Chinese Plum Sauce Ingredients: 3 lbs plums 2 lbs peach 3 sweet red peppers, diced 4 lrg cloves garlic, minced 1 onion, minced 4 cups cider vinegar 1 1/2 cups water 1/2 cups cooking sherry 1 tsp soy sauce 1 1/2 cup white sugar 1 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar 1 Tbsp ground ginger 1 Tbsp pickling salt 1 Tbsp dry mustard powder 1 tsp cayenne pepper 1 tsp cinamon 1 tsp cardamom Steam blanch the plums and peaches for 2 minutes, doing only 1 pound at a time. Skin and remove the pits. In a large kettle, combine all the ingredients. Bring them to a boil and then simmer until the fruit falls abart and the syrup is quite thick, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring frequently to avoid scorching. Ladle into hot 1/2-pint jars leaving 1/2 inch head-space, and then seal and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove the jars from the bath, cool, and store. (Posted to rec.food.preserving by "Tortfeasor" on 6/22/99) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- CHINESE-STYLE PLUM SAUCE Ingredients: 5 cups coarsely chopped peaches (about 2 lbs) 8 cups coarsely chopped plums (about 3 lbs) 4 cups cider vinegar, divided 4 med red or yellow bell peppers vegetable oil 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar 3 red serrano peppers, seeded and chopped 1/3 cup minced fresh ginger 6 lrg garlic cloves, minced 1 med red onion, chopped coarse 1/2 cup dry sherry 4 tsp pickling salt 1/4 cup yellow mustard seed, toasted (see note) 1 cinnamon stick In a large saucepan, combine peaches and plums with 3 cups vinegar. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for about 25 minutes or until fruit is very soft. Meanwhile, lightly brush the bell peppers with oil. Place the peppers on a baking sheet and broil, turning several times, until their skin is charred, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drop peppers in a brown paper bag, roll the top shut, and let stand until they are cool enough to handle. Peel peppers, remove core and seeds. Coarsely chop peppers. In another saucepan, bring the remaining 1 cup vinegar, granulated and brown sugars to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugars. Add the peach mixture, roasted bell peppers, serrano peppers, ginger, garlic, onion, sherry, salt, mustard seed and cinnamon stick. Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard cinnamon stick. Puree mixture in food processor in batches, until it is smooth. Return mixture to saucepan and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until slightly thickened. Ladle plum sauce into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch (5-mm) headspace. Wipe rims clean. Adjust lids according to manufacturer's instructions. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove jars from boiling water. Cool, label, and store. Makes 11 (250 mL) jars. Note: To toast mustard seeds, put in frying pan over medium heat for 1 minute or until lightly toasted, stirring frequently. (Posted to rec.food.preserving by Barbara Gibson on 9/1/98)