Pickled Beets

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Pickled Beets

Beets are my most favorite crop from our garden, that is if the deer and rabbits do not get to them first.

The process of canning fresh beets to be honest is a full days work in a hot kitchen in the middle of summer. But, reaping the rewards of those delicious blood red jewels is worth the time and effort.

Time: 4-5 hours.    Difficulty: Moderate-hard

Hardware mise en place (everything gathered together)

Roasting pan
Hot water canner
6-8 pint size canning jars and rings
New cannnig sealing lids
Bag of ice
Sharp knife
Large bowls
Cutting board or mat
Large sauce pan
Recipe mise en place, Pickled Sweet Beets

Recipe:

6 pounds beets, any variety
2 1/2 c. Water
2 c. Vinegar, cider or white
1 1/2 c. Sugar, brown or white
1/2 tsp. Allspice
1/4 tsp. Cloves, ground
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1 Tbls. Canning Salt, Kosher can be substituted

The beet process:

Take all ingredients except for the beets and bring the pickling brine to a boil, reduce heat and keep at a simmer.

Preheat oven to 400°F, wash beets and trim tops leaving about 2 inches if greens are still on. Place in roasting pan, cover and place in oven for approximately 15 to 25 minutes depending on the size of the beets. Make an ice bath in a large bowl, clean sink or tub. Remove beets from roaster when they are just fork tender. You will have to check frequently during the roasting process. When beets are fork tender immediately put in ice water to “shock” and stop the cooking process.

I like to use disposable gloves at this point so my hands are not stained pink for the rest of the week. Take shocked beets out of the ice water and rub the skins off of the beet, if they are fork tender they will slip right off. Use a sharp knife and cut the remaining stems off of the top and place the beets in a clean bowl.

The cannning process:

This site is very helpful if you have never canned before, but if you have we will jump right in to getting our beets preserved. Take your clean and steril jars and put your beets into them leaving about 1” of head space available at the top. You can put them in whole, sliced, diced or quartered, however you like them. Take hot brine and ladle over jared beets leaving 1/2″ of headspace. Wipe mouths of jars with a damp clean paper towel and place new hot lids on top and secure with clean jar rings, do not over tighten the rings. Water process for 20 minutes, turn off heat, remove canner lid and let rest in hot water an additional 10 minutes.

Remove from water bath and place on a folded kitchen towel, this is to prevent any sudden shock to the glass that could make it crack or explode. Be especially careful in you have marble or granite counter tops. Listen and check that jars are sealed by tapping the top of the lid, it should not pop back up. Let jars cool to room temperature, wipe clean and store for up to 2 years at room temperature.

Refrigerate after opening, for best flavor let rest for a minimum of 4 weeks.

Enjoy!!

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