Pickled Beets Are Easy to Make at Home With This Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What can you use pickled beets for? ›

Serve pickled beets as a side dish sprinkled with a little feta cheese. Add pickled beets to your favorite salad. Chop pickled beets and combine them with cabbage, carrots, garlic, and vinegar to make a tangy garnish. Slice pickled beets and layer with hardboiled eggs to make a pickled beet sandwich.

No need to wait to enjoy your pickled beets. They're ready to eat as soon as they've cooled down, however, the longer you wait, the better their flavor. Give them at least a week or two.

In a large pot cook the unpeeled beets until fork-tender (do not overcook) cool and then remove the skins. Slice into about 1/4-inch thick or cut into cubes. Pack snuggly into the canning jars (be careful not to bruise).

Best Beet Varieties to Grow for Pickling

Deep red or gold beet varieties provide the most robust flavors, more vibrant juices, and more tender pickled beets. As you embark on the pickled beets adventure, try some of these tried and true beet varieties to grow: 'Detroit Dark Red' 'Ruby Queen'

Pickled beets are naturally rich in nitrates, which your body converts into nitric oxide. This molecule helps blood vessels dilate, which protects against high blood pressure ( 8 ). Research suggests that beet products can lower blood pressure by up to 10 mm Hg.

The answer is yes! Pickled beets can offer several potential health benefits. If you want to boost your fiber intake or get more antioxidants in your diet, pickled beets may be a good option. Just remember to watch your sodium intake, as some brands of pickled beets can be high in sodium.

Pickled beets are a shelf-stable alternative to fresh beets, and are rich in iron, calcium, and potassium. An ancient athlete diet consisted of beets, as they've been long known as a powerhouse in the “superfood” category. Athletes to this day consume beet juice for performance improvement and endurance.

The oxalates found in beets can increase your uric acid level, meaning that too many beets can lead to gout. To avoid this, stick to no more than a single half-cup serving of beets per day.

Sliced Pickled Beets make a quick side dish served warm or chilled. Sprinkle with fresh herbs to dress them up for company.

Eating pickled beets helps ensure you get all the antioxidant benefits from betacyanins, flavonoids and nitric oxide, not to mention the rich source of nutrients, especially vitamin C, manganese and B vitamins.

Do pickled beets need to be pressure canned? ›

Scientifically research tested recipes use more than ½ cup vinegar per pint jar. Pickled beets are safe to process in a boiling water bath or atmospheric steam canner. The USDA recommends processing pickled beets in boiling water for 30 minutes.

When canner is filled, ensure that all jars are covered by at least one inch (2.5 cm) of water. Cover canner and bring water to full rolling boil before starting to count processing time. At altitudes up to 1000 ft (305 m), process –boil filled jars – 30 minutes.

Roasting beets deepens their natural sugars while tempering bitterness. Bake whole, wrapped beets at 400°F for 60-75 minutes until easily pierced by a fork. Allow to cool before peeling and juicing. Incorporating roasted beets creates a smoother, mellower, almost nutty-flavored blended juice.

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.

Red beets may lose color if overcooked or over-processed before canning. Blakeslee said some color changes can be prevented. “When canning apples or peaches, the color can be protected by using ascorbic acid, which prevents the food from turning brown,” Blakeslee said.

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. Always keep an eye out for signs they've passed their prime before that though.

Aunt Nellie's Pickled Beets contain no fat, saturated fat or cholesterol; they are kosher and gluten-free.

The study found that drinking 225 milliliters of beetroot juice, or a little less than a 1/2 cup, resulted in a significant suppression of post-meal glucose levels.