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Pickled beets are a great, nutrient-dense side dish, snack, or salad topping. Learn how to pickle beets at home with these few easy steps!
Featured with this recipe
- Ingredients in Pickled Beets
- How to Pickle Beets
- Roasting Beets
- What Vinegar Should You Use for Pickled Beets?
- Additions and Variations
- How to Use Pickled Beets
- How to Store Pickled Beets
- Pressure Canning or Water Bath Canning Pickled Beets
- Don’t Toss Out That Beet Juice
- Frequently Asked Questions about Pickled Beets
- Colorful and Tasty Side Dishes
- How to Make Pickled Beets
- Easy Pickled Beets Recipe (Only 3 Ingredients) Recipe
I have a confession to make: I really love pickled beets. It’s so easy to make a huge batch to use on salads or just as a quick little snack. They taste a little sweet, a little tangy, and have a nice tender, yet crispy texture. In my opinion, they are delicious but there’s so much more to love about them! Beets are high in nutrients and antioxidants making them a vitamin-packed “superfood”.
Ingredients in Pickled Beets
You can have a beautiful bowl of pickled beets in no time with just three simple ingredients. Peel and simmer fresh beets in an easy pickling brine for a unique snack or salad topping that you will love. Here’s what you need:
- Red beets – three pounds, or about 8-9 medium sized beets.
- Apple cider vinegar – just two cups, no other liquid is needed.
- Sugar – one cup of sugar, or low-calorie sweetener.
How to Pickle Beets
- Wash and trim – Scrub and rinse beets. If boiling, leave some of the stem on so the colors don’t bleed out. If roasting, you can trim down further, exposing the red part of the beet.
- Boil or roast – Boil the beets (leaving the skin on) for 25-40 minutes depending on the size of the beets. To roast (my favorite method), follow our easy step-by-step guide on how to roast beets.
- Make a brine – Make a brine from boiling 1 part sugar to 2 parts vinegar.
- Slice (or cube) – Cut into slices, wedges, or cubes (use gloves to keep hands from staining).
- Put in jars – Gently pack beets into pint jars and pour brine over the beets until they are covered.
- Refrigerate – Cover and refrigerate. For best results, refrigerate at least 3-4 days before serving.
Roasting Beets
Roasting the beets before pickling is my preferred way of softening the beets before pickling. Our Oven Roasted Beets recipe is my favorite way of doing this. I feel like it brings out the flavor of the beet more than boiling and gives the beets a richer color. Boiling also will work well for pickling, it really just comes down to preference.
What Vinegar Should You Use for Pickled Beets?
For the vinegar, I really like the flavor of apple cider vinegar the best. You can use white vinegar or rice wine vinegar if that’s what you have on hand. If you plan on pressure canning make sure you are using a vinegar with 5% acidity. Most apple cider vinegars will have 5% acidity but its always a good idea to check.
Additions and Variations
This recipe is a very simple recipe for pickled beets. The ingredients are easy and basic, which is a good thing because it makes it easier to dress up. Think of this as a base recipe and then you can add other flavors to your liking. Here’s some ideas of some ingredients you can add to your brine (add them right along with the vinegar and sugar and bring to a boil):
- 1 cinnamon stick
- pickling spice (1-2 teaspoons wrapped in cheese cloth and tied shut like a tea bag)
- 5-6 whole cloves
- Mustard seeds
- Peppercorns
- Sliced onion or pearl onions (add to the jars with the beets)
- Salt (or canning salt if canning)
- Water (to dilute vinegar mixture if you find it too strong)
How to Use Pickled Beets
Pickled beets are great on their own as a side dish but are most commonly served over salad. Our beet salad recipe is one of our favorite salads. Its packed with flavor and is absolutely delicious! If served as a side dish, add some goat cheese and walnuts to add more flavor and texture. Beets can also be sliced thin and served on sandwiches or even grilled pizza.
How to Store Pickled Beets
These pickled beets can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 months. Be sure to keep them in an airtight container while in the fridge. For best results, refrigerate the beets for at least 3 days so the beets have a good amount of time to soak up the brine.
Pressure Canning or Water Bath Canning Pickled Beets
If you want to store longer that 2 months, you may want to consider pressure or water bath canning the beets. The recipe will change slightly if you plan on canning the beets rather than just refrigerating them. You will want to add canning salt and follow the canning guidelines at the National Center for Home Food Preservation. You can also pressure can your beets whole, sliced, or cubed by following the Home Food Preservation Guidelines for pressure canning vegetables.
Don’t Toss Out That Beet Juice
After eating up your beets, or even before they are totally gone, add some peeled, hard-boiled eggs to the jars. The beet brine will give the eggs a delicious pickled flavor. Eat the eggs whole or slice them over salads. Need help boiling eggs? Make them in the Instant Pot or use our guide on how to boil eggs on the stovetop.
Frequently Asked Questions about Pickled Beets
With both varieties, you’ll get the same health benefits from beets, but canned brands will have added sugar and sodium. Pickled beets have no fat and little cholesterol.
A single serving of pickled beets is about half a cup, so you could have one or two servings in a day. When enjoyed in moderation, pickled beets are nutritious and high in iron and folate.
Beets have nutrients that can help detox your liver and decrease stress on your kidneys. However, everything in moderation, of course. Beets are also rich in compounds called oxalates, which can contribute to kidney stones.
READ MORE: 35+ Best BBQ Side Dishes
Colorful and Tasty Side Dishes
How to Make Pickled Beets
Easy Pickled Beets Recipe (Only 3 Ingredients)
Ingredients
- 3 pounds red beets (about 8-9 medium beets)
- 2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup sugar
Instructions
- Cut stems off the beets, rinse, and scrub clean. Roast (see above for details on roasting) or boil, skins on, for 25-40 minutes (depending on size) or until soft. After cooked through, allow to cool until beets can easily be handled.
- While beets are cooling, prepare the brine by combining vinegar and sugar in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and boil until sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
- When beets are cool enough to handle, remove skins and cut into slices.
- Gently pack the beets into pint sized jars (will fit into about 3-4 jars) and ladle vinegar mixture/brine into each jar until beets are covered.
- When beets have cooled completely, add lids, and refrigerate. For best results, allow beets to set in the brine for 3-4 days before eating. Beets will last in the refrigerator for 6-8 weeks. See notes above for long-term canning instructions.
Notes
- These pickled beets can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 months.
- Be sure to keep them in an airtight container while in the fridge.
- For best results, refrigerate the beets for at least 3 days so the beets have a good amount of time to soak up the brine.
- Save beet brine to add peeled hard-boiled eggs. Eat the eggs whole or slice them over salads.
Sounds good but there weren’t any details on HOW to roast beets, even though there were several references to the fact that this is your favorite method.
Check out our guide to roasting beets: https://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/roasted-beets/
Can I add Clove to This to make it some what spiced? Giving it a 5 Star review, just on the Simpleness of the Recipe, but I’m sure it will be because of the Taste of the Beets in the End. But MY real intentions are for Pickled Beet Eggs 💜💯
That sounds delicious!
This recipe was super easy! I made it in preparation for thanksgiving and it was so easy and super tasty!
So easy to make, this was my first time! I’m making more this weekend!
I am so glad that I found this recipe because my husband loves them but I had no idea how to make them! He thought they were delicious, thank you!