Carrot-Jalapeño Quick Pickle Relish

How to transform everyday carrot into a special pickled relish spiked with both jalapeño and cumin, a magical combination. It's easy to use and better still, this is a "quick pickle" that requires no canning, just refrigeration.

Pickle Relish Made from Scratch, No Canning Required. Whole Food, Fresh & Inventive. Year-Round Kitchen Staple. Budget Friendly. Great for Meal Prep. Great for Food Gifts. Easy DIY. Not just vegan, Vegan Done Real. Naturally Gluten Free.

~ Skip Straight to the Recipe ~

Will I Make It Again? Will I Make It Again & Again?

Truth is, every year I make dozens (hundreds?) of new recipes that will never appear in pixels.

Maybe they're not special. Or useful. Or too complicated. Or too esoteric. Or too outside my personal taste. Or too similar to another recipe here. Or need some obscure ingredient. Or ... the "no's" and "no way's" stack up in a "let go" pile.

But even then, before I share a recipe here, it must pass a self-imposed litmus test. Do I want to make it again?

To ensure the answer is yes, I rarely take pictures while learning a recipe's in's and out's, trying this, experimenting with that. If I don't want to make it again enough for pictures? It fails the test. How would this quick pickle relish fare?

It turns out that the unlikely mix of carrot and jalapeño and cumin is an unforgettable combination.. While working my way through the first couple of batches, I found it so easy to use with every-day simple cooking.

And every time it ran out, I couldn't stop thinking about it. I started buying extra bags of whole carrots.

Simple Ways to Use This Relish

• In sandwiches! Substitute for pickles in cold sandwiches and to brighten hot sandwiches of pulled pork or pulled chicken.
• Stir into some cottage cheese for a quick lunch.
• Spread just a tiny bit over a cracker and cheese.
• Spread across soft cream cheese, scoop up with a cracker or smear across a thin slice of a baguette.
• Use just a small dollop alongside to cut the richness of meat stews or to brighten a slice of otherwise plain meat, especially chicken, pork and ham.
• Use it as the "pickle" in a cheese board or for Charcuterie for Two.
• Tuck a spoonful into a chicken or fish taco.
• Make a wonderful Couscous Salad (recipe comin' your way asap).
• More ideas? Send 'em my way!

But my favorite? Add a quick layer to a cheesy quesadilla. Spread a thin layer of garlicky hummus or cream cheese across a low-carb tortilla, then a spoonful or two of Carrot-Jalapeño Quick Pickle Relish, then a thin layer of sharp cheddar cheese. Microwave for 45 seconds. Top generously with fresh arugula. Roll it up and devour! (Agreed! This totally qualifies as "what a food writer eats when nobody's looking".)

About This Recipe

• This relish is a vegan pickled condiment that combines grated carrot with thin pieces of jalapeño and shallot in a sweet pickling mixture spiced with cumin and allspice or clove. It's what's called a "refrigerator pickle" which doesn't require canning but must be kept refrigerated and keeps several weeks.
• Distinctive Ingredients = carrot + jalapeño + whole cumin
• Short Ingredient List = the above + white vinegar + sugar + salt + whole allspice or whole cloves + cayenne + shallot
• The relish has a bright, beautiful orange color.
• The recipe makes 2 pint jars but is easy to scale up or down.

How to Make Carrot-Jalapeño Quick Pickle Relish

The detailed recipe is written in traditional recipe form below but here are the highlights in four easy steps. You can do this!

• HEAT THE PICKLING LIQUD Bring plain white vinegar, sugar, salt and some spices to a boil on the stove.
• PREP THE VEGETABLES Grate the carrot (a food processor is a huge help!), cut the jalapeño and shallot in very thin quarter- and half-rings.
• SIMMER BRIEFLY All at once, stir the vegetables into the boiling liquid, adjust the heat to simmer and simmer just a minute or two. You'll know it's done when the carrot is cooked but still firm and bright orange.
• PACK INTO JARS But remember, there's no canning required! Just be sure to store in the refrigerator.

You Might Wonder Be Wondering ...

Have another question? Ask away, I'll do my best to answer!

• Can you "can" this relish? I don't know. It's likely you can, um, can this relish in a hot water bath, turning it into a shelf-stable pickle that doesn't require refrigeration before opening. I've done a ton of canning (see Practical Home Canning Tips) but I just don't know enough about the chemistry of canning to say, definitively, yes or no. If readers do know, please do chime in!

Why Carrot-Jalapeño Quick Pickle Relish Is Worth Making

Why would anyone go to the trouble of making a condiment from scratch? Here are a few reasons. Why do you make it? Let me know in the comments!

• It transforms everyday carrot into something out-of-the-ordinary.
• It's easy to use, a bit of pickle makes everyday foods just a little bit better!
• Carrot and cumin are a magical combination!
• Ready to get started? Here's your recipe!

Bookmark! PIN! Share!

How do you save and share favorite recipes? recipes that fit your personal cooking style? a particular recipe your mom or daughter or best friend would just love? If keeping simple pickled vegetables on hand inspires you, please do save and share! I'd be honored ...

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CARROT-JALAPEÑO QUICK PICKLE RELISH

Hands-on time: 30 minutes
Time-to-table: 30 minutes
Makes about 3 cups relish (drained)
that with the liquid, fills 2 pint jars

PICKLING LIQUID
• 2 cups white vinegar
• 1 cup (200g) sugar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt or sea salt
• 2 teaspoons whole cumin (don't skip)
• 2 whole allspice or 2 whole cloves
• Sprinkle cayenne

VEGETABLES
• 1 pound carrots, peeled, trimmed and grated
• 1 large jalapeño, trimmed, halved, seeds and membranes removed, halved again, cut cross-wise in very thin quarter-rings (about 1/3 cup or 30g)
• 1 shallot, peeled, halved, cut in very thin half rings

PICKLING LIQUID Bring all the ingredients to a boil. If it reaches a boil before the vegetables are ready, turn off the heat. If needed, bring the liquid back to a boil.

VEGETABLES Prep the vegetables. Put them all at once into the boiling Pickling Liquid and bring back to a boil. Let simmer for just a minute or two, just until the carrot and jalapeño soften. Remove from the heat.

PACK Without delay, use a slotted spoon to split the carrot-jalapeño mixture between two pint-size glass jars; since this is a "quick relish" that will be kept in the fridge for just a couple of weeks, it's fine to re-purpose a glass jar (something like a pickle jar or jam jar or similar), just make sure both the jar and its lid are spanking clean. Then split the liquid between the two jars, completely covering all the carrots.

COOL & REFRIGERATE Secure lids on the jars and refrigerate until ready to serve. It's actually "ready" right away but the flavors will continue to develop over 24 hours. Do keep refrigerated, it'll keep for about a month, then the carrots and jalapeño begin to degrade and turn too soft.

HOW TO SERVE Use instead of pickles in a cold sandwich or to brighten hot sandwich of pulled pork or pulled chicken. Stir into some cottage cheese for a quick lunch. Spread just a tiny bit over a cracker and cheese. Spread across soft cream cheese, scoop up with a cracker or smear across a thin slice of a baguette. Use just a small dollop alongside to cut the richness of meat stews or to brighten a slice of otherwise plain meat, especially chicken, pork and ham. Use it as the "pickle" in a cheese board or for Charcuterie for Two. Add a quick layer to a cheesy quesadilla. Make a wonderful Couscous Salad (recipe comin' your way asap). Tuck a spoonful into a chicken or fish taco. More ideas? Send 'em my way!

ALANNA's TIPS I know, I know, so much sugar. It's used to preserve the carrot as much as to counterbalance the astringent vinegar. I thought that cutting the sugar back to 2/3 cup would work but it really doesn't, even taste-wise. The good news is, much of that sugar is in the liquid itself, only some of which permeates the grated carrot. And if you're like me, you'll enjoy this relish a tablespoon or two at a time, leaving the liquid behind. Even for a single batch, a food processor's grating blade makes quick work of the carrots and that's from someone who usually relies on a metal cheese grater with large holes, I've had the same four-sided standing grater for years but like the looks of how this two-sided cheese grater (affiliate link) folds flat for storage. Handy! No shallot? No problem. Use onion, with some modifications. Shallot is easily cut into thin quarter rings that easily almost melt away in the hot Pickling Liquid. Onion, not so much. So I've learned to use half a small onion, peeled and cut into just two pieces. This imparts the lovely onion flavor but leaves the two onion pieces easy to pull out and discard after simmering with the grated carrot.

FOR MORE INFO If you "skipped straight to the recipe," please scroll back to the top of this page for ingredient information, ingredient substitutions, tips and more. If you print this recipe, you'll want to check the recipe online for even more tips and extra information about ingredient substitutions, best results and more. See https://www.kitchenparade.com/2023/04/carrot-jalapeno-quick-pickle-relish.html .

NUTRITION INFORMATION Sorry, due to technical issues during a laptop conversion, nutrition info and Weight Watchers points will be added later.

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More Quick Pickles

more
~ No Canning Required! ~

• THE RECIPE Quick Pickled Asparagus No canning required.
• ANOTHER TAKE Quick Jalapeño Pickles No canning required.

• THE RECIPE Refrigerator Pickled Beets No canning required!
• THEN JAZZ 'EM UP Pickled Beet Salad with Fresh Blueberries & Mint

• THE RECIPE Sweet Corn Relish A simple summer relish, no canning required.
• ANOTHER TAKE Homemade Zucchini Relish Use up those giant zucchini from the garden.

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail, you'll find my current address in the FAQs. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, for more scratch cooking recipes using whole, healthful ingredients, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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