This pickled beet salad is zesty, refreshing, healthy and delicious. It's satisfying, simple to make using a handful of ingredients and ready in minutes. Perfect as a light meal, in lunchboxes, as well as a delicious accompaniment to other dishes (see suggestions in the post).
This pickled beet salad is a surprisingly delicious way of using pickled beets and a great alternative to both cooked and raw beet salads. As it turns out, sweet, vinegary pickled beets make a fantastic salad ingredient, perfect to pair with mellow beans, crisp apple and crunchy radish. This dish is a wonderful blend of all these flavours and textures.
My colourful salad with pickled beets is simple to make and comes together in just 3 easy steps. Because pickled beets have such an intense, rich flavour there was no need to add too many ingredients. I used fresh herbs to enhance the overall flavour and bring all the ingredients together, plus a drizzle of oil and lemon juice. This salad is so easy yet so delicious! It's also adaptable - you can add different ingredients and make it your own (see suggestions at the bottom of the post).
Pickled beet salad ingredients and substitutions
- Pickled beets: I used baby beets, but you can use any variety of pickled beets.
- Beans: I used cannellini beans, but other white bean varieties as well as flageolet beans can be used, instead. I don't recommend using butter/lima beans as they might be a little overpowering in this recipe.
- Apple: Use a crisp, sweet apple, such as Honeycrisp (or Jazz/Braeburn in the UK).
- Red onion.
- Radish.
- Extra virgin olive oil.
- Lemon: use both the juice and zest.
- Herbs: I recommend a combination of fresh dill and mint.
- Salt and pepper: add to taste.
How to prepare the pickled beets
The most important step in preparing the pickled beets for this salad is removing excess moisture so you don't end up with a soggy salad. The easiest way to do this is to first drain the pickled beets then pat dry with a paper towel. Once cut you can pat them dry again, if necessary.
Step-by-step recipe instructions
1. Prepare ingredients: Prepare the beets, as above, and set aside. Drain the beans thoroughly then also pat dry with a paper towel. In the meantime, chop the rest of the ingredients.
2. Assemble: To a large mixing bowl add the beets, beans, apple, onion and radishes. Next add the fresh herbs, lemon zest and juice, olive oil and salt and pepper.
3. Serve: Stir gently until thoroughly combined then taste the salad and adjust the flavour if needed. Either serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.
Serving suggestions
This refreshing pickled beet salad with apple can be served on its own as a light lunch, but you can also enjoy it with fresh, crusty bread for a more substantial meal. It makes a fantastic party dish as well as quick fall/winter salad perfect served with:
- Chicken: such as pan-fried marinated chicken or crispy chicken fingers.
- Salmon: try it with pistachio crusted salmon or salmon fish fingers.
- Veggie patties: including cauliflower, broccoli as well as Polish egg patties and potato zucchini fritters.
- Fish cakes: including potato, salmon or fish cakes without potatoes.
Optional ingredients you can use
This nutritious pickled beet salad recipe can be adapted to include your favourite ingredients, such as:
- Celery rib
- Cucumber
- Zucchini: especially young, crunchy baby zucchini
- Fennel: thinly sliced and chopped into small pieces
- Baby spinach: finely chopped
TIP: I don't recommend adding sour ingredients, such as feta or goat's cheese (these work better with roasted beets). This salad has plenty of acidity and adding any more might make it simply too sour. If you add extra ingredients, you may also need to increase the amounts of herbs, dressing and seasoning.
How to adjust the texture
I recommend cutting both the pickled beets and apple into (similar) small pieces, so the flavour is well distributed throughout the dish. I also like to chop the radishes and onion quite finely. However, you can adjust the texture of this easy pickled beet salad according to your taste.
Top tips
- Pat dry both the beets as well as beans using a paper towel to remove excess moisture before assembling the recipe.
- Best served chilled.
- Keep covered and refrigerated for up to a day. Your vegan pickled beet salad is best served within 30 minutes, but it will still be delicious and crunchy after a few hours, so makes a good lunchbox filler.
- Not suitable for freezing.
Related recipes to try next
See also these other easy, delicious salad recipes!
Recipe
Pickled Baby Beet Salad
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Zester
Ingredients
- 8.82 ounces (250 g) pickled baby beets approx. 12 beets, cut into small cubes
- 1 can cannellini beans drained, approx. 1⅔ cups
- 1 apple unpeeled, cut into small cubes
- 1 small red onion finely chopped
- 6-7 radishes cut into small cubes
- 2½ tablespoons dill and mint EACH, leaves only, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1½ tablespoons lemon juice plus zest of 1 lemon
- ⅓ teaspoon fine sea salt plus pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prepare ingredients: Drain the pickled beets thoroughly then pat dry with a paper towel. Cut into small cubes and pat dry again, if necessary. Set aside. Drain the beans thoroughly then also pat dry with a paper towel. In the meantime, chop the rest of the ingredients.
- Assemble: To a large mixing bowl add the beets, beans, apple, onion and radishes. Next add the fresh herbs, lemon zest and juice, olive oil and salt and pepper.
- Serve: Stir gently until thoroughly combined then taste the salad and adjust the flavour if needed. Either serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Pat dry both the beets as well as beans using a paper towel to remove excess moisture before assembling the recipe.
- Best served chilled.
- Keep covered and refrigerated for up to a day. Your vegan pickled beet salad is best served within 30 minutes, but it will still be delicious and crunchy after a few hours, so makes a good lunchbox filler.
- Not suitable for freezing.
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is automatically generated and should be considered as an estimate.
**A note about baking: If using a fan-assisted oven refer to your appliance's instructions and adjust the temperature accordingly.
Keep in touch!
If you make this pickled baby beet salad I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Did you use additional ingredients? Let me know in the comments below, thanks:)
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