A relish is a cooked
pickled, chopped
vegetable or fruit
food item which is
typically used as a
condiment.
Description and
ingredients
The item generally
consists of
discernible
vegetable or fruit
pieces in a sauce,
although the sauce
is subordinate in
character to the
vegetable or fruit
pieces. It might
consist of a single
type of vegetable or
fruit, or a
combination of
these. These fruits
or vegetables might
be coarsely or
finely chopped, but
generally a relish
is not as smooth as
a sauce-type
condiment, such as
ketchup. The overall
taste sensation
might be sweet or
savory, hot or mild,
but it is always a
strong flavor that
complements or adds
to the primary food
item with which it
is served.
Relish probably came
about from the need
to preserve
vegetables in the
winter.
Although chutneys
might be considered
a type of relish,
Crosse & Blackwell
defines the
difference between
chutneys and
relishes as follows:
"Chutney is
typically made with
fruit; relish is
normally made with
vegetables."[1] This
interpretation,
however, is not
accurate since a
chutney in India,
where the
preparation
originated from, has
generally meant to
include those made
with either
vegetables, herbs or
fruits.
In the United
States, the most
common commercially
available relishes
are made from
pickled cucumbers
and are known in the
food trade as pickle
relishes. Two
variants of this are
hamburger relish
(pickle relish in a
ketchup base or
sauce) and hotdog
relish (pickle
relish in a mustard
base or sauce).
Other readily
available commercial
relishes in the
United States
include corn (maize)
relish. Heinz,
Vlasic, and Claussen
are well known in
the United States as
producers of pickles
and relishes. One of
the best known
pickle manufacturers
in the UK is
Branston.
Piccalilli can be
mixed with
mayonnaise or crème
fraîche to make
remoulade.
A notable relish is
the Gentleman's
Relish, which was
invented in 1828 by
John Osborn and
contains spiced
anchovy. It is
traditionally spread
sparingly atop
unsalted butter on
toast. |
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