If you’re a backyard gardener with just a handful of cucumber plants in your garden, you’ll appreciate the glut of fruit they will produce come summer. Aren’t they prolific!
Once you’ve had cucumber with virtually every meal, you’ll probably be looking for ways to preserve them for the winter months. I’ve enjoyed and still make my annual supply of Bread & Butter Pickle but this season I’ve added to my repertoire and turned my hand to Cucumber & Onion Relish – similar but different. First of all, there is a difference between a ‘pickle’ and a ‘chutney’ and a ‘relish’. A pickle can usually be recognised in it’s whole or sliced form (like the Bread & Butter Pickle has obviously sliced cucumbers) and has a slight crunch as the vegetable goes in raw and marinates in a brine. A chutney is a cooked fruit based preserve, and a relish is a cooked vegetable-based reserve.
This recipe adaption was further adapted from my favourite chef Digby Law, from his Pickle & Chutney Cookbook. His original recipe was called a Cucumber Chutney as it has sultanas, but as I am not a personal fan, sultanas have been removed from my ingredient list. And, as sultanas were the ‘fruit’ required to call this a chutney, then mine surely had to be a relish. Further more, the recipe had HEAPS of onion in it, so much so, it would be disingenuous to leave it from the name I felt. So, a Cucumber & Onion Relish it is!!
The result was a nice, sweet and mild, yet slightly crunchy (due to the cucumbers absent of water) and slightly caramelised (due to the slow-cooked onion). Yum.
What to do with Cucumber & Onion Relish?
1. The obvious (but still worth it)
- Spoon it over sausages or hot dogs
- Add to burgers for a fresh crunch
- Serve alongside grilled meats
2. Sandwich game changer
- Spread it inside sandwiches or wraps
- Works beautifully with ham, chicken, tuna or egg
- Instantly cuts through anything rich or creamy
3. Cheese boards
- Perfect with sharp cheddar, brie, or blue cheese
- Adds contrast to creamy, salty cheeses
- A little dollop goes a long way
4. With eggs
- Spoon over scrambled or fried eggs
- Add to egg sandwiches
- Stir through egg salad for extra bite
5. BBQ and summer plates
- Serve with grilled chicken or fish
- Toss through warm potatoes for a quick tangy twist
- Add to salads instead of dressing
6. Straight from the jar moments
- With crackers and cream cheese
- On toast with avocado
7. As a flavour booster
- Mix into mayo or yoghurt for a quick sauce
- Add to rice bowls or grain salads
- Stir through leftover roast veggies
- Add to your slow cooker recipe
Tips
This recipe takes around 7 cucumbers, weighing in at 1.5kg once peeled and sliced. As with other cucumber preserves, you’ll need to sprinkle them (and the sliced onions) with salt and leave them overnight to draw out excess water/liquid. I like to mix the salt in with my hands to ensure it is evenly distributed, then transfer the salted cucumber/onion into a large colander over a bowl. This way the liquid drains directly away and into the bowl beneath. Unlike the Bread & Butter Pickle recipe however, there is no need to rinse the salt off the cucumbers before adding to the saucepan.
You may have your favourite spices to add whether they be whole in a muslin bag (for removing after cooking), or ground (as per my recipe below).
Cucumber & Onion Relish
Makes about 2-3 litres
Ingredients
- 1.5kg cucumbers, finely sliced
- 750g onions, approx 7-8 medium, halved and sliced
- 1 Tbsp salt
- 3 cups brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp ground cloves
- 3 cups malt vinegar
Method
- Combine the cucumber and onion in a bowl, sprinkle with salt (mix well with your hands) and let stand overnight.
- Drain the excess moisture that will have collected, then combine with brown sugar, ground ginger, chilli flakes, ground pepper, ground cloves and vinegar. Add them to a large saucepan (there is no need for extra salt). If using whole peppercorns and cloves, tie in a muslin bag and add to the saucepan separately so you can scoop them out after cooking.
- Bring to the boil and cook very slowly for approximately 1 hour, or until it is nice and thick.
- Pour into hot, clean, sterilised jars and seal.
