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Pomegranate Cranberry Relish

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Pomegranate Cranberry Relish is a mouth-watering, holiday spread made with pomegranate, fresh cranberries, and sugar. It’s a sweet and tart spread you can scoop over a wheel of warm, brie cheese, or serve as a twist on the classic holiday side dish

Cranberry relish topped on brie cheese wheel with crackers on ceramic plate

Pomegranate Cranberry Relish

We’ve lived with a pomegranate tree in our yard for the past eleven years.

Someone pinch me because it’s really too good to be true!

Every time October rolls around, I’m inundated with fresh, tree-ripened pommies and I get a lot of time in the test kitchen with them.

So, every year for holiday feasts, I make this cranberry relish with pomegranate. In fact, it’s one of the first holiday recipes to ever hit my blog back in 2015.

Here’s what sells me on this cranberry relish every year:

  • the perfect balance of tart and sweet
  • it pops with flavor and texture
  • uses raw cranberries and pomegranate arils together
  • makes me obsess about it when I’m not eating it

What’s the difference between cranberry relish and sauce?

Cranberry sauce is traditionally cooked, while cranberry relish is typically raw.

That’s pretty much it!

It really depends on your preference. I love BOTH!

In fact, I like to have both options available on the holiday table.

close up spoonful of cranberry relish

How to make cranberry relish

Step 1. Pulse whole cranberries with white sugar in a food processor, a high-speed blender, or a standard blender. Be careful to not purée or liquefy the cranberries.

chopped raw cranberries in food processor

Step 2. Fold in whole pomegranate seeds and white sugar.

Raw cranberries, pomegranate seeds, and sugar being mixed together with a spoon

Step 3. Chill overnight (preferably one-day minimum in advance of your event).

If you don’t have a high-speed blender, a standard blender works just fine.

Cranberry relish on spoon with whole cranberries and pomegranate seeds on white tile background

When should I make cranberry sauce or relish for holiday dinner?

TIME (and chemistry) are what brings out the best of any cranberry sauce.

So, whip it up a day or two before your holiday throwdown goes down.

You can set-it-and-forget-it in the fridge. Unless you’re me and you taste it every other hour for a few days because you’re a cranberry-obsessed weirdo who eats it straight out of the bowl.

That’s cool too!

Oh, but it’s so much better when you serve it over warm brie, like this…

Cranberry relish topped on brie cheese wheel with crackers on ceramic plate

But be careful to not overbake it, because it will do this…

Cranberry relish melted brie cheese with crackers and cheese knife

But it still rocks, y’all! Even when it turns into Brie River, your people will devour it!

What’s the best way to sweeten cranberry relish?

I tested these sweeteners:

Honey –  this overpowered the cranberry relish with honey flavor.

Turbinado (Raw) Sugar – a close second to white sugar, but still too caramel-ey tasting for my cranberry sauce preferences.

Coconut sugar – Are use coconut sugar for many many things. Cranberry sauce is not one of them. I simply do not care for how it flavors this recipe.

Brown Sugar – Just like raw sugar, the flavor was too deep and dark for cranberry sauce.

Plain white sugar – This was the winner…by a longshot! It doesn’t interfere with the flavors of the cranberries and the pomegranate like the other sugars did. Instead, it keeps the flavor bright, which is exactly what I want in a cranberry condiment. 

I know, I know, we’re supposed to steer away from processed sugars, but it’s the holidays, so let’s chill.

Cranberry Relish Ingredients

Raw Cranberries – Fresh (or frozen) whole cranberries are a must for any cranberry sauce. In other words, you would never want to try and rehydrate dried cranberries.

Pomegranate Seeds – Also called pomegranate arils and found in most grocery stores from September – January. When you add these to the relish, keep them whole as they will literally pop with each bite…an experience to NOT be missed!

Sugar – I have tested several sugars and sweeteners with this recipe, and I always land on plain white can cane sugar. 

Customize your cranberry relish

  • jalapeños
  • oranges
  • apples
  • ginger
  • cloves
  • lemon
  • celery
  • walnuts, or pistachios

No matter what, you’re getting a dose of Vitamin C, Fiber, and minerals with this dish. So, live it up!

Recommended tools

Grab these easy holiday recipes!

Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip

Smoked Salmon Dip with Greek Yogurt

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast

I Can’t Believe Its’ Vegan! Green Bean Casserole

(top) Cranberry relish topped on brie cheese wheel with crackers on ceramic plate (center) title text (bottom) Cranberry relish on spoon with whole cranberries and pomegranate seeds on white tile background
Cranberry relish topped on brie cheese wheel with crackers on ceramic plate
Print REcipe
5 from 17 votes

Pomegranate Cranberry Relish

This Pomegranate Cranberry Relish recipe has pomegranate and cranberries, macerated in sugar, creating a sweet and tart relish. Make cranberry relish a day or two ahead for deep flavor!
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 0 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 8 1/4-cup servings
Calories 101kcal
Author Traci Antonovich

Ingredients

  • 12 oz bag Fresh Cranberries 3 cups
  • 1/2 cup Pomegranate Arils
  • 3/4 cup White Sugar

Instructions

  • In a food processor, pulse CRANBERRIES until coarsely chopped; transfer to a bowl; fold in POMEGRANATE ARILS and SUGAR.
  • Cover and refrigerate overnight (or up to three days before serving).
  • Add small amounts of sugar if needed.
    Make a few days in advance for a full, flavor experience; store up to 4 days.

RECIPE NOTES

Yield: 2 cups
Serving size: 1/4 cup
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy and are estimates based on unbranded ingredients acquired from a nutrition database. For accurate calculations, please refer to brand packaging information and consult your nutritionist.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Pomegranate Cranberry Relish
Amount Per Serving (0.25 cup)
Calories 101 Calories from Fat 9
% Daily Value*
Fat 1g2%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Sodium 1mg0%
Potassium 60mg2%
Carbohydrates 26g9%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 22g24%
Protein 1g2%
Vitamin A 26IU1%
Vitamin C 7mg8%
Calcium 3mg0%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Did you make this recipe? Tag me!Mention @thekitchengirl or tag #thekitchengirl
(top) Cranberry relish topped on brie cheese wheel with crackers on ceramic plate (bottom) title text

(top) Cranberry relish on spoon with whole cranberries and pomegranate seeds on white tile background (bottom) title text

Traci Antonovich
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Traci Antonovich

Recipe author and food photographer at The Kitchen Girl
I'm on a mission to help you eat healthy AND save money through simple, everyday recipes, product reviews, and budget-friendly kitchen tips.
Traci Antonovich
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Comments

  1. Mary Helene says

    12/28/2019 at 5:32 am

    5 stars
    Look, with all the cooking to be done for our Thanksgiving crowd, I forgot the Brie. Boohoo. But your beautiful relish was made two days ahead and looked so pretty on the table in a pretty little glass bowl for about three minutes. Traci, they devoured it and left hers all around!

    We will get some brie and treat ourselves to your relish recipe for New Year’s
    Day. Thank you for sharing your creativity with us.

    Reply

    • Traci Antonovich says

      12/28/2019 at 5:59 am

      Omgosh Mary…THIS! LOVE! I’m so glad everyone loved it and thank you for taking the time to leave me this detailed review. I SO appreciate it 🙂 Btw, if we were neighbors, I’d have you covered on that brie 😉 Happiest New Year to you!

  3. EmeliaE says

    12/24/2018 at 8:19 am

    5 stars
    Delicious! I added 1 minced jalapeno and it added not only a festive red/green color contrast but also a nice little bit of heat. I’ll be making a big batch to gift this year. 🎁

    Reply

  5. Gabi says

    11/06/2018 at 8:28 am

    5 stars
    That’s probably the best looking holiday relish I’ve ever seen. I can imagine it tastes also delicious. Thank you for inspiring me.

    Reply

  8. Chef Markus Mueller says

    10/30/2018 at 8:06 am

    5 stars
    I always eat pomegranate raw! What a great idea though using it in a recipe like this. Would add such a punch of flavor, I can just imagine it served with roast chicken or turkey!

    Reply

  12. Pam says

    10/30/2018 at 6:40 am

    5 stars
    How lucky are you to have pomegranates in your yard! We have pecan trees in ours and I’m like you – sometimes I just want to pinch myself! Great sounding recipe and it does sound divine over brie!

    Reply

  15. Lisa | Garlic & Zest says

    10/26/2018 at 7:05 am

    5 stars
    I love your cranberry relish because of the pomegranate seeds – that’s a great idea. My grandmother made relish — and she used an entire orange (skin and all) didn’t like that nearly as much. This looks great!

    Reply

  16. Kelly Anthony says

    10/26/2018 at 6:44 am

    5 stars
    I love brie but I’ve never had cranberry relish over it. What a great idea! I can’t wait to make this for the holidays. I know it will be a big hit!

    Reply

  17. Shanika says

    10/26/2018 at 6:40 am

    5 stars
    This relish looks like the perfect addition to any Holiday dish! It sounds and looks great! I might use this as opposed to cranberry sauce this year!

    Reply

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