Try this simple and delicious way to enjoy beets!
Boiled beets are easy to prepare and are tremendously versatile.
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Ideas for boiled beets
Beets can be boiled ahead and kept in the fridge to add to salads, poké bowls, or served sliced with a garnish, such as horseradish sauce.
Purée them to make a delicious dip, soups, or to incorporate into a batter for healthy chocolate cake.
In India, boiled beets are often used to make a cooling raita.
They are also great served warm with a little butter and sprinkling of salt.
For smoothies, boiled beets blend faster than raw, and are much easier on the blender,
Below is an easy recipe for Boiled Beets, with a simple balsamic dressing.
See more delicious Beet Recipes or you may be interested in this Roasted Beets recipe.
Selecting beets
Select beets which are hard like onions. They should not be soft, wrinkled or damaged.
Tip: Make sure the beets are roughly the same size so they take the same amount of time to cook.
How to boil them
- Wash the beets carefully, taking care not to cut the skin. A tear in the skin will result in loss of flavour and the beet will bleed into the water. Also, leave around 1 inch of the stalk attached and do not remove the root ends.
- In a medium saucepan, cover the beets with enough water so that they are fully submerged. Then bring to a boil, cover, and turn down the heat to simmer for approximately 30 minutes (or more depending on the size of the beets).
- Once the beets are cooked, rinse them under cool water and dry. Now that the beets are tender, the skins will peel off easily.
Boiled beets are so much easier to peel than roasted beets!
Read my guide to beets, for more recipes & information on beets, plus tips such as how to remove the red colour from your hands!
Storing
Boiled beets can be stored in an airtight container and kept in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
They can be frozen too. To ensure the beets do not clump together when frozen, slice or cube them first. Then arrange them on a tray and place in the freezer. Once frozen, remove the beets from the tray and pack in freezer bags. They will keep for up to 6 months.
Use frozen beets to make cold smoothies.
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📋 Recipe
Boiled Beets
Ingredients
- 4 medium beets washed and prepared, see notes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan add enough water so the beets are fully submerged. Bring to a boil, cover and turn down the heat to allow it to simmer for 30 minutes.
- Once cooked, rinse the beets under cool water. Then pat dry and peel away the skins.
- Slice the beets thinly and arrange on a small platter. Drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper.
Notes
Equipment
Nutrition
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If you like this recipe, please do comment and/or give it a star rating. Thank you.
Marie Mortimer
When the beets are cold after cooking, slice or dice them, then, rub a salad bowl with a halved garlic clove, toss the beets into the bowl, add the “vinaigrette” (balsamic vinegar/olive oil/salt and pepper), chop some fresh parsley, toss into the bowl, stir the whole thing and enjoy. You can also crush a garlic clove or dice it to enhance the taste.
Nicole Shroff
Thank you Marie
spankbang
The best thing about cooking beets in an instant pot? The peels basically slide right off once they re done. There s no prep work required just rinse and put em in the pot and cook. The end result: perfectly cooked, fork tender beets!
Nicole
Absolutely! Thank you for your comment.