Easy Homemade Sweet Pickle Relish

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This Homemade Sweet Relish recipe is an easy way to use up extra cucumbers from the garden while creating something genuinely delicious and versatile. The combination of crisp cucumbers, sweet peppers, onion, apple cider vinegar, and warm spices creates that classic sweet-and-tangy flavor that belongs at summer cookouts, backyard barbecues, and weeknight dinners alike.

And yes, it’s fantastic on hot dogs. But don’t stop there.

Stir a spoonful into mayonnaise and ketchup for an easy burger sauce, mix it into potato salad or tuna salad, or drizzle a quick relish dressing over a cheeseburger salad for a little sweet-and-savory magic. It also works beautifully on burgers, sandwiches, deviled eggs, and even alongside smoked meats. One jar somehow disappears faster than you think it should. Funny how that happens.

The best part? This recipe is surprisingly simple. A little chopping, a quick simmer on the stove, and either a water bath canning method or refrigerator storage gives you jars of homemade relish ready to brighten up meals for weeks – or months – to come.

Ways to Use Sweet Pickle Relish

Here’s where you can have a little fun with the post and keep readers scrolling:

• Spoon it over hot dogs and hamburgers
• Stir it into tuna salad or chicken salad
• Mix with mayo and ketchup for a homemade burger sauce
• Add it to deviled eggs
• Use it in potato salad or macaroni salad
• Stir into Thousand Island-style dressing
• Top smoked sausages or bratwurst
• Add to cheeseburger bowls or cheeseburger salads
• Mix into tartar sauce for fish dinners

Honestly, once you have homemade relish in the fridge, you start looking for excuses to use it. Hot dogs become a delivery system. Potato salad suddenly gets fancy. Burger sauce starts tasting suspiciously restaurant-worthy.

Ingredients

• 6 medium pickling cucumbers
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 large white onion
• 1 ½ cups white granulated sugar
• 1 ¼ cups apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup pickling salt
• ½ tablespoon mustard seed
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• Water

Items You’ll Need

• Large pot
• 2 quart-size (32-ounce) mason jars
• 1 half-pint (8-ounce) mason jar
• Lids and rings
• Canning pot for water bathing (optional)

How to Make Homemade Sweet Relish

1. Wash and dry all vegetables thoroughly.
2. Remove seeds from the cucumbers and bell peppers. Finely dice the cucumbers, peppers, and onion.
3. Place all diced vegetables in a large pot and sprinkle evenly with the pickling salt. Stir to coat.
4. Add enough water to cover the vegetables.
5. Cover the pot and let the mixture soak for 2 hours.
6. Drain the vegetables in a large strainer, rinse well, and allow them to drain completely.
7. Rinse the pot, then add the apple cider vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring until the sugar fully dissolves.
8. Add the mustard seed, celery seed, and turmeric. Boil for 2 minutes, then reduce the heat to low and add the drained vegetables.
9. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
10. Spoon the hot relish into the mason jars, distributing the vegetables and liquid evenly. Secure lids tightly.

If you enjoy making homemade condiments and cookout favorites from scratch, there are plenty of other recipes on Southern Kissed worth trying. Pair this relish with my creamy Homemade Mayonnaise to create a delicious burger or sandwich sauce, or serve it alongside tangy Alabama White Barbecue Sauce for your next barbecue night. And no Southern cookout feels complete without a good slaw, which is why my sweet-and-creamy Pineapple Coleslaw and classic Vinegar Coleslaw are both perfect companions for burgers, hot dogs, pulled pork, and grilled favorites.

Lynda – Southern Kissed

Homemade Sweet Relish

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Tangy, lightly sweet, and easy to make using either the canning or refrigerator method—once you try it, store-bought won’t cut it anymore.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Resting Time 3 days d 2 hours hrs

Total Time 3 days d 2 hours hrs 50 minutes mins

Servings: 72 ounces

Course: Condiment

Cuisine: American

Calories: 21

Ingredients Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

• 6 medium pickling cucumbers
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 large white onion
• 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
• 1 ¼ cups apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup pickling salt
• ½ tablespoon mustard seed
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• Water

Method

 

1. Wash and dry all vegetables thoroughly.
2. Remove seeds from the cucumbers and bell peppers. Finely dice the cucumbers, peppers, and onion.
3. Place all diced vegetables in a large pot and sprinkle evenly with the pickling salt. Stir to coat.
4. Add enough water to just cover the vegetables.
5. Cover the pot and let the mixture soak for 2 hours.
6. Drain the vegetables in a large strainer, rinse well, and allow them to drain completely.
7. Rinse the pot, then add the apple cider vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring until the sugar fully dissolves.
8. Add the mustard seed, celery seed, and turmeric. Boil for 2 minutes, then reduce heat to low and add the drained vegetables.
9. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
10. Spoon the hot relish into the mason jars, distributing the vegetables and liquid evenly. Secure lids tightly.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Calories: 21kcalCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 0.2gFat: 0.1gSaturated Fat: 0.01gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.01gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.02gSodium: 1mgPotassium: 37mgFiber: 0.2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 67IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 4mgIron: 0.1mg

Notes

Water Bath Canning Instructions

1. Process jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes, ensuring the water covers the jars by at least 1 inch.
2. Remove jars and let them sit at room temperature for 24 hours with the rings on.
3. Remove rings and check seals. Properly sealed jars can be stored in the pantry.
4. Once opened, store jars in the refrigerator for the best quality.

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Refrigerator Method

1. Let filled jars cool at room temperature for about 2 hours.
2. Re-tighten lids and place jars in the refrigerator.
3. Allow the relish to rest for 3 days before using so the flavors can fully develop.
4. Store sealed jars in the refrigerator for up to 3 months (often longer).

Tried this recipe?

Let us know how it was!

Homemade Sweet Pickle Relish is one of those simple recipes that feels like summer tucked into a jar. It’s sweet, tangy, crunchy, and packed with fresh flavor that store-bought versions just can’t quite match. Whether you spoon it over hot dogs at a backyard cookout, stir it into burger sauce, or add it to your favorite salads and sandwiches, this relish brings a little homemade magic to everyday meals.

And if you’ve got cucumbers multiplying in the garden faster than you can keep up with them, this recipe is a delicious solution.

Last Bite

If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear how you used it! Did it end up on burgers, deviled eggs, or straight from the jar with a spoon? (No judgment here.)

Leave a comment below and let me know! And if you enjoyed this recipe, please share it with friends and family and save it to Pinterest so you can find it again later.