Quick & Easy Homemade Mincemeat (ready to use in 45 minutes!)

Quick & Easy Homemade Mincemeat (ready to use in 45 minutes!)

Fed up with complicated mincemeat recipes that takes days – or even weeks? This quick and easy mincemeat recipe takes just 45 minutes and is ready to use straight away. But, don’t worry, there’s no compromise on flavour – this mincemeat recipe is completely traditional in flavour… the magic is all in the method! (In fact, thanks to the method, I think this mincemeat is EVEN BETTER than more traditional mincemeat recipes… and, of course WAY better than store-bought!)

Course Christmas Baking, Preserves

Cuisine British

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 15

Servings jars

Calories 929kcal

Author Eb Gargano

Ingredients

Mincemeat

1 kg mixed dried fruit (Must include mixed peel – see Note 1)
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange (Remember to zest first – see Note 2)
150 ml boiling water
250 g soft dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground mixed spice (For lightly spiced mincemeat, use 3 teaspoons if you like more oomph!)
100 ml brandy or rum (Use 150ml if you like it more boozy)
200 g Bramley apple diced finely (2mm x 2mm cubes - roughly!)
200 g suet (I use Atora Vegetable Suet – see Note 3)

You will also need...

6 sterilized jam jars See Notes 4+5

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Place the mixed dried fruit, orange juice and 150ml boiling water in a very large saucepan. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat right down, put the lid on and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir 2-3 times during the 10 minutes.
When the 10 minutes is up, turn off the heat and remove the lid
Add all the sugar and mixed spice, and stir thoroughly.
Next, add the finely diced apple, alcohol and orange zest, and stir thoroughly.
Next, add the suet and stir thoroughly.
Divide the mincemeat between your 6 sterilized jam jars.
Ensure each jar gets a roughly even amount of fruit and liquid. Finally, screw on the lids of the jam jars while the mincemeat is still hot. (See Note 6.)
The mincemeat is ready to use immediately.
Alternatively, store the jars of mincemeat in a cool dark place until you want to use it.
The mincemeat will keep for up to 12 months. Stir well before using.

Notes

Ideally you want the dried mixed fruit to be a mix of sultanas, raisins, currants and candied mixed peel. You can usually find this ready mixed in supermarkets. (I use Tesco Dried Mixed Fruit.) If you can't find it ready mixed, buy the ingredients individually and go for these proportions: 400g sultanas / 300g raisins / 200g currants / 100g candied mixed peel.
It is almost impossible to zest an orange once you have juiced it! Therefore, ensure you FIRST zest your orange, THEN juice it.
Personally I always use Atora Vegetable Suet. This type of suet is suitable for vegetarians and vegans, which means almost everyone can enjoy my mincemeat and mince pies! You can use Atora Beef Suet if you prefer, but there is no noticeable difference in flavour.
The very easiest way to sterilize your jam jars is to simply to run them through your dishwasher on the hottest setting. Use sterilized tongs to remove the jars onto a clean baking tray as soon as the dishwasher has finished. The jars will air dry very quicky and then they are ready to be filled. Fill the jars, then screw on lids tightly.
Alternatively, if you don’t have a dishwasher, or if you want to speed up the process, simply place the jam jars and lids in large pan of boiling water. Simmer 10 minutes. Use sterilized tongs to remove the jars onto a clean baking tray. The jars will air dry very quicky and then they are ready to be filled. Fill the jars, then screw on lids tightly.
If you put the hot mincemeat into sterilized jars and then screw the lid on immediately, this will also help the mincemeat last longer. This is because as the mincemeat cools an internal vacuum is created, further protecting the mincemeat from bacteria and mould spores.
Suitable for freezing.
Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only. (Nutritional information is PER JAR.)

Nutrition