Canning Zucchini Relish

Update 7.2.21

I LOVE canned Zucchini Relish! It is sooo yummy and sweet! I love it on hamburgers and hot dogs. I even add it to tuna or a bit on a salad. I don't can it too often, because it makes a ton and lasts for years!

You're going to need a bunch of zucchini! If you don't grow some yourself, there's usually someone you know that has a garden exploding!

The first thing I did was shred 14-16 cups of zucchini. Then put them in a brine solution. Which is basically salt water. I put all of the zucchini in a large bowl and put enough water in to cover it.

Then I added about 1 T. of pickling salt per cup of zucchini. Let it sit in the brine solution overnight. This keeps the zucchini firm and helps it hold it's color.

In the morning, I got out all of my canning supplies. You'll need jars and lids, with the cap to screw onto the jar. You'll need a large stock pan for the water bath.

Put the lids in a pot with water covering all of the lids. Let that just get to boiling and turn off. Fill the large stock pot with water and get that to boiling, then turn it off. It helps to get all these things heated up and ready to go.

You can hand wash the jars and rings or just run them in the dishwasher so they are nice and hot. Once the water is hot in the water bath, you can put the jars in there to keep them hot.

Now, it's time to rinse the zucchini. I dumped it into a colander and rinsed and rinsed until I felt most of the salt water was rinsed off.

You will need another stock pot to cook the syrup in. Add all the ingredients and bring it to a boil. It needs to simmer for 30 minutes.

2 ¼ c. vinegar
1 tsp. Ground nutmeg
2 tsp. Celery Seed
6 cups sugar (man that’s going to be sweet!)
2 tsp. Turmeric

It boiled and it simmered. Then after the 30 minutes I added 1 T. Dried mustard.

Next, I added 1 T. cornstarch mixed with a bit of water and let it cook it a bit more until it started to thicken some.

Then add the zucchini.

Simmer for another 10 minutes, then it's ready for canning.

Get a warm jar out. Fill with relish, and leave ¼ inch gap. Wipe the rim off.

Put the seal on with ring and set it in the water bath. They need to boil in the water bath for 10 minutes.

Sooo good! Can't wait to enjoy this yumminess!!

Here is the recipe all together if you’d like to try it!

Canning ~ Zucchini Relish

{Original with the onion and peppers, otherwise you can just use 15-16 cups of shredded zucchini}
10 cups unpeeled, shredded zucchini
4 cups onion, shredded
1 red sweet pepper, shredded
1 green pepper, shredded
2 1/2 c. vinegar
1 tsp. Ground nutmeg
2 tsp. Celery Seed
4 c. Sugar
2 tsp. Turmeric
1 T. Dried mustard
1 T. Cornstarch (mixed with a bit of water)
Zucchini, onion and peppers in brine mix.  Let stand overnight. Then drain and rinse.

Bring next 5 ingredients to a boil. Then simmer for 30 minutes. Add mustard. Mix a small amount of water with cornstarch and add to mixture. Cook until thickened. Add vegetables and simmer for 10 minutes. Can using water bath method.

Have you ever canned zucchini relish?

What’s your favorite item to can in the summer?

Blessings!!
Lori