There’s nothing I love more than a fresh, raw side dish at a heavy holiday meal. This tangy and bright Cranberry Orange Relish will be the recipe everyone at your table asks for this year—I guarantee it! This fruity relish comes together in minutes (no cooking required!), uses simple budget-friendly ingredients, and can be made ahead of time. Not to mention, the leftovers (if there are any) are fantastic on salads, sandwiches, and cheese boards.
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“This was super refreshing and a nice addition to our Thanksgiving table. It lends itself to being very Christmassy too so we’ll make it again for that too!”
MEGHAN
The Perfect Easy Holiday Relish
For people who don’t love the gelatinous texture of traditional cranberry sauce, this relish is a winner! It’s somewhere between a relish and a slaw, and it’s perfectly seasoned. I put fresh cranberries, oranges, brown sugar, fresh ginger, and cinnamon into a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. The result is a chunky, tangy, and slightly sweet side to go with any holiday meal this season! And unlike some of our other relish recipes (see tomato relish and roasted apple cranberry relish), it doesn’t require any cooking at all. So easy!
I’m pretty certain this homemade cranberry relish with orange will be a staple on your holiday table for years to come. It’s fresh, easy to make, and full of flavor!
Recipe Success Tips
- Fresh Cranberries. You’ll need a 12 oz. bag of fresh cranberries, which should be rinsed and drained before using. Look for firm, bright red cranberries without any wrinkles or soft spots. I only ever use fresh cranberries in this recipe, but you can try frozen if you can’t find fresh. I’d thaw them and drain them well before using— just note the texture will likely be softer.
- Use fresh oranges. I use fresh oranges, rather than orange juice, for the best flavor and texture. I like navel oranges because they’re typically seedless and have a nice balance of sweetness and acidity. However, you can use any medium-sized orange you like.
- The secret to perfectly flavored relish with a beautiful red color is TIME. This is one recipe that I urge you to make at least 24 hours in advance. The flavors will have more time to meld, and the natural red color from the cranberries will deepen. Eating it right away is fine, but I promise it gets better with time.
- Pulse, don’t puree. We are looking for a relish-like texture with small pieces of cranberries and orange peel throughout. I pulse the ingredients in a food processor for short bursts to achieve this texture.
- Adjust sweetness to taste. I only use 2 tablespoons of brown sugar in this recipe to balance out the tartness of the cranberries. However, if your oranges are particularly sweet or you prefer a tarter relish, feel free to adjust the amount of sugar to your liking.
Advice for First Timers!
I know trying any new recipe can be intimidating, but I promise this cranberry orange relish is a great one to start with. It’s simple and requires minimal ingredients and equipment. So PLEASE don’t feel intimidated when I say, ‘suprême your oranges!’ This is just a fancy chef term for separating the juicy segments (the bits you want) from the membrane and pith (the bitter white part). All you need is a sharp knife, a little patience, and my process photos below to guide you.
Once you get the hang of it, it’s a super fun knife skill to practice year-round. But that said, you can totally skip this step and just peel your oranges and pulse them a little in the food processor before adding everything else.
Cranberry Orange Relish Recipe
Cost $6.19 recipe / $0.51 serving
Ingredients
- 2 oranges ($1.66)
- 1 inch fresh ginger (2.5 cm, peeled and grated, $0.40)
- 1 bag fresh cranberries (12 oz., 340g, $3.96)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar (25g, packed, $0.06)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon (2.6g, $0.10)
- ⅛ tsp salt (0.75g, $0.01)
Instructions
- Zest one orange. Then, cut both oranges using the suprême technique* by removing the ends of your oranges so they can sit flat on your cutting board. Then, carefully follow the natural curve of the sides of each orange with your knife, cutting away the skin and the pith. Once your oranges are peeled so you can see the juicy pulp, trace the segments of each section of orange with your knife to pop out the juicy pulp part, leaving the pith and skin behind. Don’t forget to squeeze out the juice from the leftover skin and membrane!
- Add the orange segments, grated ginger, fresh cranberries, brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and salt to food processor.
- Pulse ingredients until a relish-consistency forms.
- Let the cranberry relish sit in an airtight container for up to 24 hours so the flavors can meld and marinate together! The bright red color will come after it sits during this time. Enjoy chilled!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Grater
- Food Processor
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!how to make Cranberry Orange Relish step-by-step photos
Prep the oranges: Zest one orange. Then, cut both oranges using the suprême technique by removing the ends so they can sit flat on your cutting board. Then, carefully follow the natural curve of the sides of each orange with your knife, cutting away the skin and the pith.
Once your oranges are peeled so you can see the juicy pulp, trace the segments of each section of orange with your knife to cut out the juicy pulp, leaving the pith and skin behind. Don’t forget to squeeze out the juice from the leftover skin and membrane.
Add the ingredients to the food processor: Add the orange segments, 1 inch (2.5 cm) grated ginger, 12 oz. (340g) bag of fresh cranberries, 2 Tbsp (25g) brown sugar, 1 tsp (2.6g) ground cinnamon, and ⅛ tsp (0.75g) of salt to the food processor.
Pulse: Pulse ingredients until a relish-consistency forms.
Let sit: Let the cranberry relish sit in an airtight container for up to 24 hours so the flavors can meld and marinate together! The bright red color will come after it sits during this time. Enjoy chilled!
Serving Suggestions
This relish is the perfect palate cleanser for a decadent holiday meal. You already know roasted turkey and cranberries go together like two peas in a pod, but I’ll let you in on a little secret—this relish is also amazing with baked ham or roast chicken. Add some roasted veggies and sausage stuffing for a well-rounded, flavor-packed festive dinner. And, of course, don’t forget the mashed potatoes and Swedish meatballs, YUM, this relish really takes them to another level.
Storage Instructions
This relish tastes way better after it’s had time to sit to allow the flavors to develop. While it sits, the cranberries and oranges release their juices to create the most amazing flavor combination. Believe me!
You can keep your fresh cranberry orange relish in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. The salt may draw out some additional liquid as it sits, so I’d give it a good stir before serving again.
You can also freeze this relish for up to 3 months. Keep in mind the texture may be slightly altered once thawed overnight in the fridge.
We made this for Thanksgiving this year (Canadian thanksgiving is in October) and we’re saving the recipe for Christmas. It was a big hit!
Great with dinner and great spread on leftovers sandwiches too!
Thanks for trying it, Francis!
This was super refreshing and a nice addition to our Thanksgiving table. It lends itself to being very Christmassy too so well make it again for that too!
So glad you loved it… twice! Thanks, Meghan!