Homemade Pickle Relish Sweetened with Honey

Homemade pickle relish wasn’t super high on my food preservation list, but I’m glad I decided to make some since the homemade version tastes awesome! Even my husband, who is not a relish guy, likes this pickle relish recipe. You team up high quality spices, vinegar and honey with your fresh garden cucumbers or zucchini to make something delicious. It’s easy, too – just chop, mix, soak, strain and water bath can. Note:  This recipe does need to soak for 5 hours (or overnight) to draw the liquid out of the veggies, so start early in the day so you have enough time to finish or later in the day so you let it sit overnight and finish the next morning.

We don’t use a ton of pickle relish, so I didn’t give the ingredients much thought – until I read the label on some commercial relish. Here’s what we’ve got:

• Cucumbers
• High Fructose Corn Syrup
• Corn Syrup
• Cauliflower
• Vinegar
• Salt
• Dehydrated Red Peppers
• Spices
• Xanthan Gum
• Calcium Chloride
• Alum
• Natural Flavors
• Polysorbate 80
• Yellow 5
• Blue 1

Sheesh! HFCS and corn syrup?  Two kinds of artificial color? Aluminum? It sounds more like a lab experiment than food.

Which would you choose? Technicolor store pickle relish (top) or homemade pickle relish (bottom)?

Homemade Pickle Relish Recipe (Sweetened with Honey)

Adapted from Putting It Up With Honey

Ingredients

• 4 cups cucumbers or zucchini
• 1 cup green pepper
• 1/2 cup red pepper
• 3 cups onion
• 3 cups celery
• 1/4 cup sea salt
• 1 3/4 cup honey
• 2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon celery seed
• 1 tablespoon mustard seed
• 1 tablespoon coriander

Directions

Finely chop all the vegetables and combine in a large bowl.  Sprinkle with salt, cover with cold water, and let stand five hours.  

Drain thoroughly in a colander, pressing out excess liquid.

In a medium stockpot, mix honey, vinegar, and spices.  Bring to a boil.  Stir in drained vegetables and simmer for 10 minutes.

Pack into hot sterilized jars to within 1/2 inch from the top.

Complete seals and process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath. Yields 9-12 cups, depending on moisture levels of produce. 

I think mama would be proud, and I know my family will be eating just a little less chemical laden food in the coming year.

You can pair this relish up with homemade buns and picnic friendly foods such as hot dogs and brats from a trusted local meat store (read the labels – look for ingredients you recognize as food). If you can’t find what you need locally, you can buy safer meat products in bulk from online merchants such as Tropical Traditions, where they stock items such as buffalo hot dogs.

You may also enjoy:

• Home Canned Salsa That Tastes a Lot Like a National Brand – Except Better
• Homemade Ketchup
• Home Canned Spaghetti Sauce

Originally published in 2010, updated in 2016.

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