Easy Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish Recipe for Thanksgiving

This zesty and flavorful Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish is just what your turkey needs! It’s easy-to-make, can be made days ahead and frozen. It’s great for leftover turkey sandwiches. It was featured on Good Housekeeping for seven years! It’s gluten-free and Vegan.

After you’ve thawed, bathed, brined, and slathered your turkey with butter before it goes in the oven and exit with a beautiful tan, you can’t let it be topped with canned cranberry sauce at your holiday table.

That’s like putting store-bought icing on a homemade cake. You just don’t do that.

I know the busy holidays can make your to-do list longer than a CVS sales receipt but, this homemade cranberry relish recipe is not only easy, it can be made days before and you can also freeze it without losing flavor.

Make this vibrant-colored fresh cranberry relish recipe with fresh cranberries this holiday season! It will become one of your favorite holiday side dishes which sometimes are the best part. Take a look at my other homemade cranberry sauce recipe too. 

Easy Cranberry Relish Recipes Thanksgiving

The tangy from the cranberries mixed with the sweet pineapple juice (instead of orange juice), freshly grated ginger, lemon zest and ground cloves is a wonderful combination of tart flavors!

It only takes minutes to prepare and tastes better if made three days ahead of serving. Your homemade Thanksgiving turkey deserves a homemade cranberry relish.

This Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish was featured on Good Housekeeping 12 Cranberry Relish Recipes to Make This Thanksgiving for FIVE years from 2017 to 2022!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links which means, if you make a purchase, I’ll make a small commission, but the price you pay is the same.

Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish

How to Make Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish

*The full recipe is at the bottom of this post. If this is your first time making cranberry relish, you’ll be amazed at this easy recipe. 

Ingredients

• 12 oz bag of cranberries (whole)
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 2 dashes ground cloves

First, using a food processor, add a 12 oz bag of cranberries and set to low for about 30 seconds or use the pulse button until minced.

Then, remove minced cranberries from the food processor and put them into a large bowl.

Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish

Mix in 1/3 of a cup of white sugar, zest of half of a lemon or 1 tsp, 1/2 tsp of freshly grated ginger, 2 oz of pineapple juice, and two dashes of ground cloves.

You only need a little bit of of cloves. If you notice a big aroma of cloves at first, it will lessen each day after.

Let it sit overnight but, make it three days in advance, that will give it maximum flavor before serving. It’s so easy! Why buy the canned stuff when you can make this easy cranberry relish?


This Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish is so flavorful, it just may cover up an accidental dry turkey. You might want to bring it along to Thanksgiving dinner, if that may be the case.

Substitutions

• Use two dashes of allspice if you don’t have cloves.
• Use 2 oz of freshly squeezed orange juice if you don’t have pineapple juice.
• Use 1 tsp of orange zest if you don’t have a lemon.

The combination of flavors is perfect!  As I’ve mentioned above, I suggest letting the cranberry relish sit three days before serving it, so the flavors can marry.

Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish

This Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish freezes well too. Just put it in airtight container and put it the freezer. It will last for several months in the freezer and in your refrigerator for up to two weeks.

You could also use this cranberry relish to top Easy-to-Make Cranberry Pecan Brie Phyllo Appetizers. They’re so festive for the holidays. It’s a great way to use up leftover cranberry sauce.

When you spend weeks preparing for a wonderful Thanksgiving, you want a colorful, tasty Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish with fresh flavors to top your Thanksgiving turkey.

With only minutes to prepare, this Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish will add the extra wow factor to your Thanksgiving table and your Christmas table too. Happy cooking!

If it’s good enough to get on Good Housekeeping, it’s good enough for your Thanksgiving turkey! Right?

You may also like:

Easy Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce Recipes

See more Thanksgiving recipes.

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5 from 2 votes

Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish

This is tasty and easy-to-make Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish is great to make ahead for Thanksgiving Christmas or Easter as it freezes very well. It's a flavorful accompaniment to any turkey dinner!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword cranberry relish

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 16 servings

Calories

Author Joanne Schweitzer

Ingredients

• 12 oz fresh whole cranberries, rinsed
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice
• 1/3 cup white granulated sugar
• 1 tsp lemon zest from 1/2 lemon
• 1/2 tsp grated, fresh ginger or ¼ tsp of ground ginger
• 2 dashes ground cloves

Instructions

• Put cranberries in a food processor and set to low until minced (about 10 seconds.)
• Put minced cranberries into a 1 qt bowl and mix in remaining ingredients. Let sit overnight but, three days will give it maximum flavor.

Video

Notes

Storage: 

Store this Lemon Ginger Cranberry Relish in the refrigerator for up to one week or freeze for several months. This is great to make ahead for Thanksgiving or Christmas as it freezes very well. 

Nutrition

Serving: 0g | Carbohydrates: 0g | Protein: 0g | Fat: 0g | Saturated Fat: 0g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0g | Trans Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 0mg | Potassium: 0mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 0g | Vitamin A: 0IU | Vitamin C: 0mg | Calcium: 0mg | Iron: 0mg

Optimized on 9/21/2023.