Relish: It’s more than just a topping for ballpark hot dogs. A spoonful or two can spark almost any meal. And don’t think all relishes are made from pickled cucumbers. Relishes today are made from tomato, corn, eggplant, and many more seasonal vegetables and fruits.
Nor does making a relish mean being chained to the kitchen stove all day fooling with canning jars and water baths. Most relishes simply can berefrigerated.
Still, given all the relish jars stocked in the local supermarket, most folks facing the prospect of making their own relish will likely sigh, “Why bother?”
“Anytime you take the time to make a relish or any pickled product from scratch, you will have a freshness and a liveliness you won’t get with a commercial product,” said Rick Field, chief executive and “chief pickler” of Rick’s Picks, a New York City-based maker and purveyor of pickled products.
“Relish provides the bright flavor notes,” said Field, co-author of the new Williams-Sonoma’s “The Art of Preserving,” with Rebecca Courchesne and Lisa Atwood (Williams-Sonoma, $29.95). “Relish is not like mayonnaise. Mayo binds things together. Relish is the soloist in the band.”
For Monica Bhide, a cookbook author and writer from Dunn Loring, Va., relishes are integral to her signature cooking style.
“There are so many ways to make your food have that one difference,” she said. “Some people go out of their way to buy organic. Some people grow and use their own herbs. You can get as complicated as you want. But for me, it is always the little things like relish, one of the most overlooked and underused items in the kitchen.”
Relishes can sport a dazzling array of flavor, but not all recipes are complicated. Field’s first relish was made by chopping up pickled cucumbers in the food processor. Field believes ingredients should “speak for themselves” in a relish.
Bhide prefers “intensely strong” relishes because they make “a simple entree shine.”
“With a little imagination, a relish can brighten up a dish with such oomph,” she said. “They are my secret weapons when pulling a meal together.”
With a few ingredients and a little time, you can give summer vegetables a whole new life. It’s easier than you think. (Much.)
Recipes:
Eggplant and Tomato Relish
This recipe comes from William-Sonoma’s “The Art of Preserving,” by Rick Field and Rebecca Courchesne, with Lisa Atwood. This relish can be jarred as-is (no canning) and stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. If canning, add 2 minutes to processing time for each 1,000 feet above sea level. At 5,000 feet, add 10 minutes. At 7,500 feet, add 15 minutes. Makes: Six 8-ounce jars.
Ingredients
2 pounds globe eggplants, sliced 3/4-inch thick
1/4 cup salt
1 1/4 pounds tomatoes, peeled, cored, cut in 3/4-inch dice
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, halved, sliced 3/4-inch thick
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives
3 tablespoons pine nuts, lightly toasted
2 tablespoons capers
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup finely sliced fresh basil leaves
Freshly ground pepper
Directions
Arrange the eggplant slices in a single layer on paper towels.
Sprinkle both sides with the 1/4 cup salt; drain eggplant 1 hour. Rinse the eggplant under cold running water; pat dry with paper towels. Cut into 3/4-inch dice.
Heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Cook the eggplant in batches, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
Add remaining 1 tablespoon of the olive oil; reduce heat to medium-low. Add the onion; cook, stirring often, until tender, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic; cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, olives, pine nuts, capers, vinegar. Raise the heat to high; heat to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; gently stir in the eggplant and basil; simmer until heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with pepper; add more salt if needed.
Ladle the hot relish into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims clean; seal tightly with sterilized lids. Process the jars in a boiling-water bath, 20 minutes. Cool jars; test seals. Store. If the seal fails, refrigerate that jar for up to 2 weeks.
Nutrition information. Per 2 tablespoons: 22 calories, 64 percent of calories from fat, 2g fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 2g carbohydrates, 0g protein, 206mg sodium, 1g fiber.
Pickled Zucchini Relish
“Although this zucchini relish is similar to sweet pickle relish, it has a softer texture and a mellower flavor,” write the authors of Williams-Sonoma’s “The Art of Preserving.” They prefer using a julienne peeler or mandoline for this relish, but you can always chop the zucchini instead. You can refrigerate it for up to 1 month. Or can it — sealed jars may be stored in a cool, dry place for up to 1 year. At 5,000 feet altitude, add 10 minutes to processing time. At 7,500, 15 minutes. Makes: 3 cups.
Ingredients
2 pounds zucchini
1 large yellow or white onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded, diced
2 tablespoons salt
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup each: distilled white vinegar, water
1 teaspoon each: celery seeds, freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon each: ground turmeric, pepper
Directions
Cut the zucchini lengthwise into thin strips using a julienne peeler or a mandoline. Cut the strips crosswise into matchsticks. Transfer to a large nonreactive bowl. Add the onion, bell pepper and salt. Toss to combine. Cover; let stand at room temperature 6 hours or up to 1 day.
Have ready hot, sterilized jars and their lids. Drain the zucchini mixture in a large colander. Rinse thoroughly; drain again.
Transfer to a large nonreactive saucepan. Add the sugar, vinegar, water, celery seeds, nutmeg, turmeric and pepper. Stir to combine. Heat to a boil over high heat; reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 25-30 minutes.
Ladle the hot relish into the jars, leaving 1/4-inch of space at the top. Remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims clean; seal tightly with the lids. Process the jars in a boiling-water bath 10 minutes.
Cool jars; test seals. Store. If the seal has failed during processing, refrigerate the jar up to 1 month.
Nutrition information. Per 2 tablespoons: 49 calories, 4 percent of calories from fat, 0.2g fat, 0.06g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 12g carbohydrates, 1g protein, 193mg sodium, 1g fiber.
Beet and Ginger Relish
A recipe from the new “Forgotten Skills of Cooking,” by Darina Allen. Allen writes that this sweet-sour relish will “keep for ages and is particularly good with cold meats, coarse country terrines or goat-cheese salads.” The relish can be refrigerated for about 2 months. Serve cold.
Prep: 20 minutes. Cook: 40 minutes. Makes: 2 1/4 cups.
Ingredients
8 ounces onion, chopped
3 tablespoons each: butter, sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 pound raw beets, peeled, grated
1 piece ( 1/2-inch long) ginger root, grated
1/2 cup red wine
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Directions
Combine onions and butter in a nonreactive saucepan; cook over medium-low heat until onions are very soft, about 10 minutes. Stir in the sugar, salt and pepper. Add beets, ginger, red wine and vinegar; cook over low heat 30 minutes. Spoon relish into sterilized jars. Seal; let cool.
Nutrition information. Per 2 tablespoons: 37 calories, 45 percent of calories from fat, 2g fat, 1g saturated fat, 5mg cholesterol, 5g carbohydrates, 0g protein, 79mg sodium, 1g fiber.
Fire and Ice Relish
This relish comes from “Learning to Cook with Marion Cunningham” and can be refrigerated for up to 10 days. “The fire is the cayenne pepper and the cool element is in the tomatoes, bell pepper and onion,” Cunningham wrote, suggesting one spoon it on corn, chicken, salmon or a baked potato.
Prep: 30 minutes. Cook: 3 minutes. Chill: 3 hours. Makes: 3 cups.
Ingredients
3 cups cherry tomatoes, finely chopped, juices reserved
1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, finely chopped
1 red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup each: cider vinegar, water
4 teaspoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons each: celery seed, mustard seed
1/2 teaspoon each: salt, freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
Directions
Put the tomatoes and juices in a medium bowl; stir in bell pepper and onion.
Mix together the cider vinegar, water, sugar, celery seed, mustard seed, salt and peppers in a saucepan; heat to a boil over high heat. Boil 1 minute. Remove from the heat; pour over the prepared vegetables. Cool. Cover; refrigerate at least 3 hours.
Nutrition information. Per 2 tablespoons: 11 calories, 0 percent of calories from fat, 0.14g fat, 0.02g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 2g carbohydrates, 0.3g protein, 100mg sodium, 0.5g fiber,
How to find canning how-tos
In summer, the story goes, when bushels of tomatoes would be piled high at farm stands and markets, my grandmother would present herself in the kitchen, clad only in her bathing suit and pearls. The bathing suit was because she was about to cook up and can jar after jar of chili sauce, a Victorian- era tomato relish my grandfather adored. The pearls? Well, a 1950s lady was still a 1950s lady, even dishabille.
I never knew my grandmother. She died right before I was born. But her presence lived on as my family slowly filled not only the kitchen, but the entire house with the smell of cider vinegar and tomatoes every summer. As a kid, I was dazzled by the whole aromatic process.
As an adult, I know that relish-making takes some time, especially if the choice is to can the product rather than refrigerate or freeze it. Honestly, I’d rather go through the chore of canning. There’s something appealing about spooning up a vivid reminder of summer’s sun- kissed bounty on a dark, snowy winter’s eve.
Don’t know how to can? Get all the instructions you need via cookbooks, magazines and websites, such as the National Center for Home Food Preservation () at the University of Georgia. Or consider consulting your state extension service for more canning tips (see altitude adjustments below).
Give yourself enough time, have all your ingredients prepped, and, remember, have fun. Relish this process as a delicious memory.
What is relish?
“A cooked or pickled sauce usually made with vegetables or fruits and often used as a condiment; can be smooth or chunky, sweet or savory and hot or mild.”
Webster’s New World Dictionary of Culinary Arts
Canning relishes
For detailed how-tos on water-bath canning, consult the book “The Art of Preserving,” or visit the website of the National Center for Home Food Preservation at the University of Georgia: . To adjust for altitude: Add 2 minutes of processing per 1,000 feet.
