Easy Pickled Beetroot Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Does beetroot need to be cooked before pickling? ›

Pickled beets are easy to make with freshly cooked beets and a brine made with sugar, pickling salt, and vinegar.

If stored correctly in a cool, dark place out of direct sunlight, your pickled beetroot should last for up to a year if left unopened. Once you've cracked open a jar, make sure to refrigerate and eat within approximately 8-12 weeks (though we'd be surprised if it's not gobbled up sooner!).

This acidity slows down the process of decay and prolongs the lifespan, but it doesn't make fresh foods last forever. To enjoy them at their best and freshest, store your pickled beets in the refrigerator and plan to use them within a maximum of three months, or ideally within several weeks.

The bottom line. Pickled beets are popular on salads or as a side or snack. These naturally sweet root veggies may have a number of health benefits, including improved digestion, physical performance, blood sugar levels, and heart health. However, you should avoid varieties with high levels of added salt or sugar.

Most pickle recipes call for distilled white vinegar. This is the clear, colorless vinegar made by fermenting grains. It has a mellow aroma, tart acid flavor and does not affect the color of light-colored vegetables or fruits.

Directions. Place the beets in a large saucepan and add water to cover and the lemon juice or vinegar. This will help to keep the beets from bleeding. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Imagine a thinly sliced piece vs a whole baby beet or a quarter of a large beet. The pickle will preserve it, but unless you heat it sufficiently there is a risk of bacteria growing in the jar and causing it to ferment and go off, which in extreme cases could mean the jar would explode. Not nice.

Pack the beets into sterilised jars (see tip below), add 1 tsp coarse crystal sea salt to each, then pour over the hot vinegar and seal. Ready to eat in 2 weeks, or longer, if you like.

That said, there is evidence that eating pickled beets positively affects your health. The vinegar used to pickle beets might help with blood sugar management. Vinegar reduces blood sugar levels after meals. Some studies have shown that pickled beets may help protect against cancer.

The sugar balances with the vinegar. Cutting back any further on the sugar will make the pickles taste too vinegary.

Why add vinegar to beets? ›

Usually we boil them and toss them in a sweet sour vinaigrette and keep them in the refrigerator to eat all week. The vinegar in the dressing "pickles" the beets, helping them last longer in the fridge.

Bad smells should be taken seriously; spoiled pickled food typically smells more sour than usual. By the same token, never eat pickles that are soft and resting in cloudy or foamy canning liquid, as the liquid will be negatively impacted by bacterial growth.

Pickled beets are generally safe to eat. But, depending on how they're made, some varieties of pickled beets may pack salt and added sugars. Too much salt can increase your blood pressure. While too much sugar can lead to weight gain and other health problems.

Pickled beets may contribute to high blood pressure because they have 599 mg of sodium per cup. High sodium levels are bad for your blood pressure and healthy adults should have no more than 2,300 mg per day, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Because of its high soluble fibre content, beetroot acts as a great laxative. It helps in regularising your bowel movement by softening stools.

No, beets can be eaten raw as well as cooked in many different ways. I suggest you try both and then make the juice and put them in your salad the way you prefer them. One of my favorite juices is a beet, an apple and a carrot or two- all raw.

The overall point is that the beets must to be pre-cooked a bit, until the skins come off easily. And to reinforce that last notion, yes, they must be peeled. And, they must go into the jars hot, not cold, even if that means you have to re-heat them somehow.

No, there are other methods for pickling, including quick pickling and refrigerator pickling. But this pickling method does call for boiling the brine. This process helps bloom the flavors of the ingredients and help speed up the pickling process when it's added to the fresh vegetables or fruit.