Pickled Beets & Carrots (with canning instructions)

Vinegar, salt, and sugar are nature’s preservatives. Pickling vegetables in vinegar and spices is a safe and simple way to preserve and infuse them with a deliciously piquant flavor. My pickle blends are always a big hit with our visitors at Sueño de Vida. We eat them with almost everything.

Ingredients

• 4 large beets, scrubbed and peeled

• 2 large carrots, scrubbed and peeled

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 2 scallions or Egyptian onions

• 1 inch chunk of ginger, peeled and thinly sliced

Basic Pickle Mix

• 1 cup cider vinegar

• 1 1/2 cups distlled white vinegar

• 1/3 cup salt

• 1/3 cup sugar

• savory or bay leaf

• 1/2 tsp of each: cumin seeds, coriander seeds, whole peppercorns

• a few cloves or star anise (optional)

Utensils

• Grater

• Large bowl

• Medium sized saucepan

• Wooden spoon

• 4 clean pint jars with clean lids for sealing

• Larger pot with lid for hot packing 

• Tongs for lifting out jars

Directions

1. Grate/Shred half the the beets and carrots into a large bowl. Sprinkle generously with salt and massage the salt into the veggies. Grate in the other half, sprinkle with salt, and massage it all in.

2. Wash your hands. They will be a little purple from the beets, but it wears off quickly.

3. Cover the bowl with a cloth or towel and set aside

4. Meanwhile, organize your utensils and prep your other ingredients.

5. Make sure your jars and lids are clean and in perfect condition (no nicks)

6. Sterilize the jars and lids: Fill a large pot of water and place the jars and lids in the water. Bring the water and jars slowly up to a boil. Boil for two minutes, then lower to simmer and put a lid on the pot to keep the jars hot

7. Mince the garlic and slice the onion

8. Mix the white and cider vinegars in a medium sized saucepan. Add the garlic, onion, and spices.

9. Heat the contents of of the medium saucepan gradually. As the vinegar gets warmer, add the salt and sugar. Stir to dissolve. Bring to a low boil for five minutes, then lower to simmer.

10. Drain the beets and carrots through a colander. Press with a fork to squeeze out excess moisture

Canning Instructions

1. To keep everything hot and sterile, I pack my jars one at a time. Carefully, lift a jar from the hot water with tongs, drain the hot water back into the pot, and place the jar on the counter.

2. Pack the jar loosely with the salted beet/carrot mixture. Leave half an inch of headspace at the top.

3. Pour the hot vinegar pickle mix into the jar over the beets and carrots. Leave half an inch of headspace at the top.

4. Carefully lift a hot lid from the hot water, and with a towel or kitchen mitt, tighten the lid onto the jar.

5. Wipe any spills dribbles off the packed jar and place it gently back in the hot water.

6. Repeat steps 1 thru 5 until all your jars are packed and in the pot.

7. Make sure the jars are submerged at least an inch below the level of the water. If not, add more water or use a bigger pot if necessary!

8. Bring the water back up to a boil with the jars submerged. Gently nudge them apart with a wooden spoon if they clink against each other. *If you start doing large canning projects, you can invest in a canning rack.

9. Boil the jars for at least ten minutes. You will see bubbles escaping from under the lids — that is the air being forced from the jars which is what creates the seal to preserve the contents. Higher altitudes require a longer boiling time. Check the internet for the correct processing time for where you live. (Simply Google “water bath canning altitude.”)

10. Once the jars have boiled for the required time, turn off the heat and let the jars sit in the water for 5-10 minutes to cool down. If you lift them out right away, the abrupt change in temperature can crack the jars.

11. Ok, congratulations! Lift out your jars and admire them in the light. They are beautiful! Stored in a cool, dark place, they will keep for at least 9 months.

12. Enjoy with everything! Pickled Vegetables pair wonderfully with creamy dishes.

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At Sueño de Vida we work in a meaningful way to heal land ravaged by deforestation. How meaningful? According to a recent UN Foresight Brief on climate change, 

--It is of the utmost importance to stop deforestation and to increase reforestation efforts around the world. Agricultural practices should focus on soil building, year-round soil cover with plants and the use of agroforestry methods.

That is exactly what we do here at SdV. You can help by helping us do what we do every day: plant forests that nurture soil, people, and community.

Click HERE to donate directly to our reforestation fund OR make a monthly pledge on our Patreon.

Thank you.

Kristen Krash is the director and co-founder of Sueño de Vida, a regenerative agroforestry farm, education center, nature reserve in Ecuador’s Chocó Andino Cloudforest. Prior to moving, Kristen was known for her guerrilla gardens — productive green spaces she created in any available space. Now an urban transplant in the South American rain forest, she has adapted her urban gardening and sustainability skills to large-scale reforestation of degraded land. She takes a practical and accessible approach to helping others achieve more balance and self-sufficiency in their lives.

Kristen’s articles and interviews have been featured on popular sustainability platforms like Abundant Edge and The Mud Home, and in the Rainforest Regeneration Curriculum at the Ecological Restoration Camps.

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