Chili Sauce
This vintage Chili Sauce recipe makes three pints!
I love a good chili sauce to smear slices of bread with lots of chili sauce and cover with raw onions for a quick lunch or dinner.
My grandmother from West Virginia used to make one of the best chili sauces I have ever had and unfortunately, she passed without writing down any of her recipes.
Did you know that October is National Chili Month (well, this recipe is for Chili Sauce… close enough!)? Click here to view other October Food Holidays.
Other Vintage Recipes
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Chili Sauce Recipe Card Front
Front of the recipe card for Chili Sauce, which is actually a newspaper clipping with the Chili Sauce recipe from the Family Weekly newspaper dated September 6, 1959.
Vintage Recipe Box 1 Overview

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Chili Sauce Recipe
If you make this Chili Sauce recipe, please share your photos and comments below!

Chili Sauce 1959 (VRP 001)
Spicy and full of zest, this Chili Sauce is hot enough to be served with seafood cocktails. Try it, too, for a spot of lusty flavor with a roast or with grilled hamburgers.
Ingredients
- 6 pounds (about 18 medium sized) ripe tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped green pepper
- 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon finely minced hot red pepper
- 1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
- 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon whole cloves
- 1 3" stick cinamoon
Instructions
- Set out a large, heavy sauce pot or kettle and three 1 pint jars with covers
- Rinse tomatoes
- Taking a few at a time, dip tomatoes in boiling water for several seconds
- Peel, cut out, and discard stem ends
- Cut tomatoes into quarters
- Discard the seeds
- Coarsely chop the tomatoes (enough to yield 9 cups)
- Measure into the sauce pot the vinegar, brown sugar, and salt
- Tie spices in a spice bag (see Cucumber Pepper Relish)
- Add spice bag to the sauce pot and put over medium heat
- Stir until sugar is dissolved
- Bring mixture to boiling
- Add the chopped vegetable and cook rapidly until thick, stirring frequently to prevent sticking
- Length of cooking time will vary with ripeness of tomatoes
- Meanwhile, wash,sterilize, and drain jars and covers (see Cucumber Pepper Relish)
- When sauce is thick, skim to remove foam
- Fill drained jars immediately and seal tightly
Donnaree Smith
Tuesday 15th of October 2019
Sowers is my great great grandmother that married a Smith .
Billie
Wednesday 16th of October 2019
Is your family from Ohio?