Easy Homemade Pickled Beets

 

Sweet, tangy, and slightly spiced, these pickled beets are great as a side dish, in salads, or on sandwiches. This version is designed for refrigerator pickling, so it doesn’t require traditional canning.

🥣 Ingredients

• 4–5 medium fresh beets
• 1 cup white vinegar
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4–6 whole cloves
• ½ teaspoon black peppercorns
• ½ small red onion, thinly sliced — optional

👩‍🍳 Instructions

1. Cook the beets
Wash the beets and cook them in boiling water until they are fork-tender, usually about 25–30 minutes, depending on their size. Let them cool, then peel and slice them.

2. Make the pickling liquid
Add the vinegar, water, sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and peppercorns to a saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil and stir until the sugar dissolves.

3. Fill the jar
Place the sliced beets and optional onion into a clean glass jar. Pour the hot pickling liquid over them until the beets are covered.

4. Refrigerate
Let the jar cool, close it tightly, and refrigerate. For better flavor, leave the beets overnight before eating.

❤️ How to serve them

Try your pickled beets with:

• 🥗 Green salads
• 🥪 Sandwiches and wraps
• 🍳 Eggs
• 🧀 Cheese boards
• 🍽️ Grilled or roasted meals

Storage: Keep them refrigerated in a sealed container and use within about 4 weeks for this refrigerator-pickle method.

Important: This recipe is for refrigerator pickles, not shelf-stable canned pickles. If you want to store jars at room temperature, use a tested home-canning recipe and follow its processing instructions. The National Center for Home Food Preservation provides a tested pickled-beet canning recipe using 5% acidity vinegar.