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Dill Pickle Relish Recipe: Simple and Classic

All those overwhelming cucumbers in your garden that were so fun at first? I know. I know. Let’s turn them (eight pounds of them!) into the best dill pickle relish you’ve ever had. And then we’ll can it so you can enjoy it all year long. Take that, evil cucumber empire.

Sometimes I like canning because it feels lovely and productive and I don’t want to waste produce. But this cucumber recipe is one I make every single year because I love the end result so well.

jars of dill relish

My grandmother was a big baker, quilter, canner, and all the rest. I did not appreciate it at the time because I thought I was going to be a lawyer. (I was, in fact, a secretary and then a housewife.) Anyway. Years after she died, I wished I had learned from her when I could. I do have one old gardening book of hers, out of which came a handwritten recipe for relish.

It read:

Sweet relish, 6 pints

Prepare cucumbers and onions and cover with vinegar. Add sugar to taste.

Pour into hot jars and cool.

So that “recipe” was a no-go.

I searched high and low for a recipe without weird ingredients and that wasn’t too sweet or too oniony. It could not be found, so I made some simple tweaks to the Ball Blue Book recipe to suit my tastes.

Ingredients and Tools You’ll Need

The turmeric seems strange, but I would not recommend leaving it out. I have done this recipe without it, and there is a difference in taste. The sugar is not necessary for preservative purposes, but it does improve the flavor. This relish is not sweet, but the sugar definitely adds something extra. The onions, jalapeño, and dill seed can be reduced if you do not like them. But the salt and vinegar cannot be altered as they are essential to preserving the relish.

cucumbers, pickles, dill, vinegar, salt, and turmeric on wooden board

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Equipment

Ingredients

  • 8 pounds cucumbers about 16 medium cucuumbers
  • ½ cup diced yellow onion
  • 1 medium diced jalapeno
  • ½ cup pickling salt
  • 2 teaspoons turmeric
  • 4 cups water
  • 4 cups white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon dill seed
  • 1 tablespoon fresh dill

If you’d like to double or triple this recipe, you can make adjustments in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

How to Make Dill Pickle Relish

Step One: Prep The Veggies

Peel the cucumbers (fully or halfway) and remove the seedy center. Roughly chop them into quarters or eighths. Place them in a food processor and pulse to chop. You want them chopped but not pureed. Depending on the size of your food processor, you may want to work in many batches. (You can also dice the onion and jalapeno now, then cover them separately and set them aside so you don’t need to take out your cutting board later.)

chopping cucumbers in food processor

Step Two: Soak Cucumbers In Salt And Turmeric

Place the cucumbers in a large bowl and sprinkle with the salt and turmeric.  Pour the water on top and stir. Allow the mixture to sit, covered, at room temperature for 1-2 hours.

turmeric and salt in bowl with chopped cucumbers.

Step Three: Rinse And Drain

Place chopped cucumbers in a cheesecloth lined bowl and rinse.   Lift the cheesecloth and gently squeeze to drain.  You can also leave this in the fridge overnight and continue in the morning.

mixture draining in bowl.

Step Four: Add The Remaining Ingredients And Cook

Place the cucumbers, diced jalapeño, diced onion, vinegar, sugar, dill weed, and dill seed in a saucepan and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the mixture has thickened slightly and has changed from green to yellow-green.

saucepan of cooked relish

Step Five: Process In Waterbath Canner

Ladle hot relish into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace.  Twist lids fingertip tight and process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes. Cool until sealed and store in a dark place for up to 1 year.

lids simmering in saucepan, and lid applied to filled jar.

Storing & How to Use Up Dill Relish

Like most home-canned recipes, this will keep well in a cool, dark place for a year

You can use sweet relish for any of these too!

  • Use as a spread on sandwiches or burgers.
  • Add it on top of hot dogs.
  • Mix it into tuna salad for extra flavor.
  • Add it to potato salad to give it a tangy taste.
  • Stir it into egg salad.
  • Use it in the filling for deviled eggs.
  • Mix with mayonnaise to make tartar sauce for fish
  • Mix it into a cold pasta salad.
  • Blend it into coleslaw.

Questions and Troubleshooting

What kind of cucumbers are best for homemade relish?

You can use pickling or regular cucumbers for this dill relish. Since you are chopping them up, the size doesn’t matter. One consideration is that you will need to remove any seeds. Smaller pickling cucumbers will have few, if any seeds, so they will make things easier. If you don’t have any, regular cucumbers will work fine–you’ll just have to de-seed them. Whatever you choose, make sure it’s unwaxed.

Do you need pickling salt for relish?

Pickling salt doesn’t have any anti-caking chemicals that can cause cloudiness. So it’s not essential, but it will give you a nicer-looking finished product.

Can I leave out the hot pepper or the onion?

The onions, jalapeño, and dill seed can be reduced if you do not like them.

Can I reduce the vinegar in relish?

No, the salt and vinegar cannot be altered as they are essential to preserving the relish.

three jars of dill pickle relish on wooden board.

More Recipes for Cucumber Season

When cucumbers are ready to be picked, they’re ready. Use them up!

A Pretty Recipe for You

Click on the image below, and you can print this version to put in your canning binder.

Printable Recipe

Dill Relish for Canning

A dill pickle relish recipe that is not sweet, not oniony, and has a tad of sugar and heat.  Makes 6-8 half-pint jars.
Print Recipe
home canned dill relish on wooden board
Prep Time:1 hour 10 minutes
Cook Time:20 minutes
Process Time:10 minutes
Total Time:1 hour 40 minutes

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 8 pounds cucumbers about 16 medium cucuumbers
  • ½ cup diced yellow onion
  • 1 medium diced jalapeno
  • ½ cup pickling salt
  • 2 teaspoons turmeric
  • 4 cups water
  • 4 cups white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon dill seed
  • 1 tablespoon fresh dill

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Instructions

  • Prep the veggies. Peel the cucumbers (fully or halfway) and remove the seedy center. Roughly chop them into quarters or eighths. Place them in a food processor and pulse to chop. You want them chopped but not pureed. Depending on the size of your food processor, you may want to work in many batches. (You can also dice the onion and jalapeno now, then cover them separately and set them aside so you don't need to take out your cutting board later.)
  • Soak cucumbers in salt and turmeric. Place the cucumbers in a large bowl and sprinkle with the salt and turmeric.  Pour the water on top and stir. Allow the mixture to sit, covered, at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
  • Rinse and drain. Place chopped cucumbers in a cheesecloth lined bowl and rinse.   Lift the cheesecloth and gently squeeze to drain.  You can also leave this in the fridge overnight and continue in the morning.
  • Add the remaining ingredients and cook. Place the cucumbers, diced jalapeño, diced onion, vinegar, sugar, dill weed, and dill seed in a saucepan and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the mixture has thickened slightly and has changed from green to yellow-green.
  • Process in waterbath canner. Ladle hot relish into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace.  Twist lids fingertip tight and process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes. Cool until sealed and store in a dark place for up to 1 year.

Video

Notes

Small pickling cucumbers are best, but any unwaxed cucumber will do as long as the seeds are removed.
The size of cucumbers matters as their size varies wildly.   You won’t regret having a kitchen scale for canning
The sugar, turmeric, dill seed, and/or jalapeño can be left out or reduced and the recipe will still be safe.  But the flavor is best if you keep them all!

Nutrition

Calories: 20kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.2g | Saturated Fat: 0.02g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.02g | Sodium: 1576mg | Potassium: 147mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 78IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 0.3mg
Servings: 36 servings
Calories: 20kcal
Author: Katie

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By Katie Shaw

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Katie shares simple, reliable recipes from her home in Virginia, where she lives with her husband, three daughters, a chocolate lab, and over thirty chickens.

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44 Comments

  1. 4 stars
    I really liked this recipe. One of those slam choppers worked great for the veggies. I really really wish you could of put how many cups of chopped cucumber because it’s hard based on cuc sizes amount of removed seeds types of cuc’s to know I have an accurate vinegar to cuc’s ratio. Thank you for posting this and another household is using your relish recipe and relishing it! lol!!

  2. I was wondering if it’s necessary to leave the cucumbers over night or can I just process them the same day.
    Looks delicious!

  3. 5 stars
    This is my go-to recipe for dill relish! — family and friends love it; makes great gifts; I add extra jalapenos (total of 2 or 3 depending on the size); a little zing but not too much. This relish is terrific in egg salad, tuna salad.

  4. Just saw the answer to my question about number of cucs! Impossible! I weighted on my bathroom scale so close enough looking forward to trying this.

  5. I have a question that was asked but not answered also. I do not have a scale either. Approximately how many cucs in 8 lbs. or how many cups of the finished chopped cucs should there be? Would love to try this recipe.

    1. Approx 30-40 cucumbers. Depending on size (4-5″). I always prepare an extra jar or two just in case. Since you’re making relish you can get away with using some larger cucumbers that you found that have been hiding on the vine. 🙂

4.64 from 11 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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