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Pickled beets in small white bowl

Easy Pickled Beets

It's easy to pickle your own beets! You don't have to can them, just keep them in the fridge! Of course, you can can these as well!

Course Appetizer, Side Dish, snacks, Vegetarian
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 4 pints (approx)
Author Sandy Clifton

Ingredients

  • 3-4 lbs Small Beets (if already cooked, slice ¼" thick)
  • 1 Sweet Onion (such as Walla Walla or Vidalia) sliced thinly
  • 2 cups Water* (or use 1 cup of the water from cooking the beets, if you have it, and 1 cup of water)
  • 2 ½ cups Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1 tsp Salt (I prefer pickling salt, but use what you have)
  • 2 Cinnamon Sticks
  • 2 Tbsp Pickling Spice (put in a spice ball/tea ball, or make a cheesecloth bundle)
  • 1 ¾ cups Sugar

Instructions

Cook Beets (if not already cooked)

  1. Stovetop: Wash and scrub beets. Leave about 2 inches of the stems on them. Cover with water and cook until fork tender. Depending on the size of your beets, this could take 30 minutes to an hour. *Reserve 1-2 cups of the beet water if you can.

  2. Peel beets and slice ¼ inch thick. If using very small beets, 1"-2" in diameter, you can leave them whole, if you want.

  3. Electric Pressure Cooker: See my instructions for Instant Pot Beets to cook beets using an electric pressure cooker.

Make the Pickling Liquid

  1. Add all ingredients except for the beets and onions to a pot and bring to a low boil, stirring occasionally to be sure sugar dissolves.

  2. Turn down heat, add onions, and cook on low for 5-10 minutes with the lid on, to reduce evaporation.

  3. Add the cooked & sliced beets and simmer until heated through and onion is tender. Remove spice ball and cinnamon sticks.

If Not Canning

  1. Fill jars with the beets/onion, then ladle some pickling liquid into the jar and just cover the beets.

  2. Let cool and put the lids on the jars and keep in the refrigerator.

If You Are Canning

  1. Pack the hot beets and onions into prepared hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Ladle hot pickling liquid over beets, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 30 minutes in a boiling-water canner.

Recipe Notes

Adapted from Scrambled Henfruit