Home Canning Zesty Zucchini Relish Recipe

Zucchini is one of those things that grows extremely-well in my backyard garden every year. We like to put in 4-5 plants every year and will end up with around 50 medium-to-large zucchinis every growing season. You can do a lot with them after you harvest them. Use shredded fresh zucchini in your omelets, scrambled eggs, homemade bread & muffin recipes, sliced and tossed into stir-fry’s, tossed into the blender with other veggies to make homemade vegetable juice, sliced or diced and tossed into vegetable soup, etc.

Love pickles? You can find my Zucchini Pickles recipe for home canning HERE on the blog. They’re easy-to-make too! Plus, we have over 50+ Home Canning Recipes on the blog that you can use!

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When we get an abundance of zucchini from our garden I like to use several of them to make a homemade relish that’s delicious when spread on a hamburger, cheeseburger, hot dog, tossed in an omelet, etc.

You’ll need a water bath canner, mason jars and basic canning supplies to make this recipe. It will make approximately Four to Five 1/2 Pint Jars. If you’re a small family (like us) you can use jelly sized jars too.

Home Canning Zesty Zucchini Relish Recipe

2 cups chopped zucchini (3 medium)
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 tbsp. Ball Salt for Pickling & Preserving
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. mustard seed
1 cup white vinegar, 5% acidity

Prep: Wash zucchini and green & red bell peppers under cool running water. Remove stems & blossom ends from zucchini and chop zucchini (skin on) until you have 2 packed cups. Peel onion & dice into small pieces. Measure 1 cup and set aside. Chop the red & green bell peppers until you have a 1/2 cup of each one. In a large mixing bowl combine together the chopped zucchini, green bell pepper, red bell pepper and onion. Sprinkle 2 tbsp. of Ball Salt for Pickling & Preserving over the top. Cover bowl and let stand for 2 hours. Drain vegetables, rinse vegetables under running water and drain again. I like to let my colander sit in a clean sink for 5 minutes with the cold water running over it.

Cook: Combine granulated sugar, spices and white vinegar in a large saucepan. Bring mixture to a simmer. Add vegetables; simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes.

Fill: Pack hot relish into a hot jar, leaving a ½” headspace. Remove air bubbles. Clean jar rim. Center lid on jar and adjust band to finger-tip tight. Place jar on rack elevated over simmering water in a boiling water-bath canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.

Process: Lower the rack into the simmering water. Water must cover the jars by 1″. Adjust heat to medium-high, cover the canner and bring water to a rolling boil. Process half-pint jars for 10 minutes. Turn off heat and remove cover. Let jars cool for 5 minutes. Remove jars from canner. Do not re-tighten bands if loose. Let jars cool for 12 hours. Check seals. Label and store jars.

Storage: When properly processed and sealed your new zucchini relish will keep for up to 1 year. I store my jars in my pantry. Store in a dry, dark, room temperature place.

When you’re ready to use a jar…open it and then store the jar in the refrigerator. I’ve kept mine refrigerated for up to 3 weeks before I had to toss it out.

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