Sweet Pepper Relish
This homemade sweet pepper relish is so much more than just a hot dog topping. Use it as a condiment with your grilled meats and veggies or slather it onto your burgers and sandwiches to take them to the next level.
Just like my peach jalapeno jam, this relish is super easy to make, and is the perfect to condiment to have at hand to quickly jazz up your favorite meals.
If you have ended up buying more peppers than you can put to use, this one's the perfect recipe to use them up. This and my Turkish red pepper paste.
Another good way to use up an abundance of peppers is to dehydrate them or pickle them in vinegar. Check my Air Fryer dehydrated peppers and hot pepper vinegar recipes for reference!
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What's So Great About the Recipe?
If you've never made a relish before, you'll be surprised at the simplicity of this recipe. It just takes a few minutes and a handful of pantry staples to make a nice jar full of the relish, and it's such a nice flavor-packed condiment to have at hand.
This relish is also perfect for gift-giving, just like my ginger mango chutney.
Recipe Ingredients
Sweet peppers: I used a mix of red and yellow sweet peppers here.
Onion + garlic: The basics, to build that savory flavor. I love using white onion for that mild sweetness.
Jalapenos: For the heat. You can de-seed them if you want to make it milder.
Mustard seeds: For that earthy flavor and a bit of texture. I love how these yellow mustard seeds complement the flavors of the sweet peppers.
Sugar: For the sweetness and also to preserve the relish. I used it while making my pickled cabbage too.
Apple cider vinegar: To cook down the peppers. I love using ACV to bring in that fun, fruity flavor, but you can also use white vinegar if that's what you have at hand.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- You can also use hot peppers if you want to make a spicy relish, or some red and yellow bell peppers if you want a lighter, toned-down version. Green peppers and orange peppers also work great.
- If you don't have apple cider vinegar, it's okay to use regular white vinegar too. I used it for my ginger pickled carrots and it turned out great!
How to Make Sweet Pepper Relish
Step 1: In a chopper, chop the peppers, onion and garlic until slightly chunky.
Step 2: Drain any excess liquid and add the chopped peppers to a saucepan over medium heat.
Step 3: Add the sugar, mustard seeds and vinegar. Cook until it comes to a boil.
Step 4: Take the mixture off heat and allow it to cool down completely. Transfer to a glass jar and refrigerate.
Tips & Tricks to Nail the Recipe
- Remember to use pickling salt or sea salt for this recipe. Table salt isn't great to use for pickles and preserves.
- I used a food chopper to chop up the peppers. If you prefer a chunky texture, you can use a sharp knife to manually chop up the peppers too.
- Allow the relish to rest in the refrigerator for a day or more before you enjoy it. Just like with most other condiments (especially my Schezwan sauce), resting allows the flavors to deepen.
- If the peppers are too juicy, you may want to squeeze and drain some of the excess liquid off after they've been chopped, and then use them for the recipe.
How to Use the Homemade Sweet Pepper Relish
This homemade pepper relish is the perfect condiment to team up with your hotdogs, sandwiches, burgers and wraps. The chunky texture and the bold flavors just work so well with almost any kind of bread and filling.
I also love spooning some of this relish over my grilled chicken- but honestly, it can jazz up pretty much any grilled meat- not just chicken. You can also use it as a topping over some crackers and cream cheese and serve it as an appetizer, or feature it on a charcuterie board with other condiments and spreads like oven roasted peppers and pickled rhubarb.
Recipe FAQs
You can store your leftover sweet pepper relish in the refrigerator for up to a week, if not longer. I usually make it a point to finish it up within 2 weeks, just to be safe.
Yes, you can. Make sure you add it in towards the end though.
More Food Preserves
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
If you tried this sweet pepper relish recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Sweet Pepper Relish
Ingredients
- 2 cups peppers
- ½ cup jalapeno
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic
Instructions
- In a chopper, chop the peppers, onion and garlic until slightly chunky.
- Drain any excess liquid and add the chopped peppers to a saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the sugar, mustard seeds and vinegar. Cook until it comes to a boil.
- Take the mixture off heat and allow it to cool down completely. Transfer to a glass jar and refrigerate.
Notes
- Remember to use pickling salt or sea salt for this recipe. Table salt isn't great to use for pickles and preserves.
- I used a food chopper to chop up the peppers. If you prefer a chunky texture, you can use a sharp knife to manually chop up the peppers too.
- Allow the relish to rest in the refrigerator for a day or more before you enjoy it. Just like with most other condiments (especially my Schezwan sauce), resting allows the flavors to deepen.
- If the peppers are too juicy, you may want to squeeze and drain some of the excess liquid off after they've been chopped, and then use them for the recipe.
