Make Ahead

Spiced Beet Salad with Citrus-Ginger Dressing

by:
September 19, 2015
4.3
6 Ratings
Spiced Beet Salad with Citrus-Ginger Dressing
Photo by James Ransom
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

Inspired by this Carrot Avocado Salad, here, beets get doused in Indian spices and roasted alongside grapefruit and lime halves. The roasted citrus, along with fresh juice too, get made into a dressing with lots of fresh ginger. Add a little mint and yogurt, and you'll forget about the millions of beet and goat cheese salads you've eaten in your lifetime. —Ali Slagle

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 lime
  • 1 small grapefruit
  • 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds (or yellow for a sweeter, milder option)
  • 1 pinch red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried coriander
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 pounds beets, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
  • 1 teaspoon grated ginger
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons chopped mint
  • 1/4 cup pistachios, toasted and chopped
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Cut the lime and grapefruit in half and juice half of each one, reserving the juice and the unjuiced halves, and discarding the juiced halves.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 teaspoon each of grapefruit and lime juice with the mustard seeds, pepper flakes, coriander, turmeric, and 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add a pinch or two of salt and pepper, taste, and adjust. Throw in the beets, grapefruit half, and lime half and mix until everything is coated.
  3. Transfer the mixture to a rimmed baking sheet and roast until the beets are fork tender, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool.
  4. Make the dressing: Whisk together the reserved fresh grapefruit and lime juices, the juice from the roasted grapefruit and lime halves, the ginger and sugar, along with 2 tablespoons olive oil and a few pinches of salt and pepper.
  5. Transfer the beets to a serving bowl or plate, drizzle in a few tablespoons of dressing, and toss to combine. Plate, dollop each with some yogurt and sprinkle with mint and pistachios. Serve.
Tags:

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Darbystone
    Darbystone
  • lgoldenhar
    lgoldenhar
  • Mary Devinat
    Mary Devinat
  • Hollister Vix
    Hollister Vix

Popular on Food52

5 Reviews

Hollister V.
Hollister V. January 22, 2023
Best part was tasting a roasted grapefruit! It was so warm & juicy, just delightful. Not sure what went wrong when I made the dish. The mustard seed imparted no flavor to the beets, and the bitter grapefruit dressing clashed with the beets. Measurements for the citrus might help, but this dressing is not a keeper.
 
Nancy P.
Nancy P. January 8, 2023
Good salad. I didn’t have lime or pistachios, so used lemon and almonds. I loved the citrus dressing - a nice change from my usual roasted beets.
 
Darbystone
Darbystone April 8, 2019
This was a very tasty recipe. Nice contrast of the citrus against the earthiness of the beets. The pistachios added a toasted crunch. I wouldn't change a thing!
 
lgoldenhar
lgoldenhar January 5, 2017
This was a good salad. I always love roasted beets and I loved the different flavor that roasting the grapefruit and lime brought out. As for ingredients, it seems that you only use 4 tbsp of olive oil, not 1/2 a cup (8 tbsp) as the ingredient list suggests.
 
Mary D.
Mary D. November 13, 2015
I love beet salad! A citrus-ginger dressing should be very good with it. I'm not very familiarized with ginger but I want to try.