing it with tomatoes would work for me. It is sure worth trying a batch! Thanks for the recipe!