Chef Klaus
Apfelmus
The apple-harvest preserve of the German kitchen, cooked low until the fruit collapses, then kept smooth, tart, and ready for potato pancakes or warm Mehlspeisen.
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Eingelegte Rote Bete
Created by
The ruby pickle of the German winter larder: boiled beetroot sliced into spiced vinegar, sharp enough for herring, mild enough for a Sunday Brotzeit.
Sauces & Condiments
German
Make Ahead
Budget Friendly
Batch Cooking
25 min
Active Time
50 min cook•P1DT1H15M total
Yield3 jars, about 500ml each
Eingelegte Rote Bete belongs to the cold months and the larder shelf. You make it when the roots are cheap, tight, and dark, then you set the jar beside cold pork, rye bread, herring, fried potatoes, or a plate of Wurst. This is not garnish theatre. It's the sharp red thing that wakes up a brown plate.
Im Norden anders, im Süden anders. In the north, I keep it cleaner and sharper because it sits next to Matjes herring and dark rye. Further south, cooks are more likely to soften the vinegar with more sugar, onion, and sometimes a rounder spice hand. I like clove and caraway here: the clove gives warmth, the caraway keeps the beetroot from tasting flat and earthy.
The step that decides the jar is this: cook the beetroot whole, with the skins and root tails on, then peel it after. Cut it before boiling and the colour bleeds into the water, the root goes dull, and you have paid for flavour only to pour it down the sink. Weggeworfen wird nichts. The cooking water stays useful too; a splash in the pickle liquor deepens the colour without weakening the vinegar.
Pour the hot vinegar liquor over warm sliced beetroot so the slices take the spice evenly, then let the jars stand at least one night. Das braucht seine Zeit. The vinegar has to move through the root, not just wet the outside.
Pickled beetroot fits the German winter larder that grew before refrigeration, when stored roots, vinegar, salt, and sugar carried households through the cold season. Beetroot spread widely in central European kitchen gardens in the 18th and 19th centuries, the same period when improved root crops became central to everyday German cooking after state campaigns such as Frederick the Great's potato edicts of 1756. Regional use still splits by table: northern cooks put sharp beet pickles beside herring and rye, while southern and central kitchens often serve sweeter jars with cold meats, fried potatoes, and Sunday leftovers.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
small beetroot
Quantity
1.2kg
scrubbed, roots and tails left intact
white wine vinegar or mild apple vinegar, 5 percent acidity
Quantity
500ml
beet cooking water
Quantity
250ml
sugar
Quantity
120g
fine salt
Quantity
18g
small onion
Quantity
1
thinly sliced
bay leaves
Quantity
2
whole cloves
Quantity
6
caraway seeds
Quantity
1 teaspoon
yellow mustard seeds
Quantity
1 teaspoon
black peppercorns
Quantity
8
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| small beetrootscrubbed, roots and tails left intact | 1.2kg |
| white wine vinegar or mild apple vinegar, 5 percent acidity | 500ml |
| beet cooking water | 250ml |
| sugar | 120g |
| fine salt | 18g |
| small onionthinly sliced | 1 |
| bay leaves | 2 |
| whole cloves | 6 |
| caraway seeds | 1 teaspoon |
| yellow mustard seeds | 1 teaspoon |
| black peppercorns | 8 |
Equipment Needed
- •Large pot for boiling beetroot
- •3 clean 500ml preserving jars with lids
- •Jar funnel
- •Small saucepan for pickling liquor
- •Boiling water bath pot if storing on the shelf
Instructions
- 1
Boil the beets
Put the scrubbed beetroot in a pot, cover with cold water, and bring it to a steady simmer. Cook until a knife slides in with slight resistance, 35 to 50 minutes depending on size. Keep the skins, tops, and tails intact while they cook, because cut beetroot bleeds its colour and flavour into the water instead of keeping it in the root.
- 2
Save the liquor
Lift the beetroot out and reserve 250ml of the deep red cooking water. Do not throw it all away. A measured splash goes into the pickling liquor for colour and body, while the vinegar still carries the preserving work.
- 3
Peel and slice
When the beetroot is cool enough to handle but still warm, rub off the skins with your fingers or a small knife, then slice into 5mm rounds or wedges. Warm beetroot takes the pickle more readily than cold beetroot, because the flesh is relaxed and the vinegar can move into it instead of sitting on the surface.
Wear gloves if you care about red fingers. If you don't, your hands will tell the truth about what you cooked. - 4
Make the pickle
Bring the vinegar, reserved beet cooking water, sugar, salt, onion, bay, cloves, caraway, mustard seeds, and peppercorns to a boil, stirring until the sugar and salt dissolve. Boil it for 2 minutes so the spices wake up in the acid, not later in the jar where they stay sleepy.
- 5
Fill the jars
Pack the warm beetroot into clean hot jars without crushing the slices, tucking in the onion and spices as you go. Pour the hot vinegar liquor over the beetroot to cover it fully, leaving about 1cm headspace. Tap the jars gently to release trapped air, because hidden bubbles leave slices exposed and exposed slices spoil first.
- 6
Seal and rest
Wipe the rims, close the jars, and let them cool. For refrigerator pickles, chill them and eat within 4 weeks. For shelf storage, process sealed jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes, then cool undisturbed and check the seals. Leave the beets at least 24 hours before eating; one week is better, because the clove and caraway need time to settle into the root.
Chef Tips
- •Buy small beetroot of similar size. They cook evenly, stay sweet, and slice neatly; one large woody root in the pot will make you wait while the small ones go soft.
- •Use vinegar marked 5 percent acidity if you want jars for storage. A gentle vinegar is fine, but weak vinegar is not preserving, it's wishful thinking.
- •Do not overdo the clove. Six whole cloves for this batch is enough. More than that and the jar tastes like Christmas walked into the wrong room.
- •Serve it cold with Matjes, cold roast pork, Leberwurst on rye, fried potatoes, or a simple Abendbrot, the evening bread table. The pickle is there to cut fat and salt.
Advance Preparation
- •Make the jars at least 24 hours before serving. The beetroot is edible sooner, but it tastes like beetroot with vinegar on it, not like a proper pickle.
- •For best flavour, rest the jars 5 to 7 days in the refrigerator or cool pantry after processing.
- •Opened jars should be refrigerated and eaten within 4 weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 500g)
Calories
310 calories
Total Fat
1 g
Saturated Fat
0 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
1 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
2940 mg
Total Carbohydrates
74 g
Dietary Fiber
11 g
Sugars
58 g
Protein
7 g
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