As we begin a new school year, wouldn’t it be great to get a boost for your immune system? Beets are very high in vitamin C, potassium, manganese and fiber. They also contain B vitamins, along with many other nutrients. Their color is absolutely brilliant and their flavor is so sweet and unique! The summer is winding to a close, but you should still be able to find this amazing root vegetable in many farmer’s markets. In this article I will show you how to cook beets in 4 simple steps.
Step 1 – Trim and Rinse the Beets
Trim the beet greens off about 2 inches above the beet and keep the skinny root ends on. This prevents the juice from leaving the beet during cooking. Beets are root plants, so make sure to rinse them well in cold water to get all the dirt off. You can save the greens to steam and eat with a little salt and vinegar, as described in a previous post.
Step 2 – Boil
Boil the beets in a sauce pan with enough water to keep them fully immersed. Depending on how big the beets are, you might have to boil them for a long time! Just keep checking on them. Stir occasionally so they don’t stick to the bottom of the pan and burn. Add more hot water if needed to keep them immersed. They are done when you can poke a fork all the way to their centers. You don’t want them to be mushy, but you should be able to slice them easily with a butter knife.
Step 3 – Peel
Pour off the hot water and carefully rinse the beets with cold water just enough to cool them a bit so you can handle them. Gently rub the peelings off with your hands, but make sure to wash your hands immediately or they will be stained purple. 🙂
Step 4 – Slice, Salt and Enjoy!
Cut the beets into 1/4 inch thick slices, add salt if desired and enjoy! It really is that simple! No sauces or toppings are needed. Just enjoy the wholesome goodness of unprocessed food. We always choose Detroit Dark Red when we plant our beet seeds and we have had great success with them. If you are just beginning on your journey of growing some of your food, beets would be a great plant to try!
Beautiful and delicious! Pickled, yummmm!
Do you have a recipe for pickling them? The last batch we made was a bit too spicy!
I LOVE BEETS!!!
My favorite way of eating Beet Root is:
1. Shred 3 medium size raw beets with a cheese grater.
2- Mix in the juice of 2 lemons and 6 tablespoons of Udo’s 3/6/9 oil.
3- Keep refrigerated in a glass container and enjoy a few tablespoons at a time or put on a salad.
It’s our go to mixture for stomach issues and relived a gall bladder attack better than pain meds.
“Encouraging studies on human tumor cells show that the betanin pigment from beetroot can reduce tumor growth in colon, stomach, nerve, breast and testicular tissues.”
Awesome! Thanks for sharing!