Is it necessary to cook beetroot before pickling?

Question

I have just boiled beetroot, peeled and sliced it before pickling. This is a fresh pickle, designed to keep in the fridge for up to two weeks only. I don’t sterilise the jar. I’m wondering if I could skip the boiling and pickle it raw, since you get raw shredded beetroot in salads. Has any one tried this, and how good were the results?

Answer 1

I can't speak from experience, as I've only ever made lacto-fermented beets (which are uncooked), but I found two recipes from generally trust-worthy sources which are (mostly) uncooked.

Pickled Beets With Caraway - NY Times

Quick-Pickled Spiced Beets - Food Network Magazine

In both recipes, the beets are very thinly cut, with a mandolin if available, packed in a jar, and then covered with hot brine. As in, you boil water, vinegar, sugar and optionally spices, then without letting the brine cool, pour it over the beets. If the beets are thin enough, this will cook them at least slightly.

Answer 2

You can quick-pickle raw beets just fine without parboiling.

A few points you may want to consider:

• Beets are hard, so while for example carrots soften enough when cut into rather coarse sticks or slices, I recommend thinner cuts for beets. You want “crunchy”, not “a challenge to chew”. This will also help the brine to penetrate better, amping up the pickle flavor and the preserving effect.
• Raw beets have a quite earthy flavor, they are significantly less sweet than cooked beets or other root vegetables. You may want to use a slightly more generous attitude when spicing your brine.

Apart from that, have fun with experimenting!

Answer 3

Absolutely. I pickle raw root vegetables often without cooking them beforehand. No need to worry about a "cooked" veggie if you are looking for a softer beet. The acid in vinegar acts as a tenderizer and the salt will alter the beets PH level which will begin to make your veggies a little softer, but will leave you with still the crunch of a raw vegetables.

The longer the vegetable sits in the brine, the softer it will become in a quick pickle.