Sweet and Spicy Cranberry Relish

If you’re looking for cranberry sauce that doesn’t resemble anything that you’re used to, stop right now. This is it. This cranberry relish recipe is the perfect mix of sour, sweet, and spicy. It’s delightful.

If you taste it right off the bat, you’ll get a hit of spicy and sweet with a big sour finish. But after chilling it for a bit, everybody in the relish starts to get comfortable with one another and those peppers and onions mellow a bit thanks to all that lime. For the best balance of flavor, let it hang out in the fridge for at least an hour before serving it and an overnight rest is even better.

Serve it like you would a traditional cranberry sauce, although take note that this relish really shines on a leftover turkey cranberry sandwich. One batch makes just over 2 1/2 cups, which I found to be more than enough to serve dinner for 8.

This sweet and spicy cranberry relish is certainly delicious enough to grace your Thanksgiving table but since it’s so easy to toss together I’m willing to bet you’ll want to make it throughout the year!

I used a whole jalapeno for the hot pepper called for in the recipe and I was happy with the mild spiciness that it gave the finished relish, but if you’re looking for a little more kick you might want to reach for a hotter pepper. That said, I’ll use the jalapeno again because my family can’t handle a lot of heat.

I used the cranberry relish right away on chicken sandwiches and it was spectacular. I used it again the next day and didn’t notice a difference in texture or flavor. The relish certainly softened up and the flavors melded a bit more but not enough to discourage me from using it right away if I was short on time.

Clearly, any time that you can make something ahead, however, you should definitely take advantage—especially for a big meal like Thanksgiving when you need all the make-ahead dishes that you can get. Try it next to a classic roast chicken or turkey, on chicken or turkey leftover sandwiches, salad greens with candied nuts…I’m excited to figure out where I can sneak it in!

I served this lovely sweet and spicy cranberry relish alongside my deep-fried Thanksgiving turkey. After the first bite, my husband asked if it would be ok if he ate a bowl of just the relish. It really is that good.

I think this cranberry relish recipe is very adaptable to your own tastes. As written, it’s excellent, though a little sweet. It definitely benefits from a minimum 2-hour rest in the refrigerator before serving. This helps to draw out the lime flavor. If you want the spicy aspect more pronounced, add more jalapeño, or leave some of the seeds in.

This makes plenty for Thanksgiving and all the inevitable leftovers. If I were to make again, I would probably start with less sugar and add later to get the desired sweetness. I felt that the full cup made it just a little too sweet.

For as long as I can remember, my family’s Thanksgiving table has always donned a bowl of can-shaped cranberry sauce. It’s never sliced, spooned, or consumed. It’s just my mom’s requirement to hold down the corner of the table. Eventually, one of us moves it to the counter to make room for the more delectable holiday treats and the cranberry sauce is ultimately thrown away.

A few years ago, I had cranberry relish for the first time, and I realized how delicious cranberry could be. When I saw this recipe, I thought that this might be just the replacement for the canned cranberry sauce because it would at least, you know, be eaten, which is more than its predecessor could say. I went through a variety of thoughts while making this recipe:

1. Tasting a little out of the food processor before adding the onion and jalapeno. WAY too sweet. (Bear with me.)

2. Tasting a little out of the food processor after the onion and jalapeno but before rest period. WAY too oniony and spicy. (I know, I need to work on my patience.)

3. Tasting it after the 20-minute rest period. Not bad.

4. Tasting it after being in the refrigerator for an hour. YUM! So good, in fact, that I ate nearly half a cup of it with a spoon while reading on the couch. A delicious combination of sweet, tart, and spicy.

This sauce definitely will be making it to our Thanksgiving table this year, probably with a little less jalapeño and onion (my family doesn’t like much if any spice or heat). However, I can also see this working wonderfully with pork. Also, I think this could be an unexpected ice cream topping if in the onion was left out.

I am not usually a fan of raw cranberry sauce, but this sweet and spicy cranberry relish is a lovely way to celebrate the fresh and vibrant taste of the seasonal berry. The sharp flavors of the lime and raw onion and the heat from the fresh hot pepper balance the acidity of the raw berries nicely.

The relish came together in a snap in the food processor. After resting at room temperature for a half hour and then chilling for a couple of hours in the fridge, it was ready to serve. Although it was good the first day, I would recommend making this a day in advance though to really let the flavors develop.

The next time, I think I would boost the heat by using more jalapeño and less sugar—but that’s just my personal preference for heat over sweet. I served it with Tuscan roast pork and baked sweet potatoes but it would work equally well with a full turkey (or duck!) dinner.

The relish would really suit any full-bodied stuffing or rich meat. That being said, one of my guests suggested serving it with a robust white fish fillet too—halibut or maybe cod. It’s a really versatile side dish that would work with any number of proteins.

I would guess it makes 8 servings but some people started just eating it out of the bowl—that’s how good it was.

Cranberry is one of my favorite fall flavors and an absolute must-have for Thanksgiving. I typically make a cranberry orange sauce, which is tart and sweet and the perfect accompaniment to a Thanksgiving turkey.

This year, I tried this cranberry relish for a change. Though it may not replace my favorite cranberry sauce, it’s a worthy competitor. Because it’s both spicy and sweet, it’s quite versatile and can be served with Thanksgiving dinner, spread on a sandwich, or used as a topping on a cheese plate. The only thing I would change is the amount of lime, which to me was overpowering.

I was quite pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this relish as part of our Canadian Thanksgiving celebratory meal. We love our traditional homemade cranberry sauce, but I have to admit, I would consider replacing it with this recipe. The good news is that you can have both!

The lime definitely livens up the relish and there’s just the right balance of sweet heat. I think we just found a new addition to our holiday condiments. This recipe also comes together in a matter of minutes—about 10 minutes of work plus the waiting time of 15 to 20 minutes—and it’s super easy.

It adds a new dimension to your condiment offerings and goes very well with turkey and all the savory trimmings. I did not refrigerate the relish before serving but rather served it at room temperature.

This cranberry relish—or shall we say sweet and SPICY cranberry relish?!—packed a walloping amount of heat! I picked the red jalapeno over the red Serrano thinking it would have less heat, but this was not the case! Those thinking of cranberry sauce should heed the relish portion of the title—this should be served and portioned more like a salsa and less like a sauce.

To create an even texture in the final product, including the red onion that was directed to be diced, I pulsed more than a few times after adding the jalapeno and red onion. It was very tasty and so nice to have the same colorful cranberry holiday accompaniment but in a zingy, upbeat, not cloying manifestation.

One taste of this cranberry relish and all my taste buds and senses came alert! I couldn’t help thinking, “Wow! This really livens things up!” This relish is a fiesta for your tongue and on your plate. I had my doubts when I sampled the relish without any accompaniment as it really needs to be paired with a main dish to get the full effect.

The combination of the spicy pepper and the refreshing taste of the lime cleanses your palate and makes even the dullest chicken a star. I would definitely recommend giving it a try at least once especially for an added treat during a traditional Thanksgiving meal.

Although I loved the recipe as is, I am not fond of raw onions and jalapeños. Before I would make this recipe, again, I would cook the relish over low heat for about 15 to 20 minutes in a small saucepan to soften the onion and enhance the hotness of the pepper. Then, refrigerate the relish for 2 or 3 hours or place it in the freezer for about an hour prior to serving.