Artificial Food Coloring Free Sweet Pickle Relish
Store-bought relish is one of those condiments that quietly sneaks artificial dyes into your fridge — that unnaturally bright green color is usually a giveaway. This homemade version gets its cheerful golden hue entirely from ground turmeric, which means every jar is colored by real ingredients you can actually pronounce. Crisp cucumbers, onion, and green bell pepper are salted down, rinsed, and simmered in a tangy blend of white distilled and apple cider vinegars with just enough sugar to balance the bite. Mustard seeds and celery seeds add a subtle, old-fashioned depth that no squeeze bottle relish can compete with. The process is straightforward — salt, drain, simmer, jar — and the result is a bright, punchy relish that tastes genuinely homemade. It's perfect on hot dogs, stirred into potato salad, or spooned onto a burger when you want that classic sweet-tart hit without any ingredient you'd have to look up.
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Learn more →Ingredients
32 servings
- 1 ½ lbs cucumbers (about 3 medium), finely diced
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 medium green bell pepper, finely diced
- 2 tbsp kosher salt
- ¾ cup white distilled vinegar
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- ½ tsp celery seeds
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
Instructions
- 1
Combine the diced cucumbers, onion, and green bell pepper in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the kosher salt over the vegetables and toss to coat. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour, until the vegetables have released a significant amount of liquid.
- 2
Transfer the salted vegetables to a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold running water. Press firmly with your hands or the back of a spoon to squeeze out as much liquid as possible — the vegetables should feel noticeably drier.
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