Shakin & Bakin Foodie Blog

We are very fortunate that red beets grow very well here in Pennsylvania. Every year I end up with a nice crop of them that I like to cook up and can for the wintertime. They also make a great side dish and today I am going to tell you how I like to cook mine up.

First of all, you want to wash them under cool running water to remove dirt and debris. Then place them onto your cutting board and cut the top off leaving behind 2" of the top. Cut off the root at the bottom leaving 1 1/2" to 2". You want to leave a little bit of the top and bottom on until after you are done cooking them.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. I like to add a tad of salt to my boiling water and then toss in your fresh red beets. Cover and simmer over medium heat. This process takes 30 minutes up to an hour depending on how large your red beets are. You will want to check on them every 10 minutes to make sure you have plenty of water in your pan. They are done when you can pierce them easily with a sharp fork. They should be like boiled potatoes but slightly firmer. They shouldn't be mushy or falling a part.

Pour the hot red beets into a colander and place it under cold running water in your kitchen sink. Let the water run over them to help cool them down. Once they are cool, cut the top off and the root. Then squeeze the red beet and the skins should slide off easily; toss skins away.
If the beets are small in size, you may want to leave them whole. If they are medium to large in size, I would recommend that you slice them up, just like you do when you make fried potatoes. They are now ready for you to cook up in a frying pan (see below) or you can can them for later use. You can find canning recipes here on my blog under the home canning category.

Stove Top Red Beets Recipe: Toss your red beet slices into a frying pan with a little bit of butter, salt, ground black pepper and a tad of granulated sugar. Use a spoon to toss everything together. Simmer over low heat for 3 to 5 minutes and they are done. They are basically cooked already, you are just heating them up and seasoning. Serve immediately.