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Home » Recipes » Veggie Side Dish Recipes

How to Boil Beets

Published: Apr 26, 2019 · Modified: Mar 16, 2025 by Brooke Fajcz · As an Amazon Influencer, we earn from qualifying purchases.

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Love them or hate them, beets are a very popular vegetable across the pond in England.  This how to boil beets recipe is the perfect starting point to get you eating more of this colorful vegetable.

If you love sauteed vegetables, try our sauteed beet greens and our sauteed kale with mushrooms.

person holding a slice of beet on a fork
Jump to:
  • Ingredients
  • How to Make Boiled Beets
  • Recipe FAQs
  • Serve
  • Expert Tips
  • Other Veggie Side Dishes
  • Recipe
  • Comments

Ingredients

bowls of ingredients for boiled beets

The ingredients for our recipe on how to boil beets are easy to find at your grocery store. Let's talk about the key ingredients.

  • Beets: We used fresh beets for this photo shoot. We cut the tops off and kept them to make sauteed beet greens.
  • Acid: We used red wine vinegar, but you could substitute with apple cider vinegar.
  • Seasoning: We used kosher salt.

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How to Make Boiled Beets

boiling the beets in water and adding seasonings
  1. Start by scrubbing and rinsing the dirt off each vegetable. Trim off the beet greens and leave on a 2-inch stem. Submerge the beets in a Dutch oven filled with water. (image 1)
  2. Add the red wine vinegar and carefully mix. Cover and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, add the kosher salt. (image 2)
removing cooked beets from a pot and removing the skins
  1. Keep the pot covered and reduce the heat to medium low and simmer until fork tender, roughly 30 to 45 minutes depending on the size of the beets. Larger ones can take up to 60 minutes. Set aside to cool. (image 4)
  2. When they're cool enough to handle, cut off the stems and roots. Rub the skins off with a dry paper towel, or rub them under cold running water. Rinse off any small amounts of remaining beet peel under cold water. (image 5)
whole peeled beets and sliced beets
  1. Store them whole in the refrigerator until ready to eat. (image 5)
  2. Slice or chop the beets as desired, then enjoy! Feel free to quarter, cube, or puree once cooked. (image 6)

Recipe FAQs

How do you flavor boiled beets?

Balsamic Glaze: Use balsamic vinegar, sweetener of choice, butter, salt and pepper.
Compound Butter: Use fresh dill, mint or tarragon, salt and pepper with unsalted butter.
Reduction Sauce: Use red wine vinegar and butter along with beet juice.
Burst of Acidity: Toss with freshly squeezed lemon juice or red wine vinegar.
Caramelized Nuts: Use caramelized or candied pecans to jazz them up in a mixed green salad.

Do you peel beets before boiling?

You might think you need to, but it is much easier if you don't. Once they are cooked, the peel comes off easily with a gentle rub.

What do you add to water when boiling beets?

You add enough salt to flavor them just like you do when you cook pasta or potatoes, but with beets you can also add vinegar. We like to use red wine vinegar, but apple cider vinegar is a good substitute.

How long does it take beets to boil?

If you have beets that are large in diameter, it can take up to 60 minutes. If they are medium in size, 30 to 45 minutes is normal. If they are small, 20 minutes should do it.

How do you store boiled beets?

Leftovers: Cooked beets are good for 3 to 5 days when stored in an airtight container and placed in the fridge.
Freeze: If you need longer storage, freeze the cooled beats in a zip top freezer bag.  Just remember that the beet juices may stain a plastic container, so if you have glass use it.

Serve

Try these beets with other side dishes like collard greens, black eyed peas, stewed okra and tomatoes, and green beans and potatoes.

bowl of chopped boiled beets with greens.

Expert Tips

  • Keep at least 1 inch of the stem and the root intact before boiling them whole. This will keep the beet from bleeding too much into the water.
  • Don't use wooden cutting boards, as the beet juice will stain it.  Use a plastic cutting board with paper towel or wax paper on top.
  • If your hands get stained with beet juice, use fresh lemon juice to help get rid of any stubborn stains.
  • Don't throw out the beet greens or stems.  Sauté them or use them in salads or soups.
  • Don't throw out the beet water.  Re-purpose it in soups, rice, smoothies, pickled eggs, dye icing, or faux grape jelly.

Other Veggie Side Dishes

  • white serving bowl filled with collard greens
    Southern Collard Greens
  • white bowl of kale and mushrooms
    Sautéed Kale and Mushrooms
  • plate of sauteed beet greens with a fork
    Sautéed Beet Greens
  • six bowls of bell peppers cut in different ways.
    How to Cut Bell Peppers

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Recipe

person holding a slice of beet on a fork

How to Boil Beets

This recipe will give you the confidence to learn how to prepare and make healthy beets.  Use a dutch oven to boil the beets on the stove--it's so simple!  Learn all the techniques, methods, tips, and tricks to make beets taste good.  You'll be wondering why it took you so long to make beets a part of your diet.
4.5 from 2 votes
Print Pin FavoriteSaved! Rate
Course: Vegetable side
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes
Servings: 9 whole beets
Calories: 74kcal
Author: Brooke & Emma

Ingredients
 

  • 9 medium fresh beets
  • 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Keep your screen on while you work!

Instructions

How to Boil Beets

  • Remove the tops from the beets, but leave a two inch stem.  This will help the pigment from leaching into the water.
  • Wash and dry the beet roots.
  • Add the vinegar and the beets to a large pot of water, then cover and bring to a boil.  Stir in the salt and reduce the heat to medium low.  Simmer until fork tender, roughly 30 to 45 minutes.
  • Use a fork or slotted spoon to remove them, then let them cool.  Cut off the root and stem and discard.
  • Optional: Keep the beet water.  Read the post for ideas on how to use it.
  • Peel by using a piece of paper towel to wipe the skin off or peel under running water.
  • Keep whole, quarter, slice, cube or puree depending on your recipe.

Dress up Boiled Beets With...

  • Herb butter (try fresh dill, mint or tarragon)
  • Balsamic glaze
  • Beet juice reduction sauce
  • Chopped caramelized or candied pecans on a salad of mixed greens

Video

Notes

  • Want to keep the beet from bleeding too much into the water?  Keep at least 1 inch of the stem and the root intact before boiling them whole.
  • Use a plastic cutting board with paper towel or wax paper on top, so it doesn't get stained.
  • If your hands get stained with beet juice, use fresh lemon juice to help get rid of any stubborn stains.
  • Sauté the beet greens and stems or use them in salads or soups.
  • Save the beet juice and use it in soups, rice, smoothies, pickled eggs, dye icing, or faux grape jelly.

Nutrition

Calories: 74kcal (4%)Carbohydrates: 16g (5%)Protein: 3g (6%)Fat: 1g (2%)Saturated Fat: 1g (6%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 395mg (17%)Potassium: 555mg (16%)Fiber: 5g (21%)Sugar: 11g (12%)Vitamin A: 56IU (1%)Vitamin C: 8mg (10%)Calcium: 28mg (3%)Iron: 1mg (6%)

Serving sizes and nutritional information are only an estimate and may vary from your results.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Julie

    October 22, 2019 at 2:15 pm

    5 stars
    Easy

    Reply
    • Emma

      October 22, 2019 at 2:50 pm

      I'm glad that you found this recipe easy, Julie!

      Reply
  2. Beth

    May 10, 2019 at 12:06 pm

    4 stars
    These look really good! I don't usually eat beets, but I am sure they taste a lot better than the ones I've tried in the past.

    Reply
    • Emma

      May 10, 2019 at 3:37 pm

      Thank you, Beth! I hope you enjoy them.

      Reply

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