Chow-chow is the South's end-of-garden relish: cabbage, green tomato, peppers, and onion chopped fine and pickled sweet-and-tangy, the spoonful that goes on pinto beans, greens, and hot dogs. The best of it still comes from small Southern kitchens working old family recipes. These makers ship it by the jar.
Published July 2026 · Updated 7 Jul 2026
A South Carolina farm kitchen makes chow-chow the old-fashioned way, with crisp cabbage, peppers, and onion and a kick of jalapeno and cayenne, and ships its relishes and pickles nationwide by UPS or FedEx. A deep line of Southern preserves from one family operation.
Why it isn't on AmazonFarm-kitchen chow-chow from a single Carolina operation is a small-batch preserve tied to a family recipe, not a commodity relish run at national scale.
See it at Four Oaks Farm →SugarPlum handcrafts a Tennessee-style chow-chow built on green tomatoes and farm-grown vegetables, offered mild, hot, or extra-hot for whatever your beans can take. Small-batch and traditional, keeping the green-tomato version of the recipe alive.
Why it isn't on AmazonA green-tomato chow-chow made in small batches with fresh farm produce is a regional specialty; you won't find the extra-hot version on a national shelf.
See it at SugarPlum Foods →Abbott Farms jars a crunchy Carolina chow-chow that manages sweet, hot, and puckery all at once, alongside a broad line of Southern jams and pickled things. A roadside-stand relish you can order by mail.
Why it isn't on AmazonA crunchy, sweet-hot Carolina relish from a family farm stand is a small-scale Southern product; the crunch and balance are a maker's care, not a factory formula.
See it at Abbott Farms →This seat's open on purpose — we won't pad the list to hit a number. If you ship real chow-chow & southern relish direct, it's earned, not sold.
Add your brand →Chow-chow is a Southern pickled relish, typically chopped cabbage, green tomato, onion, and peppers cooked in a sweet-tangy vinegar brine with mustard and spices. Recipes vary by family and region, some sweeter, some hotter, some heavy on green tomato. It's a way of putting up the last vegetables of the garden.
The classic move is a spoonful over a bowl of pinto or field peas, or on top of collard and turnip greens, where the tang cuts the richness. It's also good on hot dogs, black-eyed peas, cornbread, and alongside barbecue. Think of it as the South's all-purpose seasoning relish.
Standard relish is usually just pickled cucumber, sweet or dill. Chow-chow is a mixed-vegetable relish of cabbage, green tomato, peppers, and onion, with a more complex sweet-hot-tangy flavor and often a mustard base. It's chunkier, more savory, and built to season a plate rather than just top a hot dog.
Almost always vinegar-pickled and cooked, which is why it's shelf-stable and keeps for a year or more unopened. Traditional chow-chow isn't a live ferment, it's a preserved relish. Refrigerate after opening and it will hold for a couple of months.
Make or grow real chow-chow & southern relish and think you belong here? Tell us → — features are on merit, never for sale.
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