Gordon Ramsay’s tomato relish is cherry tomatoes cooked down with red onion, chilli, sherry vinegar, and fresh basil into a rough, glossy condiment. It takes about 20 minutes, and it is the relish he piles into his steak sandwiches.
This is his Spicy Tomato Relish from the Ultimate Cookery Course, where it sits alongside a rare beef fillet on griddled ciabatta. Gordon makes tomato relish four different ways across his books. This is the punchiest, built on chilli and sherry vinegar rather than the gentler lime versions he serves with fish.
The thing that makes it a relish and not a sauce is how far you cook it. While the tomatoes soften, you let them collapse, then add the vinegar and stew it down to a rough, spoonable texture. Stop too early and it is watery.
Gordon Ramsay Tomato Relish
Course: Side, CondimentCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy6
servings5
minutes15
minutes55
kcal20
minutesGordon Ramsay’s spicy tomato relish from his Ultimate Cookery Course, cherry tomatoes stewed with red onion, chilli, and sherry vinegar, finished with fresh basil. The relish he serves in his steak sandwiches. Serves 6, around 55 kcal, ready in 20 minutes.
Ingredients
Olive oil, for frying
1/2 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 red chillies, deseeded and chopped
250g (9 oz) mixed red and yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
1 to 2 tsp sherry vinegar, to taste
Small handful of basil leaves, shredded
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Soften the onion and chilli: Heat a little olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the red onion and chillies, and fry over a medium heat for about 5 minutes, until softened.
- Add the tomatoes: Stir in the halved cherry tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until they start to collapse and release their juices.
- Stew it down: Add the sherry vinegar and let it stew over a medium heat for about 6 minutes. You want it reduced to a rough, thick relish, not a loose sauce.
- Finish with basil: Take the pan off the heat and stir through the shredded basil. Taste, season well, and add a little more vinegar if it needs sharpening.
- Cool and serve: Tip into a bowl and leave to cool a little. Serve warm or at room temperature, alongside steak, fish, or in a sandwich.
Notes
- Use mixed red and yellow cherry tomatoes if you can find them, the colours make it look as good as it tastes. For a milder relish, use one chilli, or swap in a pinch of sugar to round off the sharpness.
FAQs
Is this a tomato chutney or a tomato relish?
It is a relish, and the difference is real. A relish like this is fresh and quick, cooked for about 20 minutes and best eaten within a few days. A chutney is simmered for an hour or more with lots of sugar and vinegar, then jarred to keep for months.
Gordon makes the fresh, fast kind. So if you came here looking for a jarred tomato chutney to store in the cupboard, this is not quite that. You could push it further with more sugar and vinegar and a longer cook, but then you have changed it into something else.
How does Gordon make tomato relish in his other books?
This is the bit most recipes miss: Gordon has four tomato relishes across his books, and they are all different. This spicy one from the Ultimate Cookery Course leans on chilli and sherry vinegar.
The other three are gentler. In one he serves a fresh relish with fishcakes, just onion, plum tomatoes, and lime. Another, for halibut, goes Asian with shallots, soy, and palm sugar. And his quick hake relish uses spring onions, wine vinegar, and thyme, made in the fish pan. Same idea, four directions.
What do you serve Gordon’s tomato relish with?
First and foremost, his steak sandwich. This exact relish is what he layers onto rare beef fillet with mustard mayonnaise. You can see the full build in his steak sandwich recipe.
Beyond that, it is a brilliant all-rounder. Spoon it over white fish or salmon, where the sharp tomatoes cut through the richness. It also lifts a homemade burger, since Gordon describes the steak sandwich itself as a posh burger.
How do you get the right relish consistency?
The vinegar stage is where it happens. Once the tomatoes have collapsed, you add the sherry vinegar and keep cooking, and that is what reduces the liquid and pulls it together.
You are looking for rough and spoonable, where the tomatoes hold some shape but there is no watery pool underneath. If it still looks loose, give it a few more minutes. If it tightens too much, a splash of water loosens it straight back.
Can you make it sweeter or milder?
Yes, easily. For less heat, use one chilli instead of two, or deseed them fully, which is where most of the burn lives. The relish still has plenty of flavour from the onion and vinegar.
For a sweeter, more chutney-like edge, stir in a pinch of caster sugar with the tomatoes. It softens the sharpness of the vinegar and brings the relish closer to the fresher, sweeter versions Gordon serves with fish.
How long does tomato relish keep?
Because it is a fresh relish and not a preserve, it does not last like a jarred chutney. Keep it in an airtight container in the fridge and use it within three to four days.
I would not freeze it. The tomatoes turn watery and lose their texture once thawed, so you lose the rough, glossy quality that makes it good. It takes 20 minutes to make, so a fresh batch is always better than a frozen one.
