This 3-ingredient Cranberry Relish has been a family favorite for generations! It’s sweet and tangy and perfect paired with Thanksgiving turkey or served with chicken or pork.
In our family there are two groups of people; the gravy lovers and the cranberry lovers. I am the leader of the latter group and I love to serve this cranberry relish on just about everything, but especially on my famous Thanksgiving Turkey!
Guys, I’ve already started my Thanksgiving menu planning. I’m going to throw in some new favorites this year to accompany our regulars.
We’ve been enjoying this Fresh Cranberry Relish at Thanksgiving for as long as I can remember. It wasn’t until recent years attending Thanksgiving dinner at friends homes that I’ve come to realize an ugly truth: Not everyone likes cranberry sauce!
GAH! How can this be, right? I’ll tell you how–> they have never tried this type of cranberry “sauce”. It’s technically a “relish” because the cranberries are not cooked and everything is cold and raw, BUT this stuff is pure gold. Honestly, it’s good enough to eat with a spoon.
What I LOVE about this recipe:
- 3 ingredients. Real, raw ingredients that are packed with flavor!
- 5 minute prep. No cook time! Just throw everything in a food processor and it’s ready to go!
- Sweet and tangy. The flavors from the orange zest and the fresh cranberries go perfectly together, and the sugar adds the extra sweetness that the raw cranberries need.
Cranberry Relish or Cranberry sauce?
There is an important difference between cranberry sauce and cranberry relish and that is that cranberry relish is made from raw ingredients blended in a food processor (it’s more fresh and tart tasting) and cranberry sauce is cooked and often much sweeter than relish.
Serve Cranberry Relish on:
You could serve cranberry relish on many things but I particularly recommend:
- Homemade rolls
- Sandwiches (I love to use it in place of mayonnaise)
- Turkey (or other roasted meats)
- Yogurt – stir it into your favorite yogurt
- Waffles – I love to serve it on top of homemade Belgian waffles.
Make ahead, Storing and Freezing Instructions:
To make-ahead: Cranberry relish can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
To freeze: Store cranberry relish in a freezer safe container for 2-3 months. To use, remove it from the freezer and thaw it in the refrigerator.
More recipes for Fresh Cranberries:
- Cranberry Fluff Salad
- Apple Cranberry Fruit Salad
- Brussels sprouts with cranberries and pecans
- Cranberry Orange Bread
Don’t miss these Thanksgiving staples:
- Broccoli Casserole
- Perfect Mashed Potatoes
- Sweet Potato Souffle
- Cranberry Fluff Salad
- Apple Cranberry Fruit Salad
- Triple Berry Pie
- Other pie recipes
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Fresh Cranberry Relish
Ingredients
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries
- 1 orange , with the peel ON
- 1 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- Slice the very edge root ends off of the orange, just until you see the flesh. Leave the rest of the skin ON the orange and slice it into 8 pieces.
- Place the fresh cranberries, orange slices and sugar in your food processor and process until smooth (or until no large chunks remain).
- Refrigerate until ready to serve (it tastes best after being in the fridge for at least on hour) or for up to 1 week. Serve over turkey, chicken, pork loin etc.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
I originally shared this recipe November 2016. Updated with improved photos and instructions October 2019.
Marilyn says
For Thanksgiving I always add a little jalapeño, however much you like, which really gives it a zing
Dorothy Richards says
I love this with cottage cheese. tangy, and healthy too!
Lisa Brasero says
Cranberry relish recipe is simple ,easy and delicious! Thank you ! love it !
Dominik says
Awesome. super tasty, super easy to make, stress free prepare ahead..
the taste suits my understanding of winter also with the light orange note 🙂 Love it
Curt Flory says
Thanks for posting this recipe. I have it at home but decided to take our Thanksgiving meal out of town this year and left my recipe at home; just needed the amounts of each. This was a family favorite since I was a young boy and always loved it and now have made it a tradition in my family. Thanksgiving wouldn’t be Thanksgiving if we didn’t have this. I like your ideas and plan to try some of them out also for some other recipes.
Carla Berry says
Mine is so bitter, today! I don’t know what went wrong, or how to fix it. 🙁 Used Monkfruit blend instead of sugar, could it be a bad reaction with the cranberries? Poor quality (sour, bland) oranges?
Lauren Allen says
Yes I think sugar would have worked best!
David Regan says
I do a LOT of cooking/baking with monkfruit extract (my partner is diabetic.) There are challenges, adjustments, and differences involved, but bitterness is not one of them. In fact, I find monkfruit substitution most successful in fruit-based dishes. If you ended up with a bitter relish, the culprit is far more likely the orange– sometimes you just get a bitter one. I have taken to tasting a small sample from any orange I am using in a recipe since I ruined a dish years ago when a bitter one got into the mix.
Jodi says
Perfect tart/sweetness. Super quick and easy and only 3 ingredients. Love that it can be made ahead. Will definitely make it again.
Maartje says
I tried this recipe over the weekend and it was a big success! I followed some of the earlier comments on the recipe and added some pineapple, pecans and only put in half an orange. It was delicious, thanks for this recipe!
Martha says
Well I’m 75 years old and my mom made this recipe . I have been eating cranberry relish for almost all of my 75 years . At times I wonder just how old this recipe could be …
I tell my grandchildren I think Adam and Eve enjoyed this relish back in the day ..
Roostertail says
After decades of making a sauce on the stove (often winding up with minimal to no jelling), I tried this one out for Turkey Day, as the ingredients most closely match my stovetop recipe – and this one uses less sugar. My guests and family loved it – and I did too. So guess what?
You guessed it: I am making it again for Christmas Dinner.
Thank you for a simple, easy and absolutely delicious relish recipe!
Winston