I made these pickled red onions for the weekend as a side dish for dinner and people seemed to really enjoy them! This easy recipe results in a beautiful dish that you can make up to a week ahead of time. If you don't like eating plain onions, try them in sandwiches, wraps, salads, and soups to add a bit of texture and tang. I use beets because I like the extra bright color that they give, as well as the slight earthiness and sweetness; however, you can just replace them with sugar if you don't have beets.

Ingredients

1 cup water

1 tbsp kosher salt

1 small red beet, thinly sliced (or 1 tbsp sugar)

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup lime juice

2 large red onions, sliced into thin rings (~3 cups of sliced onions)- see photo on the left

Directions

1.  In a small sauce pan, heat the water, salt, and beet (or sugar) until the water comes to a boil.  Turn down the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.

2.  Turn off the heat and add the apple cider vinegar and lime juice.

3.  Transfer the beets from the liquid into a glass jar that holds at least 4 cups.  Pack the sliced onions into the jar on top of the beets.  Then, pour the warm liquid over the onions.  Press the onions gently to make sure they are completely submerged under the liquid.  Let this cool to room temperature, then cover tightly and store in the fridge overnight- see photo in the middle.  Keep the onions in the fridge until you are ready to serve them (I've kept them up to one week in the fridge before serving.)

4.  To serve- strain the onions (and beets if you want) and serve at room temperature- see photo on the right.  As a bonus, you can save the liquid that you strain, rewarm it, and pickle more sliced onions!