Sweet Potato & Pear Chutney

Now you wouldn't expect sweet potato to make good chutney, but this sweet potato chutney might just change your mind.

Sweet potato chutney with pear, orange and raisins – The Flexible Chef

This is a gentle, warmly spiced chutney with no heat and no sharpness to speak of. The sweet potato gives it body and a natural sweetness, the conference pear adds a soft fruitiness, and the fresh orange juice and zest lift the whole thing into something considerably more interesting than the sum of its parts. The raisins disappear quietly into the background, adding depth without drawing attention to themselves.

It sits alongside stronger flavours beautifully – a sharp cheese, a spiced curry, a plate of cold cuts. It doesn't compete. It completes.

The Sweet Potato Chutney Recipe

Ingredients (makes approximately 2–3 jars)

• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 1 conference pear, peeled, cored and diced
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed and roughly chopped
• 50g raisins
• 80g brown sugar
• 100ml apple cider vinegar
• 120ml fresh orange juice
• 1 tbsp orange zest
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• ⅛ tsp ground cinnamon
• ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 bay leaf
• A little olive oil

Method

1. Heat a little olive oil in a suitable pan over a low to medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until beginning to soften.
2. Add the sweet potato, carrot and pear. Put the lid on and cook gently for a couple of minutes.
3. Remove the lid, add the garlic and stir for one minute.
4. Add the spices and raisins and stir to combine.
5. Add the orange juice, vinegar and orange zest. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the sugar and the bay leaf.
6. Simmer with the lid off, stirring from time to time, until the liquid has been absorbed and the chutney has thickened. This takes around 45–60 minutes.
7. Remove the bay leaf. Leave to cool, then spoon into sterilised jars and seal. Store in a cool dark place or the refrigerator.

A note on patience

Leave for 4–6 weeks before opening – the flavours mellow and the orange comes forward with time. It will keep for several months in sterilised jars stored in a cool, dark place.

How to use sweet potato and pear chutney

This is a gentle, versatile chutney that works with:

• Manchego or a young goat cheese
• Cold cuts and cured ham
• Grilled pork or chicken
• A curry table alongside spicier chutneys
• A campervan lunch plate with bread and cheese

Footnote

This sweet potato chutney recipe is part of my Curry Recipes collection — the complete guide to curries, spice blends, bases, chutneys and sides from The Flexible Chef. Explore the full Curry Recipes hub.

Wonky photos, proper food, genuine adventures — The Flexible Chef