Relishes and pickles are popular things to add to a meal to a flavor and character, however, these terms can be used interchangeably so you may be wondering if are they the same thing or if are they actually something a little bit different.
Relishes and pickles are both products that are designed to preserve foods, however, in the case of pickles generally, the vegetable or fruit has been preserved as whole vegetables or relatively large chunks of vegetables. Additionally, the fruit and vegetable typically are uncooked whereas relishes contain fruit and vegetable that has been chopped up finely and cooked in a vinegar-sugar solution.
Additionally, pickles can be divided up into either sweet or sour pickles which generally means that the pickle recipe either contains sugar or not. Typically, if the pickles are sweet they will generally contain a combination of vinegar, sugar, and usually some herbs to add extra flavor which typically includes things like mustard seeds, chilli flakes, pepper, and salt to name a few options. However, if they are a sour pickle the pickling solution will typically contain salt and water.
Relishes on the other hand will typically contain a combination of fruit and vegetables that have been chopped relatively finely and then cooked in a solution for an extended period of time to break down the fruit or vegetable. Relishes are also almost always sweet and will contain a large amount of sugar in most cases.
Where Did The Name Relish Come From?
It is not certain but it is believed that the term relish originated in France from the French word “reles”. This word literally means “reminder” or “leftover” and is used to describe the original reason that people created relishes in the first place which was to preserve the excess food they had grown.
Since that period the word has evolved to relish which when translated means appetizing flavor and has since been used as a condiment to add flavor and character to the dishes that we eat.
Can You Substitute Relish For Pickles?
One common question that is asked is can you actually substitute relish for pickles in a dish and get a similar flavor? The answer to this is yes and no as it greatly depends upon what you were trying to substitute and the nature of the dish.
Relishes can generally be used to substitute for sweet pickles as they both contain a sweet vinegarette that has a similar flavor profile. However, if the pickle is sour then it is generally not a good idea to substitute relish for this as they have a distinctly different flavor profile and it will almost certainly change the character of the dish.
Which Is Easier To Make Relish Or Pickles?
Generally, pickles are significantly easier to make than relish for a couple of reasons. The first is that pickles take less time to prepare the vegetable because it does not need to be chopped up finely. The second reason is that pickles in many cases do not require any cooking.
Usually, the vegetable or fruit is placed directly into a sterilized jar and the hot pickling solution is normally poured directly over the produce and then sealed making an extremely quick and easy process.
Relish on the other hand generally has a recipe that contains more ingredients and is a little bit more complex. Additionally, it will often require the produce to be cooked for an hour or two.
However, the one advantage that relishes do have pickles is they can pretty much be eaten straight out of the pot once cooked whereas the pickles often will need to develop flavor over a week or so because this allows time for the produce to absorb the pickling solution and develop character and flavor.
How To Make Pickles
As mentioned earlier in the article pickles can be made either sweet or sour depending upon your taste or the particular vegetable. In terms of what can be pickled, you can pretty much pickle almost anything that you grow in your own garden or buy from the local supermarket.
However, irrespective of what you actually pickled typically there are generic pickling solutions that can be applied to a range of different vegetables which will produce good results. A couple of generic recipes are provided below for your reference.
Sweet Pickling Solution
Ingredients
1 cup white vinegar (or sub rice vinegar)
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
Optional Spices
2 bay leaves
1 piece of fresh ginger
2 allspice berries
2 juniper berries
1 tbsp coriander seeds
2 tbsp kosher salt
1-2 cinnamon sticks
7-8 fresh thyme sprigs
1 piece star anise
5 black peppercorns
Sour Pickling Solution
Ingredients
4 cups water
2 tablespoons finely ground real salt
Optional Spices
8 cloves garlic
6 allspice berries
1 teaspoon coriander seed
1 teaspoon black mustard seed
1 dried red chili pepper (optional)
3 heads flowering dill
1 horseradish leaf
Method
Add all the ingredients to a large saucepan and bring it to a boil for approximately 5 minutes until the sugar or salt is dissolved.
How To Make A Relish
As mentioned earlier in the article relishes do take a little longer to make and often are a little bit more complex in terms of preparation. You will also get a greater degree of variation in relish recipes depending upon what you’re actually making. An example of a tomato relish recipe is provided below which gives you some idea of what is in the recipes.
Ingredients
1.5kg tomatoes, peeled (see notes), chopped
4 onions, chopped
1 tbsp salt
2 cups vinegar
2 cups brown sugar
1 tsp chilli powder
2 tbsp plain flour
1 tbsp Curry Powder
1 tbsp Mustard Powder
Method
Step 1 Place the tomato and onion in a bowl. Cover with salt and stand overnight at room temperature.
Step 2 Drain any liquid from the bottom of the bowl, then place the tomato mixture in a pan with 1 cup (250ml) vinegar. Simmer solution for 30 minutes then add the sugar and chilli, then simmer, for a further 1 hour.
Step 3 Mix flour, curry, and mustard powders with the remaining 1 cup (250ml) vinegar, then add to the pan. Cook for a further 20 minutes until thickened.
Step 4 Pour hot relish into sterilized jars and then seal the jars.
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