Grandma's Pickled Beets

These sweet pickled beets start with canned whole beets, which means you skip the messy boiling-and-peeling step entirely. The pickling brine is dead simple: white vinegar brought to a boil with ¾ cup of sugar stirred in slowly until dissolved.

Adding back some of the reserved beet juice from the can does two things. It deepens that earthy beet flavor in the brine and gives the liquid a richer, darker color that looks great in the jar.

The sweet-to-tart ratio here leans sweet, which is the old-fashioned style. That ¾ cup of sugar against half a cup of vinegar makes these more candy-like than puckery. If you grew up with grandma’s pickled beets at holiday dinners alongside roast beef or pork, this is that exact flavor.

Let them sit in the jars for several days before cracking them open. The beets need time to absorb the brine all the way through. Patience pays off here.

Chef Tips

• Dissolve the sugar slowly into the boiling vinegar, stirring nonstop. Dumping it all at once can cause crystallization
• Keep the beets whole for a prettier presentation. They absorb brine more slowly but hold their shape beautifully
• Sterilize jars with boiling water right before filling. Hot brine into hot jars prevents cracking
• These keep in the refrigerator for up to a month once opened

Variations

• Spiced pickled beets: Add a cinnamon stick and 4 whole cloves to the brine for a warm, holiday-spiced version
• Onion rings: Tuck thin slices of raw white onion into the jars before sealing for a tangy, crunchy bonus