Turn summer's bounty into easy, bright condiments
Relish: It's more than just a topping for ballpark hot dogs. A spoonful or two can spark almost any meal. And don't think all relishes are made from pickled cucumbers; relishes today are made from tomato, corn, eggplant, and many more seasonal vegetables and fruits.
Nor does making a relish mean being chained to the kitchen stove all day fooling with canning jars and water baths. Most relishes simply can be refrigerated, at least for a while.
Still, given all the relish jars stocked in the local supermarket, most folks facing the prospect of making their own relish will likely sigh, "Why bother?"
"Anytime you take the time to make a relish or any pickled product from scratch, you will have a freshness and a liveliness you won't get with a commercial product," said Rick Field, chief executive officer and "chief pickler" of Rick's Picks, a New York City-based maker and purveyor of pickled products.
"Relish provides the bright flavor notes," said Field, co-author of the new Williams-Sonoma's "The Art of Preserving," with Rebecca Courchesne and Lisa Atwood (Williams-Sonoma, $29.95). "Relish is not like mayonnaise. Mayo binds things together. Relish is the soloist in the band."
For Monica Bhide, a cookbook author and writer from Dunn Loring, Va., relishes are integral to her signature cooking style.
"There are so many ways to make your food have that one difference," she said. "Some people go out of their way to buy organic. Some people grow and use their own herbs. You can get as complicated as you want. But for me, it is always the little things like relish, one of the most overlooked and underused items in the kitchen."
Relishes can sport a dazzling array of flavor, yet not all recipes are complicated.
Field's first relish was made by chopping up pickled cucumbers in the food processor. Field believes ingredients should "speak for themselves" in a relish.
Bhide prefers "intensely strong" relishes because they make "a simple entree shine."
"With a little imagination, a relish can brighten up a dish with such oomph," she said. "They are my secret weapons when pulling a meal together."
