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National Cranberry Relish Day

Food · November 22

A food day for cranberry relish, the tart, chopped mix of raw cranberries, citrus and sugar that sits beside roast dinners across the US.

National Cranberry Relish Day falls on Sunday, November 22, 2026. That is 26 days away.

Cranberry relish is the uncooked cousin of cranberry sauce. Raw cranberries are chopped, often with a whole orange, then sweetened with sugar and left to rest until the flavors settle into each other.

The result is bright, coarse and sharp. It crunches a little. Where cooked sauce turns soft and jammy, relish keeps the snap of the fresh berry, and the orange peel adds a faint bitterness that makes it taste grown up. Many families make it in a food grinder or a food processor, pulsing just long enough to break everything into small bits without turning it to mush.

Recipes drift from kitchen to kitchen. Some cooks add apple or pear for sweetness, some add pecans or walnuts for crunch, and a few stir in fresh ginger or a little horseradish for heat. It is usually made a day ahead, because time in the refrigerator softens the sourness and lets the sugar dissolve.

Relish turns up most often beside roast turkey or ham, but it does good work elsewhere. A spoonful brightens a leftover turkey sandwich, cuts through soft cheese on a cracker, or wakes up a bowl of plain yogurt.

Cranberries themselves are very tart and fairly firm, and a fresh one will bounce if you drop it on the counter.

Ways to celebrate

• Try making cranberry relish with raw cranberries, an orange and a little sugar.
• Spread relish on a turkey or cheese sandwich.
• Add chopped apple, pecans or ginger to a basic relish recipe.
• Share a jar of homemade relish with a neighbor.
• Taste cooked cranberry sauce and raw relish side by side.

Dates

All national days on November 22

Also on November 22

• Go For a Ride Day

Categories: Food days