Sweet and Spicy Peach Relish Recipe

Here’s a great recipe to use up those extra, or underripe, or overripe peaches this season – a Sweet and Spicy Peach Relish! So easy to make.

This peach relish doubles as a peach chutney, and can be customized to your taste!  

It’s peach season! We’ve been stocking up on them and I also made a delicious peach galette just the other day. Still, we invariably end up with a few too many peaches at home. Sounds familiar? Well, here’s something you can do with those extra fresh peaches – a simple, delicious Sweet and Spicy Peach Relish!

This relish is super simple to make, and it’s a great summer relish to pair with absolutely anything! This doubles as a peach chutney as well, and it’s super versatile, so you can add more flavors to customize it to your taste.

To make this relish, you can use peaches that are not quite ripe yet, or those pesky peaches that are ripe, but just aren’t sweet (I can only seem to get my hands on these lately at my local grocery store), or those peaches that are a little overripe. Basically, any type of peach that you’d rather not be munching on. You can adjust the taste of the relish by adjusting the level of sugar or lemon juice.

To make this basic relish, you only need a few ingredients :

• Onions
• Garlic
• Sugar
• Lemon Juice
• Peaches
• Salt

The result is a sweet, tangy relish that perfectly complements grilled chicken, grilled pork, grilled seafood, sandwiches, burgers and more!

And with a couple of additions, you can get creative with your relish and kick it up another notch.

Sweet and Spicy Peach Relish (my favorite!)

This pairs well with any grilled or pan fried meats (including seafood), and is particularly great in sandwiches! To make this with the base peach relish, you can simply add,

• Crushed chili flakes or
• Cayenne pepper or
• Chopped jalapeno or serrano peppers

Tex Mex Peach Relish 

This is great when paired with guacamole and corn chips. Or top your pork tacos with this peach relish. It’s the perfect accompaniment for your Tex Mex night! Simply add,

• Chopped jalapenos or serrano peppers AND
• Cilantro

Curried Peach Chutney

This would be DELICIOUS with rice and curry! Add,

• Extra sugar (chutney is sweeter)
• Cardamom
• Mustard
• Ginger
• Crushed chili flakes

Asian Peach Relish

• Fish sauce instead of salt
• Green onions instead of red onions
• Lemongrass

Persian Peach Relish

• Saffron (such a wonderful addition!)
• Barberries
• Crushed chili flakes

Mediterranean Peach Relish

• Cinnamon
• Saffron
• Golden raisins
• Crushed chili flakes

I’ve been eating this relish with toasted pita chips for lunch lately, and it’s so addictive! 🙂 It’s great in my chicken salad, and my husband’s steak sandwiches too! With so many different ways to customize this recipe to your taste, it’s a great way to use up those leftover peaches!

This fresh peach relish (or any variation of it) is perfect for canning too.

Sweet and Spicy Peach Relish

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine: Other

Keyword: Peaches, Relish

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Servings: 15 tablespoons

Calories: 30 kcal

Author: Dini @ The Flavor Bender

Here's a great recipe to use up those extra, or underripe, or overripe peaches this season - a sweet and spicy peach relish! So easy to make, doubles as a peach chutney, and can be customized to your taste!  

Makes about 1 3/4 cups

Print

Ingredients

• 1 small red onion sliced
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice or cider vinegar
• ½ tbsp crushed chili flakes I used 1 tbsp because we love it extra spicy
• ¼ tsp kosher salt or more as needed
• 1 ½ lb fresh peaches cubed into pieces (about 6 -7 peaches)

Instructions

1. Place the onion, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan. Heat over medium-heat while stirring to melt the sugar.

2. Cook for about 5 - 10 minutes until the liquid thickens and has a syrup-like consistency.

3. Add the salt, crushed chili flakes and cubed peaches. Stir to mix.

4. Heat over medium-heat while stirring frequently until the peaches soften, and the liquid is mostly evaporated. This may take about 20 - 30 minutes.

5. Scrape the relish into glass jars and serve as needed (can be stored in the fridge for about 5 - 7 days).