Make Ahead

Celery Relish

by:
March 11, 2012
4.5
4 Ratings
  • Serves 3
Author Notes

I like this better than most jarred cucumber or pepper relishes. It's full of clean, bright flavors, and the celery keeps just enough crunch. Since I don't have a jarring setup, I make it as needed, but I'm sure, if you had the proper equipment and followed sanitary procedures, it would preserve wonderfully in the pantry. I made it as a sauce for pan-fried trout, but I'd imagine it would be great on any number of sandwiches (roast or pulled pork, corned beef, fresh or canned fish) or on crackers with a bold, creamy cheese. —offtrailcuisine

Test Kitchen Notes

The flavors are wonderfully balanced in this delicious relish. I can't wait to experiment with the ways this can be used. So far, I've only tried it on its own and I just love it. Next, I'm thinking I will pair it with smoked salmon and cream cheese on black bread. I used one very narrow green Thai chile approximately 1-1/4 inches long. I will probably double the chile to kick up the spice next time, or try a red Thai chile. —giuliettanicoletta

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 bunch celery hearts, cut into small dice (about 1 cup), most of the leaves removed.
  • 1 small shallot, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro stems
  • 1/4 - 1 thai chili (to taste), seeds, stem and white pith removed, finely chopped
  • 1/2 tablespoon salt
  • cold water
  • 2 limes, juiced
  • enough rice vinegar to bring total acid (rice vinegar plus lime juice) to 3/4 cups
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 lime, zested
  • 10 whole mint leaves
  • 4 tablespoons white sugar
Directions
  1. Combine celery, shallot, cilantro stems, and chili in a shallow bowl.
  2. Sprinkle vegetables with salt, and cover with cold water.
  3. Let sit 3 hours. Strain, extracting as much liquid as possible without pressing down on the vegetables. Discard the liquid.
  4. Combine the lime juice, vinegar, 1/2 cup water, lime zest, mint leaves, and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil.
  5. Simmer for 5 minutes over medium heat. Remove and discard the mint leaves.
  6. Add the vegetables. Simmer for 10 minutes over medium heat.
  7. Drain most of the liquid (reserving for another use, if desired). Serve relish hot, warm, or chilled.
Tags:
Contest Entries

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • TurkeyBeanBacon
    TurkeyBeanBacon
  • giuliettanicoletta
    giuliettanicoletta
  • boulangere
    boulangere
  • drbabs
    drbabs

Popular on Food52

7 Reviews

njhaggerty@icloud.com
[email protected] October 30, 2022
Absolutely delicious, really fresh flavours, lovely with cheese, now want to try with fish as suggested, will be making this again!!!
 
TurkeyBeanBacon
TurkeyBeanBacon June 2, 2013
I just made this for a backyard barbeque, and it went great on hamburgers and hot dogs - flavorful enough to cut through the fatty meat and bread, but also versatile enough that it blended well with the cheese, ketchup and chilli some topped their food with. Thanks for the great idea!
 
giuliettanicoletta
giuliettanicoletta March 27, 2012
Yum. The flavors are wonderfully balanced in this delicious relish. I can't wait to experiment with the ways this can be used. So far, I've only tried it on its own and I just love it. Next, I'm thinking I will pair it with smoked salmon and cream cheese on black bread. I used one very narrow green Thai chile approximately 1-1/4 inches long. I will probably double the chile to kick up the spice next time, or try a red Thai chile. Bravo to @offtrailcuisine!
 
offtrailcuisine
offtrailcuisine March 28, 2012
Thank you so much for testing this out, I'm glad you enjoyed it! I bet it would be great with smoked salmon...yum.
 
boulangere
boulangere March 13, 2012
Wow. Just wow.
 
drbabs
drbabs March 12, 2012
Nice! Don't forget to submit it to the contest. (Click on edit recipe, and the link for submitting it is at the bottom of the page.)
 
offtrailcuisine
offtrailcuisine March 12, 2012
Thanks, drbabs! As you may have noticed, I made my account just a few days ago, but I've been a hug fan of food52 for a while!