Most ketchup you find on the supermarket shelf contains High Fructose Corn Syrup as the sweetener. Another ingredient is corn syrup which is made from Genetically Modified Corn, in the U.S. 88 % genetically modified and is added to almost all processed foods. Natural Flavorings can be found in many mainstream ketchup brands, and can often be monosodium glutamate or a chemical made up of 50-100 ingredients. Read: What are natural flavors
It's really not hard, but ketchup should be made up of a few simple ingredients. Consider making your own condiments and spices instead of relying on unhealthy versions available in most supermarkets. You can do this by reading the labels to see what the “real food” ingredients are and then experimenting in the kitchen. For the ingredients, you can not pronounce, simply leave those out.
Ketchup can be made with honey, maple syrup, molasses, or coconut sugar for healthy alternatives to table sugar. Read Which Sweeteners are Part of a Healthy Lifestyle to get some ideas of all the sweeteners available for a healthy lifestyle that includes your favorite foods!
Cooking is fun and even if you don't have much experience you can grab some cookbooks and start learning how. Make your own spice combinations and even your own salad dressings.
Make your own ketchup
It's easy to make your own homemade ketchup. You can keep the ingredients on hand and stir up a batch at a moments notice. We purchase tomato paste in bulk at Costco.
You can use ketchup as a base for BBQ sauce, dip fries in it, slather it on a burger or meatloaf or whatever you normally use mainstream ketchup for.
Zingy Perfect Ketchup
Ingredients
- 2 cans tomato sauce single ingredient on label (I like Costco brand Kirkland's)
- 1 small onion chopped
- Stevia to taste or sometimes I use erythritol
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon cloves
- pinch cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a sauce pan
- Bring to a boil
- Reduce heat and simmer
- Reduce by about half
- Blend with immersion blender til thick
- Store in a cute jar in fridge or save in portions in freezer till needed
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