QUESTION : I ca n’t peradventure consume all the beet I ’m harvesting . How do you maintain beet ? Are there unlike ways , so I do n’t get tired of them ? -Heather K
resolution : The most important normal in preserving Beta vulgaris is that they must be litigate in a pressure canner . Because of their abject acidity , stem vegetables like beets , carrots , turnips , and swede can not be safely give notice in an atmospheric steam canner or simmering water tub . In orderliness to action your common beet in a water bath or atmospherical steam canner , you must first acidify them by pickling them .
The best miscellanea of beet for canning are Red Cloud , Red Ace , Golden , Ruby Queen , Detroit Dark Red , and Cylindra beets . The best beetroot variety to cultivate for freezing are Albino and Early Wonder . The best beet variety to get for the purpose of pickling are White Albino and Striped Chioggia .
When pick out which beetroot to preserve , pick the inscrutable red , youngest , most tender beet from your harvest . The optimum size beet for preserving are between one and one and one one-half inch in diameter .
You will need two pounds of beets for every quart or one pound for every dry pint of beets that you require to keep up . One lb of common beet without their top will yield about two cups of diced , pickled beets .
After you glean your beetroot , they will need a bit of preparation before you’re able to freeze out , can , or pickle them . If you do n’t require to dye your hands crimson while prepare your beets for storage , put on a pair of disposable gloves before you begin prepping .
Freezing Beets
First , bring down off the tops , leave about an in of theme and origin to preclude excessive colour loss . Next , scour them well , withdraw all dirt and land from their extinct skin Then , breed your beets with boiling water supply and boil them until their cutis slips off with ease . For can common beet , calculate on their size , this usually conduct about 15 to 25 instant . For preparing beets for pickling or freeze , cook them until they are tender , which will take around 25 to 30 minute for smaller beetroot and 45 to 50 minutes for medium beetroot .
To prepare your beet for freeze , cool your cooked common beet rapidly in a inhuman water supply bath . take shank , taproot , and out skin . Cut into slices or cubes and fill a pint or quart sized pliant freezer travelling bag or plastic deep freezer container . Remove as much excess aviation as potential from deep freezer travelling bag and allow about a half in of headspace in plastic containers . Seal , label distinctly , and immobilise .
instead , you’re able to freeze out your beets first and then package them . This way of life , the beet stay looser , which will allow you to mensurate out what you want in the future . To freeze and then box your beets , lie them out in a exclusive layer on shallow tray or pans . Put them in the freezer just long enough to immobilize them , checking often after an hour has passed because you do n’t want your common beet losing too much moisture . Once they are firmly stock-still , package and varnish them , leave no headspace , then toss them into the freezer .
Canning Beets
Cool beets quickly after cooking in a cold body of water bathroom and remove skins , source , and stem . Use a twosome of gardening shear to reduce off the root and stalk . When canning your beets , you ’ll want to leave your babe beets whole and cut medium or large Beta vulgaris into 1 - 2 inch slices or cube , halve or quartering bombastic slices for uniformity .
Then , pack prepped Beta vulgaris into live jars , leaving one in of head - space . If you opt , add a teaspoon of can or pickling salt per dry quart or a half teaspoon per pint . Fill the jar to one inch from the top with boiling water , but do not recycle the water you used to misrepresent the beets . Next , slay aura bubble and rub shock rim off with a clean , damp newspaper towel . constrain down lids using screw bands and then process in a pressure sensation canner . Quarts will take 35 min and pint will take 30 in a dial caliber pressure canner at 11 pounding of pressure sensation or in a weighted gauge pressure canner at 10 pounds of pressure .
take away jars from the pressure canner after they have been processed and place them on ironical towel or a wooden board to cool off for 12 to 24 hours . Then , remove shtup band and checker lid seals . If the center of lid is indented then your jounce is sealed correctly . washout , dry , recording label and store the beets in a coolheaded , dark , clean fix . If your jarful did n’t varnish correctly , use a newfangled lid and reprocess or just refrigerate and take within three day .
Do n’t worry if your beets lose pigment during the canning process , as the pigments in beet are sensitive to high temperatures and can lose colour during the canning process . The color will often come back to a darker red after a few days of room temperature storage .
Pickling Beets
First , drain and chill seven pounds of cooked Beta vulgaris . Then , dress roots and stems off and slip off the skins . Slice into ¼ inch slicing or use whole beets that are no more than one and a half column inch in diam . Next , peel and thinly slice four to six onions and combine in a jackpot , four cups of acetum , one and a one-half teaspoon of pickling salt , two cup of sugar , and two cup of water .
Now , lend 12 whole clove and two cinnamon sticks in a cheesecloth bag to the vinegar mix and bring to a boil . summate your beet and onion plant and simmer for five minutes , then dispatch the cheesecloth travelling bag . satisfy jars with pickle beets and onion and leave behind half an in of headspace . Then , tally the hot acetum solution and keep one half inch of headspace . polish off line bubble and adjust the headspace if desired . Wipe jolt rims sportsmanlike with a damp newspaper publisher towel and tighten down lids with jailer bands .
Finally , action your pints or quarts for 30 minutes in a boiling water bath or an atmospheric steam canner . At altitudes of 1,000 to 3,000 substructure , process for 35 proceedings . At altitudes of 3,000 to 6,000 feet , process for 40 minutes . At EL over 6,000 metrical unit , appendage for 45 minute .
This formula will yield about eight pints of pickled beet . Canned Beta vulgaris are perfectly dependable to consume as long as lid stay vacuum sealed , but it is best to eat them within one yr after pickle .
