My family and I have long enjoyed slices of canned beetroot with summer salads and sandwiches, in home-made burgers and so on. It used to be something I regularly purchased from the supermarket in summer, but no more! That's because beetroot is super easy to grow, and making your own bottled beetroot is super easy too! Plus, of course, when you make it yourself, you know just what's in it (no nasty preservatives for us, thanks!), bottling (canning) it in a glass jar means no plastic can lining contaminants, and growing and preserving it oneself saves money. Not to mention you get a free bonus - beetroot greens (leaves) are super yummy and nutritious, and they freeze really well - cooking them for dinner involves dumping the frozen greens in a pot of boiling water and cooking for only 2 minutes!
Pickled Beetroot
Ingredients:
3 cups vinegar (I use malt)
2 cups water
2 cups sugar
2 tsp plain salt
prepared beetroot (see below) - note I used about 2 1/2 times above ingredients for about 6 kg of beetroot.
Method:
Bring all ingredients except beetroot to boil in large pot. Add prepared beetroot in small batches, return to boil, then bottle using the overflow method.
3 cups vinegar (I use malt)
2 cups water
2 cups sugar
2 tsp plain salt
prepared beetroot (see below) - note I used about 2 1/2 times above ingredients for about 6 kg of beetroot.
Method:
Bring all ingredients except beetroot to boil in large pot. Add prepared beetroot in small batches, return to boil, then bottle using the overflow method.
How to prepare beetroot:
- Pick fresh beetroot, shaking off worst of dirt, then rinsing
under running water. - Twist off leaves, leaving about an inch of
stems attached to beetroot (to prevent excessive bleeding). Do not remove long tap root at the bottom. - Scrub the beetroot well to remove any remaining dirt.
- Place clean beetroot in a large pot, cover with water, bring to boil and then simmer until tender (about 40-60 mins).
- Drain and allow to cool
- Slip skins off, removing tap root and remaining tops at the same time.
- Slice beets evenly and place in bowl
- They are now "prepared" and ready to be bottled.
Freezing Beet Greens
To prepare beet greens for freezing, pick through leaves and remove any that are damaged. Wash remaining leaves carefully, shake off excess water. Chop leaves roughly, then bag and label before placing in freezer. Simple!
Of course, beet greens can also be eaten raw (in salad or sandwiches) or cooked fresh - freezing is for when you've harvested lots of beetroot and so have more greens than you can use at once.
To prepare beet greens for freezing, pick through leaves and remove any that are damaged. Wash remaining leaves carefully, shake off excess water. Chop leaves roughly, then bag and label before placing in freezer. Simple!
Of course, beet greens can also be eaten raw (in salad or sandwiches) or cooked fresh - freezing is for when you've harvested lots of beetroot and so have more greens than you can use at once.
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