So growing up my mother would gratuitously buy that canned cranberry gelatinous stuff. Now I’m not knocking it but there is just something odd about it. Actually I think it’s that suction sound it makes coming out of the can that wigs me out more than anything. Food shouldn’t make that sound. Just sayin…
Now I love love LOVE fresh cranberries and one of my favorite things to me is my Lemon Cranberry Orange Bruffins however I’ve never found a homemade cranberry relish I’ve liked. Their were either sickening sweet, had 9,000 things in it (seriously.. nuts in cranberry relish? Um no, that’s yucky) OR it was so bitter that every part of your body puckered. So that being said I set out on making what I feel is the ultimate cranberry relish.
I knew what flavors went together but it was just figuring out the ratio. Once I got that down, I was in LOVEEEEEEEEE. I always keep a jar of this in my fridge as it’s great in cakes, sauces or yes, even on toast. Plus if you want a savory treat… add this on top of a brie round, wrap it in dough and bake. Oh dear LORD child you will think you’ve died and gone to heaven!
Anyway, I thought it was time to share this with you having Thanksgiving next week. Now please, continue buying the canned stuff as it’s good in its own right however I strongly urge you to make this! You see once you taste this amazing relish you’ll use it more than just for Thanksgiving and Christmas. This as the fruit filling of a cupcake or cake with some cream cheese frosting or better yet, cheesecake… EPIC!
If you wanted to kick this up a notch you could easily add in some crispy minced bacon and minced jalapeno to give it an over-the-top taste. Or add in some bourbon or whiskey while the liquids are boiling to give it a true flavor treat!
What I tend to do is buy about 4 pounds of cranberries when they are season and then just freeze them as this stuff in the summer over grilled pork chops is incredible. And trust me I learned my lesson the hard way one summer trying to find cranberries in the store. Yeah, you can buy frozen but nah, it’s not the same as the ones you get fresh.
This recipe is ridiculously easy to make. Just bring the liquid, sugar and seasonings to a boil and then pop in the cranberries. What I recommend is add a small dab of butter to the mix to help curb the foaming. You really want to remove that stuff for your final presentation. It doesn’t really muddle the taste much but it makes the mixture cloudy.
When you make this if you don’t like the whole berries, once it’s cooked just puree it or run it through a food mill. Same great flavor, just no chunks. But then I’d guess you’d have to call it Cranberry Sauce and not relish cause relish kinda implies chunks.
So this Thanksgiving along side your turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes you need to have this gorgeous dish as well.
The best Cranberry Relish… ever! No really, like EVER!
- Yield: 3-4 cups
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Ingredients
- 1 – 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar (go with 1 cup if you prefer a more tart version)
- 1/2 cup cranberry juice
- 1/2-3/4 tsp fresh grated ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 16 ounce bag fresh cranberries
- Zest of 1 orange – just the orange part
Instructions
- In a large, heavy saucepan, add sugar, juice and cinnamon and grated ginger.
- Cook, stirring often, until sugar dissolves, syrup is clear and comes to a rolling boil, about 3 minutes.
- In a colander, rinse and pick over the cranberries to remove any mushy ones.
- Add cranberries to boiling syrup and continue cooking, uncovered, just until they begin to pop, about 2-5 minutes (set the timer). Be careful not to cook them too long or they will get mushy.
- Skim the foam off the surface with a metal spoon and discard.
- Remove from heat, stir in orange zest and cool to room temperature, uncovered.
- Place in container, cover and store in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Notes
If you prefer to have it smoother, once you add in the orange zest either use an Immersion blender on it or run it through a food mill/sieve to remove any pieces.
I’ve made this recipe many times– and other cranberry relish recipes– and this is hands down my favorite. This one really taught me how to make excellent cranberry relish. Yowza. Even folks who don’t love cranberries like this relish. I’ve played with the recipe a few times in different ways, adding more rind and a little orange juice, or cutting the sugar in half and using organic gelatin (collagen hydrolysate). The gelatin/collagen is to make it super healthy, and I like how it jellies the texture. Anyone else on a collagen kick, just bloom the gelatin first in the liquid before you boil it. You can also sprinkle it on after it’s cooked if there’s too much liquid. This is a great alternative to bone broth. I like bone broth, but this is DESSERT!. I’m addicted.
★★★★★
I’ve made this recipe many times– and other cranberry relish recipes– and this is hands down my favorite. This one really taught me how to make excellent cranberry relish. Yowza. Even folks who don’t love cranberries like this relish. I’ve played with the recipe a few times in different ways, adding more rind and orange juice, cutting the sugar in half and using organic gelatin (collagen hydrolysate). The gelatin/collagen is to make it super healthy, and I like how it jellies the texture. Anyone else on a collagen kick, just bloom the gelatin first in the liquid before you boil it. This is a great alternative to bone broth. I like bone broth, but this is DESSERT!.
★★★★★
Yeah thank you so much! And I love how you played around with it! Nice suggestion about the addition of gelatin if you want more of a jelly texture!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Happy Thanksgiving!! Our finicky family finally agreed that this is the best cranberry recipe yet!! Added fresh diced jalapeño after cooking to give it just enough kick!!
This is the best cranberry relish ever! Every year I quest to make a better relish and this is it! Perfect taste of sweetness and tartness. Thank you!
Thank you so much Jennifer! I’m so happy you loved this!
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes!
Made it this morning with my 6 y/o son who really enjoyed hearing the cranberries pop! We’ve never made fresh relish; now we’ll never eat from the can again! Thank you for sharing your recipe with us! It is so yummy!!!
Hi Bonnie!
Yeah!!! It’s so easy and so delicious! I’m so happy you loved this as well!
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes
This is absolutely delicious. However, it made a scant 2 cups. I also only had access to 12 oz. bags of cranberries which equaled about 3.25 cups. You’d need at least 4.5 cups of cranberries to weigh in at 16 oz. Fortunately, I have the time and ingredients so I’m going to make this again to get a whole 4 cups of relish.
Thank you for sharing this tasty recipe!
★★★★
Hi Alison!
That’s so odd that your bag was only 12 ounces too. Mine are 16 and 32.., maybe it’s a local thing?
But I’m so happy you loved this as well!!!
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes!
If I wanted to add more sugar do I have to heat up the sauce again? Thanks
Hi Carolyn!
You could just warm it up and then add the sugar. The goal with sugar is you want it to dissolve into the mix.
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes!
Hi – I’m sure this is great, but it’s a cranberry SAUCE not a relish. Relishes are not cooked.
★★
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relish
A relish is a cooked and pickled product made of chopped vegetables, fruits or herbs, and is a food item typically used as a condiment, in particular to enhance a staple. Examples are jams, chutneys, and the North American relish, a pickled cucumber jam eaten with hot dogs or hamburgers.
★★★★★
I made this tonight; cooked it for about 3 1/2 minutes and left it uncovered to cool. It was still quite liquidy once it reached room temperature. Will it firm up in the fridge? Yours looks quite a bit more firm in the photos. Thanks
*addendum*
I ultimately put it back on the stove and added a handful more cranberries and it firmed up perfectly! Really delicious cranberry relish/sauce. Everyone loved it! I’ll never buy it in a can again.
Awesome, yeah! I’m so happy you loved this as much as I love it too! Thank you so much! Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
What is the heat temp to start?
Hi Mel!
You can do medium-high to start and then bring it to a boil. I’ll write that up in the recipe for more clearer instructions.
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes!
So, this original recipe sounds like it will be the replacement for my blended, uncooked version of gritty, sugary cranberry relish! I can’t wait to try this one!! I do think I will have to wait on the new Adult version though, as the 80-something year old in-laws will not appreciate the heat!! So, the kicked up version will most definitely go perfect with the leftovers on the weekend!!! Thanks so much for the heads up that this recipe was up and ready!!
Do you really mean one pound of cranberries, all I see sold are in 12 oz bags. .
Hi Sue!
Really? The ones here are 16oz or larger. Do this, go with about 3 cups of cranberries. I prefer more which means it’s chunkier and not a ton of liquid.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Thanks for the fast response, i will make the adjustments
You are most welcome 🙂
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes!
Thanks for the input. I found the real stuff. Making it this year for sure!
Hi there!
Do you think that I could double the recipe and cook it all at once? Or should I make 2 batches? I probably need about 12 servings. And is this supposed to be served warm or cold? It’s been years since I’ve made a cranberry dish. Thanks!
Hi Becky!
Yes you can double it. I would start with less sugar than the full amount. You can always add more once you taste it (just watch so you don’t burn your mouth).
You can do cold for desserts or sandwiches. Warmed for day warmed turkey or the like.
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes!
just heads up, this is really sweet. i would reduce the sugar by at least 1/2 cup. but the ginger and orange flavor is nice
★★★
Hi Carrie!
Thanks! I updated the recipe to 1 – 1 1/4 cups of sugar depending on how tart vs sweet someone likes their relish. It’s great to have options 🙂
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Hello, Please indicate when to add the grated ginger. Are you calling it one of the spices, so it would go in with the cinnamon?
Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving!
Nikki
Hi Nikki,
Yes you’d add the grated ginger with the cinnamon. I’ll update the recipe to call it out specifically. Thanks!
Happy Thanksgiving and Best Kitchen Wishes!
Hi, KW!
Thank you for your reply. I just made it. It is cooling now but I tasted it and it was delish and I don’t like cranberry relish/sauce! For the juice, I used 1/2 cup of Ocean Spray ‘CranCherry’ juice and it adds another yummy layer.I didn’t get much foam off…will it be okay?
Love Your Site!!!
Nikki
Hi, so this would be tasty to go along with your bite of turkey meat, correct?
Also, could you give me a run down as to when you’d add the bacon and jalapeño or liquor and if all three can be done together? 😀
I think you should create a cranberry relish 2.0 recipe with the additives you mentioned in your post 😀
Please and thanks for your reply!!!
OMG yes, it’s AMAZING with turkey (chicken, pork and cream cheese!). I’m actually working on an ‘adult’ version of this recipe right now. It’s actually called “The Best Cranberry Relish v2.0” and it’ll be posted this week 🙂
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Do I need to use 100% cranberry juice for the recipe?
Thanks.
Hi Victoria,
Do you “need” to? No. If you can get it, then yes as you’ll get a more true cranberry flavor. But I do know that even if the bottle says 100% pure cranberry juice it may actually have grape juice in it as well. This is ok.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
If I don’t have access to fresh ginger, could I substitute a smaller amount of ground ginger?
Hi Danielle.
You can but only use a teeny amount of powdered. Like we’re talking 1/16th of a teaspoon. Ground is super potent so really go teensy on it when you add it.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Hard to find pure cranberry juice…I used pomegranate. Stuck my finger in, delicious!
Hello,
I was wondering would this recipe be ideal for canning for gift giving/planning ahead.
Thank You,
Brehon G.
★★★★★
Hi Brehon,
Yes you can. Use the water bath method and process for 15 minutes for pints.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Thank You very much for the speedy response!!! I plan to make make this recipe this upcoming weekend!!
Again thank you,
Brehon G.
★★★★★