Pickling beetroot

The Wee ‘Un and I are slightly, well, more than slightly, pink after spending a good part of today pickling beetroot.

We grow a variety of beets, with Cylindra our preferred one for pickling. Other varieties are either clamped in sand or blanched and frozen.

The first part of the task was actually completed yesterday, when we picked just over 2.5kg of actual beets. (We removed the leaves, blanched them and froze them so little goes to waste).

Today, we cleaned the beets, then boiled, sliced and pickled them.

Ingredients

• 2.5kg beetroot (Cylindra)
• 1 litre distilled vinegar (6% acidity)
• 4 mace blades
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp allspice berries
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 1 tsp black mustard seeds
• 4 whole cloves
• Large pinch of chilli flakes

Method

1. Place the vinegar and all the spices in a large saucepan (do not not use copper, brass or iron) and gradually bring to a point where bubbles are rising but the vinegar is not actually boiling. Cover, remove from the heat and leave for 3 hours before straining through muslin.
2. Bring a saucepan full of of water to the place, then place the cleaned but unpeeled beetroots in the water and boil until just tender. (Depending on the size of your beetroots this can be as little as 45 minutes or as much as Drain the beetroots.
3. Now, you can allow the beetroot to cool and pour the cooled vinegar over the top, but I prefer hermetically sealed jars, so rubs the skins off the beetroot while they’re still hot. Slice the beetroot and pack into sterilised, warm jars. (Wash the jars in very hot, soapy water and dry in a warm oven.)
4. Bring the pickling vinegar back up to boiling and then carefully pour the vinegar over the beets, leaving about a quarter of an inch head space. Slide a clean and sterilised knife or skewer between the sides of the jar and the beetroot to remove any air bubbles.
5. Screw the lids tightly onto the bottles and allow to cool. As the jars cool, you should hear the lids snap as the internal air pressure falls.
6. Pickled beetroot is best after a month and for up to nine months, although properly made and sealed batches will keep for up to a year.