Today I had a bacon Sandwich with HP Sauce for the first time in almost 3 years… it was glorious!

If you asked me which foods I miss the most since giving up gluten, top of my list would be HP Sauce – a staple condiment on the British dinner table.

It has always been my favourite, and is a firm fixture on my family’s dinner table. In fact, we couldn’t live without it so much that we would take it on holiday to Italy with us – that, and Yorkshire Tea!

I was upset once I realised I could no longer eat HP Sauce as it contains malt vinegar… but, I am a firm believer that with creativity it’s possible to eat everything thing I used to before, and so, I decided it was finally time to attempt making my own HP Sauce. The aim? To make it as close to the real deal as possible.

Gluten Free HP Sauce – GF/DF/EF

This recipe makes approximately 500ml.

You will need one 550ml Glass Preserve Bottle or a Twist Top Bottle which you will need to Sterilise as follows:

1. Remove the wax seal or lid. Wash the bottle in hot soapy water, rinse well then and leave to dry.
2. Place the bottle in an oven on a low temperature (140 degrees C/ Gas Mark 1) for 15 minutes, do this shortly before the sauce is ready so that the bottle remains warm.
3. Sterilise the wax seal or lid in a pan of boiling water for 10 minutes.
4. If you are using a clip top bottle, replace the wax seal once the bottle has been sterilised.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
4 shallots, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
65g dates, with the stones removed and chopped.
2 tbsp tomato puree
250 ml water
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp ground pepper
50ml apple juice
150ml cider vinegar
50ml balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp molasses or black Treacle
1/2 tbsp dark brown sugar
1 tbsp cornflour

Method:

1) Heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottomed pan over a medium heat.

2) Fry the shallots and garlic for 4 -5 minutes until soft, then add the dates and 150 ml of the water.

3) Using a hand blender, blend the ingredients into a thick paste.

4) Add the another 50 ml water (you should still have 50 ml left for later), tomato puree, ginger, cinnamon, ground pepper, and turmeric powder. Give it a good stir and then simmer the ingredients over a low heat for 10 minutes.

5) Remove the pan from the heat, then press the mixture through a sieve with a wooden spoon into a clean pan.

6) Add the remaining water, apple juice, cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar, molasses and sugar then return the pan to the heat and boil the sauce for 5 minutes.

7) Place the cornflour into a small bowl, then add a few tablespoon of liquid from the sauce to to make a paste.

8) Add the cornflour paste to the sauce and then whisk with a balloon whisk to ensure there are no lumps.

9) Boil the sauce for a further 4 minutes whilst whisking continuously.

Tip. Don’t worry if there are a few lumps after you’ve added the cornflour – just sieve the sauce again.

10) Remove the sauce from the heat and leave to cool slightly before carefully pouring the sauce into your sterilised bottle –  you may need to use a funnel to help you do this safely.

11) Leave the sauce to cool before storing -the sauce should keep up to 3 – 4 weeks in the fridge.

I hope you give my recipe a try this weekend. If you are looking for Gluten Free inspiration you can check out all the recipes I have posted to date on my Recipes page.

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