Easy Sugar-Free Pickled Beetroot Recipe (AIP, Paleo)
Looking for a tangy, naturally sweet way to enjoy beets that you can enjoy on your AIP or Paleo journey? Something that adds a bit of flavor and brightness? If yes, then these homemade pickled beets are for you! This recipe is free from refined sugars, preservatives and additives.
I love to have a big batch in the fridge, ready for any occasion! I hope you will love this recipe as much as we do!
Pickled Beets to help add variety and flavor to AIP meals
Most Fridays we have burgers. Ken has been making our burgers from scratch for years, so it was easy enough to adapt them to be AIP compliant burgers. And because I am celiac and I don’t like most gluten free rolls, I just have them wrapped in lettuce.
But being on the AIP elimination diet, and not having mayonnaise, cheese, BBQ sauce, pickles, or anything else to go with them, I was not really enjoying the burgers that much anymore. So we played around a bit and came up with recipes for pickled beetroot, pickled cucumbers and pickled red onion to help spruce up the burgers and add something juicy and flavorful to the meal!
Having a few different condiments to add to your burger helps bring variety! One day we might have burgers with pickled beets, another with pickled red onion or chimichurri. Or a combination of these.
Plus we love to add the pickled beetroot as a side dish to main meals. And my favorite, add some pickled beets to a chicken salad!
Why should we make our own Pickled Beetroot?
Store bought pickled beets are usually full of additives, preservatives and refined sugars. And sometimes added spices that are not compliant with the elimination phase of the Autoimmune Protocol. Luckily, making your own pickled beets is super easy!
With a few simple swaps, we can make our own pickled beetroot. Skip the refined sugar and add some honey. No need for preservatives, as the apple cider vinegar does a great job in preserving the beets.
Plus apple cider vinegar has some amazing health benefits. I am not going into them here, but you can read up on the benefits in this article.
Have too many beets from your garden? This is an excellent way of using some of these!
How to make sugar-free pickled beetroot
Preparing pickled beets is quite easy. A bit messy, cause that’s what beets are, but so worth the mess!
Start off by trimming the greens off. Only the greens, keep the tops on for now. Wash the beets and place them in a large pot. Fill the pot with water and make sure they are all covered.
Bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat and let the beets simmer until they are cooked. Drain the water and let cool.
Once they are cool enough to handle, cut off the ends and peel the beets. I do this by rubbing the skin off with my thumb.
Once they are all peeled, slice or dice them in whichever way you like to eat them. We like to cut the beets in half and then slice them. Try to aim for evenly sliced thickness or evenly sized cubes.
In a bowl, mix the apple cider vinegar, water and honey. Taste the mixture to make sure you like the balance between sweet and acid.
Place the beets in a jar, and top it off with the vinegar mixture. You want to make sure the beets are all covered. Close the jar, give it a good shake and they will be ready to enjoy in a few hours. The next day will be better but in a pinch, a few hours will do if they are thinly sliced.
The best part of this recipe is that it isn’t rocket science, and if your measurements are slightly off, it is easy to adjust. And if you like it sweeter, or less sweet, you can easily adjust the balance. Adjust the recipe to fit your and your family’s taste buds!
If you prefer, you can roast, instead of boiling the beetroot. Slightly different preparation steps, but once cooked, the process remains the same. Easy peasy!
Storage tips
I am pretty sure you can pressure can these and store them for a long long time. But we have not tried that. I seal mine in an airtight container and keep them in the fridge. They last us quite a few weeks.
I can’t say I have ever had any go bad. Key is to try and keep enough liquid in the jar to cover the beets. After taking some beets out to serve, shake the jar to make sure they all settle down below the liquid.
And of course, every time you take some from the jar, make sure to use a clean fork or spoon!
What pairs well with pickled beetroot?
These AIP pickled beets are incredibly versatile—here are some of our favorite ways to enjoy them:
- As a salad topper – Add them to a chicken salad for a tangy, colorful boost.
- On AIP burgers – Wrap your burger in lettuce and layer on some pickled beets for flavor, moisture, and crunch. They pair beautifully with sweet potato fries and a dollop of chimichurri.
- As a side dish – Serve alongside any main meal to brighten up your plate.
- In tacos or wraps – Try them with AIP-friendly pulled pork in lettuce cups or cassava wraps.
- Straight from the jar – Honestly, they’re delicious enough to snack on as-is!
Pickled Beetroot
Equipment
- large pot with lid
- cutting board
- sharp kitchen knife
- jar with lid for storing beetroot (1.5L jar)
- bowl or measuring jug to mix the pickling juice
- measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- 3-4 lbs fresh beetroot
- 2 cups apple cider vinegar
- ½ tsp table salt
- 8 tsp honey
Instructions
Prepare Beetroot
- Cut off the greens, but leave beetroot intact.
- Wash beetroot, scrub with soft brush if needs, be to remove any dirt.
- Place in a large pot and cover with cold water.
- Bring to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer for 30-50 minutes. This is dependent on the size of the beetroot. Larger beets will take longer to cook.
- With a fork, pierce the largest beetroot to see if they are soft. Once it is soft, remove from heat.
- Drain and let cool until you can handle the beetroot with your hands.
- Cut off the ends.
- With your hands, peel off the skin. For well cooked beets this is done fairly easily by applying some pressure with your thumb and rubbing the skin off.
- Slice or cube the beetroot into the size you would like. We prefer slices, but cubes work just as well.
Prepare Pickling Juice
- Into your pickling jar or a jug, measure out the vinegar and add salt to it, making sure it is fully dissolved.
- Add honey, again making sure it is fully dissolved.
- Taste the pickling juice to make sure you like the balance of sweet and acid. If you want it sweeter just add more honey.
Combine
- Fill your jar with beetroot, leaving about 1 inch gap from the top.
- Iif your pickling juice was mixed in a jug or bowl, add enough pickling juice to cover all the beetroot.
- Note: Beetroot is quite dense in a jar and does not need a lot of liquid to cover it, but it is very possible that you will need to add maybe another cup of vinegar, a 1/4 teaspoon of salt and about 4 teaspoons of honey to cover it all.
- Seal the jar, shake and store in the refrigerator.
Notes
Share the Love!
If you make this AIP pickled beetroot recipe, I would love to hear from you! Snap a photo and tag me over on Instagram. It truly makes my day to see your kitchen magic. You can also pin this recipe on Pinterest to keep it handy for your next batch of gut-loving goodness.
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