Good Eats at the TEOTWAWKI Cafe--Pickle Relish

How many ways do I use pickle relish?  I used to add it to tuna and mayo for tuna sandwiches, but I quit buying canned tuna after the tsunami and Fukushima disaster.  It’s part of the Thousand Island dressing recipe.  My husband and one son put it on hot dogs.  That’s it.  So I could probably proceed through the rest of my life without any more and be just fine.  But if Aaron didn’t have pickle relish for the Thousand Island dressing that goes on his patty melts….  Perish the thought.

I still have a couple of jars of store-brand pickle relish that were on clearance a couple of years ago.  But someday I will run out.  And someday soon, hopefully, I will have some cucumbers for making pickle relish.  This is the recipe I plan to use.

Sweet Pickle Relish

1 quart chopped cucumbers

2 cups chopped onions

1 cup chopped sweet green pepper

1 cup chopped sweet red pepper

¼ cup salt

3 ½ cups sugar

2 cups cider vinegar

1 tablespoon celery seed

1 tablespoon mustard seed

In a large bowl, combine vegetables.  Sprinkle with salt and add cold water to cover veggies. 

Let stand 2 hours.  Drain thoroughly; press out excess liquid.

In a large saucepan, combine sugar, vinegar, and spices and bring to a boil.  Add drained veggies and simmer 10 minutes.  Pack hot into hot jars, leaving ¼” head space.  Adjust caps.  Process 10 minutes in a boiling water bath, adjusting for altitude if necessary.  Yield:  8 half-pints.

 

Fresh Pickle Relish (also known as Quick Pickle Relish in case you ran out and need some pronto!)

2 large dill pickles, minced

¼ cup minced red pepper

¼ cup minced yellow or green pepper

¼ cup minced onion

Fresh dill, optional

¼ cup + 2 tablespoons pickle juice

In a medium bowl, combine everything.  Refrigerate 1 hour up to 1 day.

 

Pickled Green Tomato Relish

5 pounds small, hard green tomatoes, diced

1 pound onions, diced

¾ pound green bell peppers, diced

¾ pound red bell peppers, diced

¼ cup canning salt

2 cups water

2 cups sugar

2 cups distilled white vinegar

3 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Place prepared vegetables in a large pot.  Dissolve salt in water and pour over vegetables.  Heat to boiling, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.  Drain.  Return vegetables to pot, and stir in remaining ingredients. Heat to boiling again, and reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.  Fill sterile half-pint jars, leaving ½” headspace.  Adjust lids and process 5 minutes (10 minutes at 1000-6000 feet, or15 minutes if above 6000 feet).  Yield:  3 ½-4 pints. 

Links to related posts:

Thousand Island dressing 

Mayonnaise