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Monday, June 25, 2012

Canning Pickled Beets


Mr. G says that when he lived in Australia, many times instead of tomato slices on hamburgers, they put a slice of sugar beets. When our beets got big enough to harvest, I cooked a few. He seemed a little disappointed since he remembered them being sweeter than the ones I cooked. I decided to pickle some and one variation of the recipe I found was a sweet pickled beet... after consulting with my dear husband, we chose the sweet variation to pickle our first batch of home grown beets...

Here's what I did...

I cooked the beets, leaving the root end and an inch or two of the tops on to prevent them bleeding out.


Once they had simmered for about 30 minutes, I drained them and rinsed in cool water until I was able to handle them comfortably.

I sliced of the root end and the tops and the peels slid right off.

I had every size beet imaginable... some as large as a tennis ball, down to some no bigger than a large marble... the big ones I sliced in 1/4 inch slices, some I left whole, and some I halved or quartered.


I gathered my ingredients together...

The recipe I used said 7 pounds of beets (I only had a little over 3 pounds, so I halved everything)

7 pounds of beets (about 10 cups)
10 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
Allspice (didn't measure the allspice, I just put a few in)
2-1/2 cups white vinegar
1 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar
3 cups sliced onions (optional)

(Like I said before, I halved everything)

For a variation that is not a sweet beet, 3 Tbsp. pickling spice would replace the cloves, cinnamon sticks and allspice... another variation, caraway beets, substitutes 2 Tbsp. caraway seeds and 2 tsp. whole black peppercorns for the pickling spice. And there's always the variation of adding thinly sliced onions to any of the above... I chose to add some onions to mine as well.


I tied my spices into a square of cheesecloth, creating a spice bag.


In a large stainless steel saucepan, I combined the vinegar, water, sugar, onions, and the spice bag. I brought the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. I reduced the heat and boiled gently for 15 minutes, until the spices infused the liquid.


I added the beets to the saucepan and returned the mixture to a boil.


Using a slotted spoon, I ladled the beets and onions into my hot pint jars, leaving a generous 1/2 inch headspace.




I ladled hot pickling liquid into the jars to cover the beets. I removed any air bubbles by running a butter knife between the inside of the jar and the contents, adding more pickling liquid if necessary.


I wiped the jar rims with a damp cloth...


... then put the lids and rings on, tightening the rings to fingertip tightness, and processed in a boiling water bath for 30 minutes... (Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered in water. Bring to a boil and process for 30 minutes)

After processing, I removed the jars from the canner using my jar lifter and set them on a folded dish towel on the counter too cool... and to listen for the PING of each successfully sealed jar.

(since I only had 3 pounds of beets and halved the recipe, I only got 3 pint jars... the entire recipe as it's written above should make about 6 pints)

Pretty Pickled Beets!

26 comments:

  1. looks wonderful and i loved the step by step with pics. Love it

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  2. Thank you for sharing this recipe! I love beets in any form and will make these as soon as I gather the jars and ingredients. I love your detailed directions and pictures.

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  3. I just found your blog last night and have enjoyed all the posts. I am new to canning and have learned so much from all your posts. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and I look forward to more in the future.

    Jenn in NE

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  4. Great post I already picked mine and cooked them with garlic...But more shall come. Thanks it like you
    were reading my blogmind

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    Replies
    1. Yup, I read blogminds ALL the time! HA! Mmmm, cooked with garlic! ~~Granny

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  5. I know it's possible to can pickled eggs with pickled beets.
    Could I use this pickled beets recipe and just add 3 boiled eggs
    per pint?

    Thank You so much for all your recipes -- Chris Em

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    Replies
    1. You surely can give it a try Chris Em... let us know how it turns out! ~~Granny

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  6. I love beets! Once I canned beets & made the "Harvard Beet" the kind in the syrup. I will have to try this recipe. Nothing makes for a great Borcht than homemade pickled beets! Thank you!!
    Kristen

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  7. I would like to know how your husband liked them after they were canned; after all, it seems you made these to please him!

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    Replies
    1. Dunno just yet Sally... it's only been a week or so and I'm not letting him open them for at least a month or two... I'll let ya know! ~~Granny

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  8. Hi Granny! Thanks so much for creating this site. I appreciate it very much! Today is beet day! Do you think I could make these in smaller jars? Do I need to change cooking time at all? Thanks! Ann

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    Replies
    1. Yes, Ann, you certainly can make these in smaller jars and the cooking time would be the same. Happy Canning! ~~Granny

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    2. Thank you so much! I made them and they are so beautiful...now the waiting game begins :)

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  9. Is cinnamon and gloves something you find in all pickled beet recipes?
    http://pantrycook.blogspot.com/

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    Replies
    1. No, this was a sweet pickled beet recipe. ~~Granny

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  10. Have you opened a jar yet? My beets are about ready to harvest and I am waiting to hear how your hubby liked them?

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    1. Haven't opened them yet... I guess it's about time! ~~Granny

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  11. I just need to make sure I am understanding this correctly...you used 10 cups of beets after they were sliced in the recipe (or in your case 1/2 of that)?

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    Replies
    1. Yes, you are understanding correctly! ~~Granny

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  12. This is a great recipe! It is very similar to the one I use. I like it because it calls for less sugar than many others. One variation that I have tried is this: instead of using cinnamon, I put 1-2 homegrown cayenne peppers into each quart. It is not enough to make them really hot, but gives them a pleasant bite. Try it and see if you like it.

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    Replies
    1. Yumm! Steve, that sound like a great idea, love cayenne!!! ~~Granny

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  14. hello! my first time canning beets this year, thought I would have enough pickling juice for the beets but I had some juice left over and was wondering if I could refridge them the juice till I got more beest and how long will it say in fridge.

    ReplyDelete

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