How to Make Old-World Pickled Beets

When I was a little kid my dad and I raised beets in the garden out behind the garage.  He counted on my help with their care - nurturing with weeding, thinning and finally the harvest and pickling.  Roasted beets are good - pickled beets are better.  Dad never met a pickled beet he didn't like.  Come to think of it - all of the old timers in the family like pickled beets.  

Me too. 

If you’re looking for an extra-special treat cut some of the tender-young beet tops early in the season. Soak in cold water to remove any grit, rinse and drain. Sautéed beet tops are not only delicious - they're chock-full of vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants. They are also Gluten-Free. 

Anyway, in the early days of the Door County garden I suffered a stretch of three years that my beets failed.  They either germinated and died or never germinated.  Since 2012 beets have been both reliable and abundant. Sowing your crop at regular intervals results in continued production while avoiding an overwhelming harvest. If you like pickled veggies here's a step-by-step guide to pickling your own beets.  They're a terrific side any time of year – especially when entertaining during the holidays and awesome on a toasted peanut butter sandwich. Enjoy!

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Pickled Beets
A bunch of garden beets
2 large garden onions – peeled and sliced
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 sticks cinnamon
1 T whole allspice
1 ½ t canning salt
3 ½ cups apple cider vinegar
1 ½ cups water
 

Hose-off your beets on the grass. 

Trim-off the tops leaving a couple of inches of stem and the tap root. Reserve the tops from the smaller beets for sautéing greens.  Soak the beets in a sink-full of cold water to remove the remaining grit. Transfer them to a pot of boiling water and cook 40 minutes until tender.  Add your beets to the pot beginning with the largest first.  At five minute intervals progressively add more beets from largest to smallest with the last of them added at the 30 minute mark.  This way they will all be cooked-thru at the same time. Transfer the cooked beets to a sink-full of cold water to cool.  Combine everything else except the onions in a non-reactive pot and bring the brine to a slow boil.  Simmer 15 minutes. 

Returning to the sink slice-off the beet tops and tap roots allowing the skin to slip-off.  Set aside your whole beets. Keeping the residue of beet tops, skins and roots in the sink makes clean-up a snap.  Slice the beets with a mandolin and pack into pint jars.  Apportion your sliced raw onion as you fill.  I like to start with a layer of raw garden onion on the bottom and finish with a layer on the top - beets in-between.  Remove the cinnamon from the pot and ladle the hot brine over the contents of the jars leaving 1/2 inch of head space.  Add lids and rings and process pints 30 minutes in a boiling water bath. I ended-up with nine pints - I did double the brine recipe and there was enough for a dozen pints.

On a whim I threw a tablespoon of Penzeys Sweet Dried Ginger Bits in the brine mix.  Improvisation is the spice of life.  Pun intended. 

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Pro Tip - Use non-reactive cookware. When canning - cleanliness is right up there with Godliness. A dishwasher will sterilize your jars on the ‘Sanitize’ cycle. Boil water in a Pyrex measuring cup for sterilizing your lids. Make sure your lids have 'popped' before storing canned goods in your bunker.