Homemade Fermented Beets

Packed with nutrients like potassium, magnesium, folate, and Vitamin C, beets are a true superfood.  But add probiotics to all those naturally occurring nutrients and this superfood becomes a SUPER superfood!

Fermenting vegetables has become a popular health trend, and for good reason!  The fermentation process involves lots of natural (good) bacteria that add flavor, nutrients, and digestive enzymes to vegetables.  While probiotic supplements tout some amazing health benefits, homemade fermented vegetables offer the same in tasty and far less expensive form.   

I’ve talked about making fermented vegetables before.  Click HERE for instructions.  But beets are my favorite fermented vegetable of all, and may offer the greatest health benefit.  I love beets any way you prepare them, but these fermented beets are amazing on salads, mixed with cream cheese and spread on bread or crackers, or eaten straight out of the jar. 

Trust me, this is so simple.  If you’re thinking of grandma’s pickled beets and you’re imagining a complicated process destined to confine you to the kitchen all day long, this is not like that!  Anyone can make these with very limited effort. 

This recipe will make 1 pint jar of beets, but it can easily be doubled.  You’ll need a pint jar, 1 bunch (3-4 small) beets , about ½ small onion, 2 garlic cloves, a few sprigs of fresh dill, 1 teaspoon black peppercorns, 2 cups filtered water, and about 1 ½ tablespoons unrefined sea salt.

Start by preparing your vegetables.  Wash, peel, and slice your beets.  You can cut them into coins or cubes, or even shred them if you prefer.  The onions are technically optional, though I think they add a nice flavor to the beets, and they’re also great fermented!  Dice the onions and peel the garlic cloves.  Place your peppercorns, dill sprigs, garlic, and onion in the bottom of the jar.  Top with the sliced beets. 

Tap water contains chemicals that will affect your fermentation, so you need filtered water to make your brine.  Warm it slightly in a saucepan on the stove, then stir in the salt until dissolved.  Immediately remove it from the burner and allow it to cool to room temperature. 

Pour the brine over the beets in the jar, allowing ¾ to 1-inch headspace.  Weigh the vegetables down with a jar weight or shot glass.  You want all the vegetables kept below the water line.  I’ve even used flat round rocks as jar weights — carefully washed, of course! 

Cover the jar with a coffee filter loosely secured with a rubber band.  Gases form during fermentation, and a loose covering allows them to escape.  Now leave the jar on the counter at room temperature and away from sunlight for 7 – 10 days.  Check the surface of your brine every day or two to make sure the vegetables are staying below the brine.  Sometimes a vegetable that pops above the water line will develop a little mold.  If so, just spoon it out and throw it away.  But don’t toss the rest of your vegetables — everything below the brine is still good. 

If you like beets, this is an especially SUPER version of a real superfood.  But even if beets aren’t you favorite, it might be time to start learning to love this amazing, nutrient and probiotic-rich food.