Best Zucchini Relish

Best Zucchini Relish  

A sweet and tangy zucchini relish recipe that's perfect for canning, freezing, or quick refrigerator storage. It's easy to make spicy, scale down for a small batch, or use yellow summer squash. Zucchini relish is delicious with burgers, eggs, hot dogs, tacos, pizza, dips, dressings and more!

Prep Time

30minutes mins

Cook Time

30minutes mins

Canning 

15minutes mins

Servings

4 pints

Equipment

Large mixing bowl

Large non-reactive pot

Canning supplies including jars, lids, a canning pot, rack, jar lifter, etc.

Measuring cups

Food processor – highly recommended but not required. You could also manually dice the zucchini into very fine pieces, or shred it using a cheese grater.

A large fine-mesh strainer and/or cheesecloth.

Ingredients

  

10 cups zucchini or summer squash - finely chopped, grated or shredded (plan to use about 4 pounds, but still measure cups)

3 cups yellow or white onion, finely chopped or grated (about 2 medium onions)

3 cups red bell pepper, finely chopped or grated (about 3 large bell peppers)

2.5 cups vinegar -  1.5 cups apple cider vinegar and 1 cup white vinegar (ensure it's 5% acid for canning)

2.5 cups white cane sugar

4 Tbsp pickling salt, sea salt or other kosher salt (not iodized table salt)

Spices

2 tsp whole yellow mustard seed

1 tsp celery seed

1 tsp ground turmeric

1/4 tsp nutmeg (or allspice)

1/4 tsp black pepper

Make it Spicy (Optional)

1 or 2 fresh hot chili peppers (e.g. finely chopped jalapeño) OR

1 to 2 tsp red chili flakes

Instructions

 

Prepare the Vegetables

Wash the zucchini and bell peppers well.

Trim the ends off the zucchini (discard) and cut it into large chunks that will easily fit in the food processor. I also like to remove some of seedy, spongy center of the squash as needed.

Working in batches, pulse the zucchini in a food processor until it’s in fine pieces (think of the texture of commercial relish). Or manually dice or grate the squash into approximately 1/8 to 1/4″ pieces.

Measure out 10 cups of processed zucchini into a large non-reactive mixing bowl.

measure out 3 cups of onions, followed by 3 cups of red bell peppers. Add to the same mixing bowl as the zucchini.

Brine and Rinse Veggies

Sprinkle 4 tablespoons of kosher salt over the chopped zucchini, onions and bell pepper and mix thoroughly. Add 1 tbsp at a time and mix as you go to ensure even distribution.

Let the salted vegetables sit for several hours, or for the best results, in the refrigerator overnight. The brining process helps achieve the best zucchini relish texture possible.

Transfer salted vegetable mixture to a large fine-mesh strainer or sieve. I like to line it with organic cotton cheesecloth to rinse, strain, and squeeze the relish mixture with ease. Rinse the zucchini, onions and bell peppers well with water to remove excess salt, and then drain and wring out the water.

Use your hands (and the assistance of the cheesecloth) to squeeze, press, and remove as much liquid as possible. 

Cook the Zucchini Relish

Before cooking the relish, get all your canning supplies ready, including heating the water bath.

Add the strained zucchini mixture to a large non-reactive pot, along with the called-for vinegar, sugar, and spices.

Over medium-high heat, bring the mixture to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally. Then reduce to medium heat and simmer for about 25 to 30 minutes, until most of the liquid has reduced and the zucchini relish has thickened nicely. Stir regularly to ensure it doesn’t burn.

Canning Instructions

Transfer the still-hot zucchini relish into hot sterilized canning jars with the assistance of a clean canning funnel. Leave 1/2-inch of headroom 

Remove air bubbles as needed using a bubble remover or small knife. Use a clean damp paper towel to wipe the rims of the jars clean before adding lids

Add sterilized canning lids and rings. Screw on the rings to finger-tight only, not overly tight.

Use a jar lifter to carefully transfer the jars to your pre-heated water bath canning pot, cover with a lid. The jars should be covered by 2 inches of water. Add more boiling water if needed.

Once the canner returns to a rolling boil, process for 15 minutes. (To adjust for altitude, process 20 minutes at 1000-6000 feet above sea level, and 25 minutes at 6000+ feet.)

When finished, transfer the jars from the canner to a cooling rack and leave them undisturbed for at least 12 hours before checking jar seals. Refrigerate any jars that did not seal.

From https://homesteadandchill.com/wprm_print/best-zucchini-relish-canning-freezer-or-refrigerator

Sweet Gherkin Pickles

Sweet Gherkin Pickles

7 lbs cucumbers (1-1/2 inch or less)

1/2 cup canning or pickling salt

8 cups sugar

6 cups vinegar (5 percent)

3/4 tsp turmeric

2 tsp celery seeds

2 tsp whole mixed pickling spice

2 cinnamon sticks

1/2 tsp fennel (optional)

2 tsp vanilla (optional)

Step-by-Step Instructions

Day 1

Wash the cucumbers and trim 1/16 of an inch off the blossom ends, but leave the stem ends intact.
Place the cucumbers in a large, heat-proof glass or ceramic bowl. Cover with boiling water, cover the bowl, and let sit for 6 to 8 hours (or overnight). 

Day 2

Drain the cucumbers and cover them with fresh boiling water. Let sit for another 6 hours.
Drain the water, sprinkle with 1/2 cup  pickling salt, and cover with fresh boiling water. Cover and let sit overnight. 

Day 3

Drain the cucumbers and prick them several times with a fork.
In a large pot, combine 3 cups of the sugar, 3 cups of the vinegar, turmeric, celery seed, pickling spices, and fennel seed. Heat to a boiling point, then pour the hot syrup over the cucumbers. Cover and let stand. 

Drain the syrup from the cucumbers back into the pot.
Add 2 more cups of sugar and 2 more cups of vinegar. Bring to a boil, pour over the cucumbers, and let stand. 

Day 5 & Canning

Drain the syrup into the pot one last time, add the remaining 3 cups of sugar, and bring to a boil.
Pack the cucumbers into hot, sterilized mason jars. Add a piece of cinnamon stick and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract to each jar.
Pour the boiling syrup over the cucumbers, leaving 1/2 in of headspace.
Wipe rims clean, apply lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
Remove jars and let them cool completely on a towel before storing in a cool, dark place. 

*OR use this low-temperature pasteurization treatment:.

The following treatment results in a better product texture but must be carefully managed to avoid possible spoilage.

Place jars in a canner filled half way with warm (120º to 140ºF) water.

Then, add hot water to a level 1 inch above jars.

Heat the water enough to maintain 180 to 185ºF water temperature for 30 minutes.

Check with a candy or jelly thermometer to be certain that the water temperature is at least 180ºF during the entire 30 minutes. Temperatures higher than 185ºF may cause unnecessary softening of pickles.

Sweet Heat Horseradish Pickles 2026

 

Based on this recipe added mantis hot sauce and horseradish  

Canada is gassing us again

 

2026 Garden Planted

 

Change of plan

 Ran out of time so I am going to leave the format the same as last year.

First Asparagus of 2026

 

2026 Plan

 

Start peppers 2026

 

Blood Orange Marmalade

Blood Orange Marmalade

Yield: 20 ounces

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

4 large blood oranges

2  lemons

1 quart water

3 cups Sugar (amount determined by amount of fruit mixture after initial steps)

Instructions

DAY ONE (about 30 minutes)

First work on the peel: I use a carrot peeler to take a thin layer of peel off the blood oranges and lemons. You do not want the pith—the white layer just below the peel. The pith has pectin and will be used later but do your best to keep it separate from the peel. You should have about 2 cups of blood orange peel and 1 cups of lemon peel. Slice it thinly. Reserve any pith that has come off the fruit.

Now slice the fruit and remove the seeds. Take off the layer of pith if it is thick. Set it aside with the seeds. Wrap the seeds and pith in the cheesecloth and secure tightly.

Use a food processor to break down the oranges and lemons. Pulse until the mixture is in small bits. The fruit will continue to break down when you cook it and marmalade is often a chunky mixture.

Place the water, all of the processed fruit, the peels, and the cheesecloth containing the pith and seeds into a large pot. Let this mixture sit overnight (not refrigerated). Note that you do not add the sugar until Day Two.

DAY TWO (60-90 minutes)

Bring the fruit mixture to a boil and cook for 20-30 minutes or until the peel is tender. Remove from the heat and discard the cheesecloth bundle.

Measure the fruit and liquid. Add 3/4 - 1 cup sugar for each cup of fruit mixture (yes, this will be a lot of sugar). Bring to a boil and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Continue stirring as the mixture comes to the gelling point. The mixture will thicken, keep stirring. Perform a gel-test to see if the marmalade is ready for canning. Take a tablespoon of the marmalade and place it in the freezer for a few minutes on a very cold plate. After a few minutes, if the marmalade wrinkles when you push it slightly then it has reached the gelling point.

Ladle the hot marmalade into prepared jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space. Process in a boiling-water canner 10 min. 

Notes

The amount of sugar you'll need will depend on the ratio of fruit plus liquid to sugar. One cup to one cup is recommended. Here I decreased the ratio to 3/4 cup of sugar for each cup of liquid and the marmalade still came together very easily. If you use too little sugar you risk the marmalade not gelling and remaining in a liquid form.

Stating onions 2026

 

Tomato Sauce Italian style 2026

 Tomato Sauce Italian style.

Canning party 2026 friends came over to process their tomatoes 

Chicken