Fermented Sweet Pickle Relish Recipe

1 / 2

Fermented condiments, like this sweet pickle relish recipe, provide valuable probiotics to aid in digestion while also enhancing flavor.

Photo by John Chester

2 / 2

Molly Chester and Sandy Schrecengost bring back the simple foods that nourished us for years, before modern food processing turned health upside down, in “Back to Butter.”

Cover courtesy Fair Winds Press

2 cups (490 g) SERVINGS

Ingredients

1/2 cup (80 g) medium diced sweet onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2-1/2 cups (300 g) seeded and large diced English cucumber
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon mustard seed
3 tablespoons (60 g) raw honey
3 tablespoons (45 ml) traditionally fermented green cabbage sauerkraut juice (see below)
8 teaspoons (40 ml) apple cider vinegar, divided

Directions

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the onion and garlic. Process until finely minced, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the cucumber, sea salt, celery seed, and mustard seed, and pulse until the desired relish texture is reached (about 10 quick pulses), scraping down as needed.

Pour the mixture into a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl. Set aside for 30 minutes to drain. After resting, discard the liquid and scoop the mixture into the now empty bowl. In a measuring cup, whisk together the honey and sauerkraut juice. Pour over the cucumber mixture and toss with a spatula to combine.

Scoop the mixture evenly into two 1-cup (235 ml) Mason jars, leaving 3/4 inch (2 cm) of empty space at the top. Scoop the pulp of the relish into the jar first, then pour the juice over the top. Using the back of a spoon, push the relish down, so that the juice rises above it. Wipe down the sides and screw on the jar lid. Place in a shady spot at room temperature for 3 days, then refrigerate.

When ready to consume, fully stir 4 teaspoons (20 ml) of apple cider vinegar into each jar to arrest further fermentation.

Fermented Green Cabbage Sauerkraut Resources

Farmhouse Culture Goldmine Natural Food Co.
This excerpt has been reprinted with permission from Back to Butter: A Traditional Foods Cookbook—Nourishing Recipes Inspired by Our Ancestors by Molly Chester and Sandy Schrecengost and published by Fair Winds Press, 2014. Purchase this book from our store: Back to Butter.

PRINT RECIPE

Fermented Sweet Pickle Relish Recipe

Ingredients

Directions

More from Back to Butter:

Fermented Green Cabbage Sauerkraut Resources