Gingered Beet Pickles
Take a beauty shot.
Weigh your beets!
Slice some ginger.
Slice your beets (on a mandoline, if you have one). That's beet juice, not blood!
A nice pile of beets.
In a pan, you heat water, vinegar, salt, and sugar.
Simmer the ginger in this mixture.
Add the beets. You will think there's not enough liquid. Be patient -- the heat will draw moisture out of the beets.
They'll end up looking like this.
As soon as they're beginning to lose their crunch, pour them into a bowl to cool.
Get your jar ready. Any heat-proof jar will work.
Fill 'er up.
Top with the beet and ginger broth.
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Author Notes: When I was visiting my mother in Florida, she whipped up a batch of these gingered beet pickles every couple of days, and served them with sandwiches at lunch, and on burger night. They come from Matt Lee and Ted Lee's latest book The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern. - amanda
Makes 1 quart
- One 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into 1/8-inch thick disks
- 1 cup distilled white vinegar
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 1/4 pound beets, peeled and very thinly sliced (using a mandoline, if you have one)
- Pour 1 cup water into a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, and add the ginger, vinegar, salt, and sugar. When the brine simmers, add the beets, and when it returns to a simmer, continue to cook for 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, cover loosely, and let cool to room temperature. Transfer to a quart-size glass container with a lid, and seal tightly. Chill further in the refrigerator for 1 hour or until ready to serve. The pickles will keep in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
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3 months ago mbj913
just cooked and can already tell they will be great.
6 months ago Butternut
Any tips/tricks for peeling raw beets? Have only ever peeled them after roasting, when the skins slip right off. Any advice would be much appreciated!
6 months ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
I like using a serrated peeler for beets because it doesn't cut very deep -- otherwise you can lose a fair amount of beet.
9 months ago bunditoast
sardine ochazuke?
9 months ago gingerroot
I've been making WinnieAb's recipe, with slight variation depending on what I have on hand: http://www.food52.com/recipes...
It is delicious on its own, but I love the contrasting punch of flavor that these gingered beet pickles add.
12 months ago gingerroot
These are delicious. One favorite pairing is to serve these with sardine ochazuke.
12 months ago AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
Oh that sounds divine! "Beet pickles" and "sardines" in the same sentence, no less, makes my mouth start to water!! ;o)
12 months ago gingerroot
Hi AJ! It is so good -- just adding the comment today made me want to have it tonight for dinner. It's also not a far cry from the typical pickled veggies that might accompany a traditional meal of ochazuke.
over 1 year ago Tammy @speckleofdirt
I love everything about beets. Even as a young girl I would ask for the can...it wasn't until my farmer's market days as a new mom, that I discovered the beauty of a fresh one. Thanks for sharing!
almost 2 years ago Spork
delicious and easy....just watch out for the ginger slices!
almost 2 years ago frankieolives
i want to make some just to line them up on the shelf and look at them, how beautiful!
almost 2 years ago aargersi
Abbie is a trusted source on General Cooking.
I made a batch of these last night with golden beets. They are about the prettiest thing I have ever seen! I may have eaten a few while still warm ....
almost 2 years ago frankieolives
so hard not to, i agree!
almost 2 years ago kerry f.
Do you know if I could use raw apple cidar vinegar instead?
almost 2 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Should work just fine.
almost 2 years ago MyGardenersTable
I just made these with the last spring beets I pulled today. Wonderfully crisp and tasty. One little remark: when I handle raw beets a lot, like here slicing them with a mandoline, I always wear disposable gloves. There are so many situations where I cannot avoid getting my hands really dirty in the garden, so in the kitchen I do everything to make sure you cannot tell from my hands the next day what I have been cooking... - The beet greens toughened in the summer heat so I don't have any to try the other recipe right now but I definitely will in the fall.
almost 2 years ago borntobeworn
I made this last night and took them to work to share. They were a huge hit! Since it made 2 jars, I gave one to a friend to share with her family (since it says they will only last 2 weeks in the fridge). I generally don't like pickled beets that you find on salad bars because of the texture and taste but these are awesome! My guy doesn't usually like beets so we'll see if he's a convert :) He never used to like beet greens either and he loved those!
almost 2 years ago zabiene
do we have to cook the beets or do we use them raw?
almost 2 years ago zabiene
ok it's a stupid question :-)
cook for 4 minutes and afterwards the pickle will tender the beets?
almost 2 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Not a stupid question! The 4 minutes plus pickling will cook the beets enough. They should be a little crisp. But make sure you slice them thinly. If they're thicker than 1/8-inch, you might want to simmer for 5 or 6 minutes.
almost 2 years ago innoabrd
I love beets...don't cook them enough they're one of two foods (the other being avocado) my wife generally can't stand. Pickles, however, I can hoard for myself!
almost 2 years ago thirschfeld
I will be making these, I like to pickle beets with lovage too, and then I do the classic as well. Looks like this Winter will have three kinds of beets in store for us.
over 1 year ago Droplet
I love lovage,too. For pickled things my grandmother used to use a plant that is a very close relative to the lovage, but is slightly different. The leaves are slightly larger (shaped exactly the same) and the stems are thicker (still shaped the same and still have that hollow structure). My grandmother did not speak english so I have been trying to figure out what the name of that plant might be. Any clue?
6 months ago Sashinka
Could that be Sorrel?
almost 2 years ago AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
To die for. Simply to die for. I don't usually buy or cook beets in the summer (as I typically eat them all winter), but I'm making an exception for these. I adore pickles of all kinds, and these sound positively divine. ;o)