Chef Juliette
The Seasoning of Salads
Five dressings, one governing lesson: match fat and acid to the salad itself, from tender lettuce under fresh cream to bitter dandelion leaves glossed with hot bacon fat.
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Salads de Betterave (Beetroot Salad)
Created by Chef Juliette
Based on No. 1986, Salads de Betterave (Beetroot Salad), from Le Guide Culinaire (1907) by Auguste Escoffier
Salade de Betteraves proves that baking, not boiling, is the whole argument: concentrated garnet sweetness, tender baked onion, sharp mustard, and herbs cut into a weeknight salad worth making ahead.
Salads
French
Weeknight
Make Ahead
Budget Friendly
25 min
Active Time
1 hr 20 min cook•2 hr 20 min total
Yield4 servings
Salade de Betteraves (beetroot salad) teaches a plain but useful truth: beetroot belongs in the oven, not a pot of water. Baking keeps its sweetness inside, deepens its earthy flavor, and leaves the flesh firm enough to cut into julienne, fine matchstick strips, or thin roundels without collapsing.
The original entry assumed a working range where the beetroot could bake while an onion rested in banked cinders, and it gave no quantities because the cold kitchen prepared whatever service required. At home, the cinders become a foil-wrapped, skin-on onion baked beside four portions of beetroot. The ash bed was brigade scaffolding and can go; baking both vegetables without water is the dish and must stay. One cook, one stove, one evening.
The finished salad should be garnet-bright and lightly glossy, with sweet onion disappearing into the sharp dressing and herbs lifting every bite. Before you touch a knife, bake the beetroot whole, with its skin and root intact. That is the step that decides everything afterward.
Salade de betteraves belongs to the French cuisine bourgeoise table, where cooked beetroot served as both a salad in its own right and a colorful accompaniment to compound salads and charcuterie. In the classical garde-manger, the cold kitchen, it was cut into julienne or roundels so it seasoned evenly without becoming a mash. The telling correction is that the canon preferred oven-baked beetroot to boiled: the oven preserved its sweetness, while the hearth's cinders gently softened the onion used to flavor it.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
medium red beetroots
Quantity
4 medium (about 2 lb / 900 g)
scrubbed, leaves trimmed while roots remain intact
medium yellow onion
Quantity
1 medium (about 5 oz / 150 g)
unpeeled
red wine vinegar
Quantity
2 tablespoons (30 ml / 30 g)
Dijon mustard (optional)
Quantity
2 teaspoons (10 ml / 10 g)
omit for the oil-dressed version
sunflower or grapeseed oil
Quantity
4 tablespoons (60 ml / 55 g)
fine sea salt
Quantity
¾ teaspoon (3.75 ml / 4 g)
divided
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
¼ teaspoon (1.25 ml / 0.5 g)
mixed flat-leaf parsley and chives
Quantity
3 tablespoons loosely packed (45 ml / 8 g)
finely chopped
cool water (optional)
Quantity
1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g)
only if needed to rescue the dressing
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| medium red beetrootsscrubbed, leaves trimmed while roots remain intact | 4 medium (about 2 lb / 900 g) |
| medium yellow onionunpeeled | 1 medium (about 5 oz / 150 g) |
| red wine vinegar | 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 30 g) |
| Dijon mustard (optional)omit for the oil-dressed version | 2 teaspoons (10 ml / 10 g) |
| sunflower or grapeseed oil | 4 tablespoons (60 ml / 55 g) |
| fine sea saltdivided | ¾ teaspoon (3.75 ml / 4 g) |
| freshly ground black pepper | ¼ teaspoon (1.25 ml / 0.5 g) |
| mixed flat-leaf parsley and chivesfinely chopped | 3 tablespoons loosely packed (45 ml / 8 g) |
| cool water (optional)only if needed to rescue the dressing | 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •13 by 18-inch rimmed sheet pan
- •Heavy-duty foil
- •Sharp chef's knife or mandoline with hand guard
- •Large glass or stainless-steel mixing bowl
- •Small whisk
Instructions
- 1
Bake Without Water
Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Leave the beetroot skins and roots intact so their juices remain inside, then wrap each beetroot loosely in foil and set them on a rimmed sheet pan. Wrap the unpeeled onion separately and place it beside them. Bake the onion until completely tender when pressed, 45 to 55 minutes, and the beetroot until a thin skewer reaches the center with almost no resistance, 60 to 80 minutes depending on size. Do not accept a firm center; if the skewer catches, rewrap the beetroot and give it another 10 minutes. Ça se rattrape.
- 2
Peel While Warm
Open the parcels carefully and let the vegetables cool until they can be handled, about 15 minutes. Rub the beetroot skins away with a folded kitchen towel, using a small knife only on stubborn patches. Unwrap the onion, discard its papery skin and any dry outer layer, then chop the soft flesh very finely. Keep every drop of onion juice; it belongs in the salad.
- 3
Cut Evenly
Choose one shape. For roundels, slice the beetroot crosswise about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick. For julienne, cut those slices into neat strips about ⅛ inch (3 mm) wide. Even cutting is not decoration here: pieces of one thickness take the dressing at the same rate and remain distinct under the fork.
- 4
Whisk the Dressing
Whisk the vinegar, Dijon mustard, ½ teaspoon of the salt, and the pepper in a large nonreactive bowl. Add the oil in a thin stream while whisking until the vinaigrette moutardée (mustard vinaigrette) looks lightly creamy. For the source's oil-dressed version, omit the mustard and whisk the vinegar and oil together; the dressing will remain loose, which is exactly right. If the mustard dressing separates stubbornly, whisk the cool water in a clean bowl and slowly beat the separated dressing into it. Ça se rattrape.
- 5
Dress While Warm
Add the warm beetroot and finely chopped baked onion to the bowl. Fold gently with two large spoons, using only three-quarters of the dressing at first, then leave the salad for 20 minutes. Warm beetroot drinks in seasoning; flooding it at once only leaves a red puddle underneath. If it tastes dry after resting, add the reserved dressing one spoonful at a time.
- 6
Finish With Herbs
Fold in the parsley and chives once the beetroot is cool enough that the herbs stay bright. Taste and add the remaining salt only if needed, followed by another touch of vinegar if the sweetness has softened the salad's edge. Serve cool or at room temperature, never numb from the refrigerator. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Choose plain red beetroot of similar size so every root finishes together. Large and small roots sharing one tray create the tiresome choice between an undercooked center and an overdone edge.
- •A mandoline makes quick roundels, but use its guard from the first cut, not when the beetroot has become too small to hold safely. A sharp chef's knife makes an equally good julienne and stains fewer pieces of equipment.
- •The source permits mustard sauce or oil according to preference. For the oil version, omit the Dijon, season the warm beetroot first with vinegar and salt, then fold in the oil so the acid reaches the vegetable rather than sliding off its surface.
- •Serve this beside roast chicken, cold beef, lentils, or a plate of charcuterie. A light Beaujolais can manage the earthy beetroot, but keep the vinegar measured; an aggressively sour salad is no friend to wine.
- •The salad keeps well for three days in the refrigerator. Bring it toward room temperature before serving and refresh the herbs, because cold mutes both sweetness and seasoning.
Advance Preparation
- •Bake and peel the beetroot and onion up to three days ahead. Refrigerate them separately in covered containers, keeping any onion juices.
- •The salad may be dressed a day ahead, which gives the beetroot time to absorb the mustard and vinegar. Add the chopped herbs shortly before serving so they remain green and fresh.
- •If the chilled salad has absorbed every trace of dressing, loosen it with 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g) each of oil and red wine vinegar before bringing it to the table.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 240g)
Calories
235 calories
Total Fat
14 g
Saturated Fat
2 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
12 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
635 mg
Total Carbohydrates
25 g
Dietary Fiber
7 g
Sugars
17 g
Protein
4 g
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