Review: Be a bit careful
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 10 6, 2013
Dan Ionescu should have read some really scary books on home canning before releasing this cookbook. Ketchup is safe for canning only when the mixture is sufficiently acid to suppress the growth of Clostridium botulinum bacteria, one of the most deadly organisms in nature. On page 13 Mr. Ionescu urges you to "trust your senses" about whether ketchup is safe to eat. Well, don't. You could end up dead because some strains of C. botulinum are undetectable in food. Instead, eat your home-made ketchup right away, freeze it, or, if you do want to can your creation, disregard Mr. Ionescu's instructions. Read up on good canning technique and do it properly, adding citric acid or vinegar to some of these recipes.Mr. Ionescu's Romanian heritage keeps him focused on ketchups of a particular kind. The recipes are undoubtedly tasty but there is no exploration of other ketchup sauces prepared worldwide, or even acknowledgement that the word "ketchup" originated in Malaysia.The photos with recipes 10 and 23 do not match the contents of the recipe.I received a review copy of Homemade Tomato Ketchup by Dan Ionescu through LibraryThing.com.