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  • 1kg beetroot
  • vegetable oil
  • 4-5 tsp coarse crystal sea salt

For the pickling vinegar

Nutrition: per tbsp

  • kcal37
  • fat2g
  • saturates0g
  • carbs4g
  • sugars3g
  • fibre1g
  • protein1g
  • salt0.9g
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Method

  • step 1

    Wash and trim the beetroot, rub each with 1 tbsp vegetable oil, then wrap individually in foil. Roast on a tray at 200C/180C fan/gas 6 for 1 hr or until tender. Cool, peel, then cut into wedges.

  • step 2

    To make the pickling vinegar, put the whole spices in a medium saucepan. Toast over a low heat until they begin to smell aromatic. Add the dried chilli flakes last, as these can easily catch. Add the bay, pour in all of the vinegar and sugar, let it dissolve, and bring to a simmer.

  • step 3

    Pack the beets into sterilised jars (see tip below), add 1 tsp coarse crystal sea salt to each, then pour over the hot vinegar and seal. Ready to eat in 2 weeks, or longer, if you like.

RECIPE TIPS
STERILISING JARS AND EQUIPMENT

Wash jars and lids in hot, soapy water, rinse, then place on a baking tray and put in a low oven for 10 mins or until completely dry. If you want to use rubber seals, remove the seals and cover in just-boiled water. Make sure you sterilise any funnels, ladles or spoons you’re going to be using too. All equipment must be sparklingly clean before you begin, to eliminate bacteria or yeasts from the equation.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT VINEGAR

For pickles to last in the jar, the vinegar must be 6% acidity. White wine and malt vinegars are 6%, but cider vinegar has slightly lower acidity, so is more suitable for chutneys.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT SALT

Do not use table salt for pickling, as the anti-caking agents can give a cloudy, discoloured result. Look for either coarse crystal or coarse grain salt.

COVER THE VEG

Allow a few centimetres of space at the top of the jar and make sure the vegetables are well-covered in vinegar. A pestle or the end of a rolling pin is ideal for pushing the veg down into the vinegar. 

STORING THE PICKLES

When salted or brined and pickled, and kept in a cool, dark place, these pickles should last, unopened, for several months. Softer vegetables, such as beans and cucumbers, are most likely to go soggy sooner, as they are the most watery.

Recipe from Good Food magazine, September 2015

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Comments, questions and tips (28)

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Overall rating

A star rating of 4.6 out of 5.29 ratings

contactcj99169

At the time of making this recipe, the latter part of the ingredient list read: 2 bay leaves 700ml white wine vinegar, plus 3½ tbsp 100g light brown soft sugar.

A little confusing? And no water in the recipe, so the pickling juice is FIERCE... x1000! Unsurprising, as the liquid is…

beasophiealing74506

Wish I’d read the comments before I followed the recipe 🤪 it’s killer hot!

Foxglove32

Had almost exactly 1kg beetroot (before roasting and peeling), don’t know if I packed the jars too full but it only made two 600ml jars plus about half a 300ml jar, a bit less than the minimum the recipe said. Could have also done with a bit more vinegar as it only just covered all the beetroot. Not…

carolwilson&;&;&;

question

I’ve just tasted my first batch. It’s good but too salty for my liking. Can I reduce the salt in my next batch?

smacandrew

question

We have just opened ours (after 8 weeks) and the vinegar is very fierce, much more so than is tasty, the beetroot is tender but very 'hot' is there anything we can do to rescue it? It was made exactly to the recipe, I'd never made it before so I was being very careful.

dandmwaste2oXye2Ds

question

Hi I'm finding it hard to get the mace blades? I can only find ground mace? Do I need this ??.

goodfoodteam avatar
goodfoodteam

Hi, thanks for your question. The mace isn't essential so you can leave it out. Whilst ground mace is fine for flavour it might make your pickle a bit cloudy looking, so we wouldn't recommend it in this particular recipe. We hope this helps. Best wishes, BBC Good Food Team.

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