Pickled Beet Eggs (Sugar-Free)

These tangy Pickled Beet Eggs feature fresh beets and no sugar. The make tasty protein-filled snack or salad edition any time of year.

In dark barrooms and dank alehouses sitting on forgotten roadsides in the Pennsylvanian hills from whence I hail, one might stumble across a dusty jar containing an ominous, murky red liquid with barely detectable globular lifeforms peeking out from within.

Don’t be frightened, they’re just Pickled Beet Eggs!

Perhaps because of the image ostentatiously described above, pickled eggs have always had a lowly connotation in my mind.

I say it’s time we elevate them.

Pickled beet eggs were actually an Easter staple in my grandfather’s house. He would always have a plate of them on the table along side of the Easter ham.

And honestly, what’s not to like about pickled eggs?

Aside from their stunning color, they are just loaded with incredible flavor. Plus–as an added bonus–you get both pickled beets and pickled onions in the same jar.

Now I say that is scary delicious.

Aside from eggs, beets, and some sliced onion, you will need to round up some pickling spices for this recipe.

I like to use a combination of:

• bay leaf
• cinnamon
• cloves
• all spice
• mustard seed
• black peppercorn

If you don’t have some cinnamon sticks on hand, just substitute with 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.

How to Make Pickled Beet Eggs

First you’ll need to procure some hard boiled eggs.

While there are a multitude of methods for hard-cooking eggs, I’m going to stick to the purest form here: boiling them.

Add the eggs to a large pot, then cover them with a few inches of water.

Bring the water to a roiling boil, then cover the pot and remove it from the heat. Set a timer for 10 minutes.

When the timer goes off, use a slotted spoon to immediately transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice water.

Once the eggs are cool, lightly tap them all over on a hard surface to crack their shells, and slide them off.

Meanwhile, add the beets to a pot and cover with water. Bring the pot to a low boil, then cook the beets until they are very tender. You should be able to easily pierce them all the way through with a knife with no resistance.

Remove the beets from the pot, making sure to reserve the cooking water (you’ll need that for later).

Once the beets have cooled, rub off their skins with a paper towel or cloth and slice them into thin wedges.

Note: beets will dye anything they come into contact with a lovely shade of pink (including your hands).

Find a large container with a tight fitting lid and layer some sliced onion on the bottom, followed by a layer of sliced beets, followed by a few hard boiled eggs. Repeat until the jar is full.

I like to use a giant half gallon jar picture here, but you could also split everything into two smaller quart-sized jars as well.

To make the brine, combine 2 cups of white vinegar with 2 cups of the reserved beet water in a large saucepan.

Add the pickling spices along with a teaspoon of salt and simmer everything together for about 5 minutes.

Allow the brine to cool slightly, then carefully pour it into the jar. Leave a little room at the top of the jar, but make sure the eggs are fully submerged.

Let the jar cool for a bit, then tightly cover it and place it in the refrigerator.

Now it’s time to play the waiting game.

Technically the eggs with be pickled in 48 hours, but I found they really hit their peak flavor around 4-5 days.

Devour your pickled eggs straight from the jar (I try to limit myself to one egg in my mouth at a time), slice them up and throw them on some greens along with the beets and onions for a tasty salad, or whip up the yolks with a little mayonnaise for the prettiest deviled eggs you’ve ever seen.

Enjoy!

More Pickle Recipes!

• Refrigerator Pickles (aka Quickles)
• Pickled Okra
• Curried Cauliflower Tacos with Pickled Cabbage

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