How to Pickle Red Onions: 14 Recipes

Pickled onions are considered a universal complement to many dishes. Therefore, he always enjoys a special privilege among professional cooks and experienced housewives. But among the variety of varieties of spicy vegetables, most often, kitchen masters opt for red onions, which cannot be called an accident. The fact is that colored types of spicy vegetables have a richer composition. In combination with other spices and vinegar, red onion acquires amazingly delicious sweet-sour notes and a bright aroma. He is not so bitter as his fair relatives.

Many housewives pickle for the winter precisely red and purple onions. Such harvesting during the season of fresh food shortages will become a valuable source of vitamins. But first things first. Let's talk about the benefits of red onion and how to cook different marinades with it.

How to pick a red onion for pickling

Pickled red onions do not have such an unpleasant odor as white varieties of a popular vegetable. On the contrary, such a product is often used to prepare snacks that are served during business meetings. The most popular varieties of colored onions:

• black Prince;
• retro;
• Yalta;
• red Bombay;
• Baron
• yukont and some other varieties.

Therefore, when choosing a product for pickling, it is better to give preference to precisely these varieties.

In addition, when buying spicy products, you need to be guided by the following simple rules:

1. To prepare marinades for the winter, select root vegetables of impeccable quality. It is better to give preference to specimens of medium size.
2. The bulb should be strong and dense, and the husk should be smooth, without visible damage.
3. Overgrown roots should not be present on the bottom of the head, and green feathers should be on top.
4. The color of the husk should be uniform without spots.
5. Before buying, you should do a simple test: press a finger on the root surface, if at the same time a slight crunch is heard - such a vegetable meets quality standards.

In principle, these are the basic rules for choosing red onion, not only for making homemade marinades, but also for other culinary purposes.

What is useful red onion

The unusual shade of the spicy vegetable is explained by the presence of antacids in its composition - substances with powerful antibacterial and antiviral properties. This feature is appreciated in folk medicine. Therefore, in many recipes that are widely used today in home therapy, red onion is present. In addition to antacids, the chemical composition of the vegetable contains the following components:

1. Quercetin and flavonoids.
2. A whole group of antioxidants.
3. Amino acids, including essential ones.
4. Vitamins, especially in large quantities, contains ascorbic acid.
5. Volatile - substances that are considered natural antibiotics.
6. Mineral elements: magnesium, sulfur, iron, chromium, zinc and other minerals.
7. Essential components.

The main active ingredients of the vegetable are listed here. In fact, the composition of red onion is a very complex formula, numbering several dozen substances.Moreover, they all closely interact with each other, exerting a beneficial effect on the human body as a whole.

Benefits appear in the following properties:

1. Stabilization of water-salt metabolism.
2. Reducing the concentration of harmful cholesterol and blood sugar.
3. Strengthening the structure of blood vessels.
4. Normalization of cardiovascular activity.
5. Activation of the brain.
6. Regular cleansing of the body of toxic products and radionuclides.
7. Improving the flow of metabolic processes.
8. Increasing the protective abilities of the body by strengthening the immune forces.
9. Stimulation of the digestive processes.
10. Improving intestinal motility.

You can still list for a long time what benefits the body brings even a small portion of red onion. This universal product is able at the cellular level to block the development of oncology and prolong youth. Spiced vegetable is considered the best natural cure for vitamin deficiency and anemia. With its help, it is possible to solve sexual problems for the stronger sex, and women use the product to strengthen their hair.

Therefore, even during pregnancy, gynecologists recommend expectant mothers to add fresh or pickled red onions to salads. It remains to add to all of the above that even doctors consider the regular use of a spicy vegetable to be the best prevention against viral infections and colds.

How to deliciously marinate red onions: recipes

In the cuisines of many countries of the world, red onion is used in different ways: someone prepares light snacks from it, in other countries, spiced vegetable is served as a side dish. The versatility of a pickled product is that it is able to satisfy completely different needs. In principle, this feature explains the popularity of colored onions, if you add a pleasant sweet taste without bitterness to its versatile possibilities. The ways of pickling red onions are very different depending on the category of the prepared dish. In separate recipes, a spicy vegetable is combined with the following ingredients:

• lemon juice;
• vinegar;
• sugar;
• mustard;
• peppers
• wine;
• mixtures of herbs;
• vegetable oil.

The pickling methods differ in the aging time: for example, there are express options for instant cooking, and there are also recipes for long-term winter storage.

But in any form of performance, red pickled onions retain the characteristic combination of spicy acidity and pleasant sweetish shades of taste. The pickled root crop decorates meat dishes and fish delicacies, it is served as a savory snack and added to salads.

An important point: red onion varieties cannot be kept in boiling water, since after this method of processing the vegetable loses its unique color.

Popular recipes for onion marinade
Each hostess will be able to replenish the collection of her favorite dishes with recipes for pickled red onions, which are offered below.

For salad

Most vegetable and meat salads are prepared with the addition of a spicy vegetable. Most often, housewives add fresh root vegetables, cut into rings and cubes. But the taste of the snack will only benefit if the onion is kept a little in the marinade. This procedure will take very little time, and for cooking you will need a minimum set of products:

• table vinegar - 70 ml;
• water - 0.3 l;
• onions - 3 medium-sized heads;
• sugar sand - 3 tbsp;
• salt.

The sequential cooking process:

1. First, peel, wash, chop the onions in the desired shape.
2. Place the workpiece in a jar.
3. Now cook the marinade. To do this, in a separate bowl in the water, stir the salt with sugar, and then put the container on fire. When the liquid reaches the boiling stage, pour vinegar.The marinade should boil for 10 seconds, after which they pour the onion in a jar.
4. Close the jar with a tight lid, and when the contents have cooled, add the prepared onion to the salad, after squeezing the marinade.

Quick cooking option

You can use the "cold" method of pickling a spicy product.

The main ingredients:

• red onion - 3 heads;
• salt - 1 tsp;
• vinegar - 100 ml (when using a 70% essence, it is necessary to dilute with water);
• water is a glass;
• sugar - 70–80 g;
• spices - optional.

The algorithm of culinary actions:

1. Combine all of the listed ingredients with water.
2. Place onion sliced ​​in half rings in a jar.
3. Pour the billet with the cooked marinade and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4. After that, add the pickled onion to any salads.

Note: soft onion vinegar (wine, apple, rice) is more suitable for onion marinades. A harmonious combination is obtained by adding lemon or pomegranate juice.

To barbecue

Skewers are advised to use fresh onion juice during the preparation of a popular dish. But if you properly pickle the vegetable, and then season the meat with them, the taste of such an appetizer will delight even gourmets.

Grocery list:

• onions - 2 large heads of red variety;
• water - 0.2 l;
• salt to taste;
• table vinegar - 3 tablespoons

The whole cooking process is reduced to elementary actions:

1. Pour the chopped vegetable into water and vinegar and add salt.
2. The spicy product must marinate overnight. If you extend the exposure time to three days, the taste of pickled onions will turn out more vivid.
3. Drain the marinade before use as directed.
4. Put onion rings with meat on a skewer, but you can serve them separately for the finished meat dish.

Helpful advice: in the process of cooking barbecue on the grill with marinade, you can sprinkle meat. In this case, the kebab will turn out more juicy and tasty.

Hot pickle

This method is also perfect for a traditional picnic meal, if you have a planned outing.

To prepare an onion marinade with an amazing taste you will need:

• allspice - 3 pcs.;
• onion - 5 heads;
• bay leaf - 1 pc.;
• cloves - 2 buds;
• black pepper - 3-4 peas;
• water is a glass;
• sugar - 80 g;
• salt to taste;
• mustard grains - ½ tsp;
• vinegar - 70 ml.

How to cook:

1. Chop the onion.
2. Mix dry spices in a bowl, add water.
3. Heat the composition in weak water, but do not boil.
4. Pour sliced ​​cooked marinade. In an hour and a half, the onion supplement will be ready.

For herring

Onion with herring is a classic tandem. There are various pickling options, but the list of ingredients in all cases remains unchanged: onions, salt, vinegar and sugar. But each recipe is characterized by its own norm of named products. Experienced chefs advise using balsamic or grape vinegar, because such species are less aggressive. A good alternative to vinegar is lemon or pomegranate juice.

Cold herring marinade is prepared from the following set of products:

• red onion - 2 heads;
• water is a glass;
• vinegar - 30 ml;
• sugar - 10-15 g;
• salt - 4 g.

Cooking process:

1. Cut a spicy vegetable, pour over boiling water and immediately pour cold water.
2. In another container, combine the remaining ingredients.
3. Now add the marinade to the onion. Leave for half an hour.
4. After that, add the marinated onions to the herring.

Sunflower Oil Recipe

Most housewives love to make herring with onions and vegetable oil. This popular option will require the following ingredients:

• vegetable oil –250 ml;
• red onion - 4 heads;
• salt - 10-15 g;
• vinegar - 50-60 ml;
• sugar - 25 g;
• black pepper peas - optional.

Cooking sequence:

1. For this recipe, chop the onion as thin as possible. Immediately pour the workpiece with boiling water and immediately cool with water.
2. In a different bowl, mix all the above ingredients, and then pour the onion slices with this mixture so that it is completely immersed in the marinade.
3. After two hours, add dressing to the herring.

Important: with moderate use, pickled onions will not harm health, but people who have stomach problems should not get involved in such dishes.

Onion marinated with mustard

This option is also great for herring snacks.

The grocery set for this original recipe:

• onion - 3 heads;
• sugar - 2 tbsp;
• mustard (powder) - 1 tsp;
• salt - 2 tsp;
• vinegar - 2 tbsp .;
• water (warm) - 350 ml.

How to cook:

1. Cut the onion into strips or rings.
2. Mix mustard with salt and sugar in water, add vinegar.
3. Place chopped onions in a jar, and pour the whole mass on top with marinade. Close the container with a lid.
4. After half an hour, the pickled vegetable will be ready. Before use as directed, drain the brine.

For winter

In general, onions and vinegar make up the perfect composition. A product prepared for future use according to one of the recipes below will become a valuable vitamin supplement in winter, and with a busy hostess, it will speed up the cooking process. For long-term storage, red onions are best prepared in glass containers.

Classic recipe
List of required ingredients:

• onion - 2 heads;
• fresh dill - a small bunch;
• sugar - 2 tsp;
• salt to taste;
• cooled boiled water - a glass;
• vinegar (preferably apple) - 50 ml.

Step-by-step cooking process:

1. Rinse the dill well, chop finely.
2. Cut the onion into rings or strips. Some housewives like to pickle a vegetable, cut into four parts.
3. Combine the onion base with dill, mix.
4. The next step is to prepare the marinade. To do this, add sugar and salt to the water. Send vinegar last, when the bulk components are completely dissolved in water.
5. Ready marinade pour onion base.
6. Close the jar with a lid and put it for long-term storage in the cold.

An appetizer will look more attractive if you combine red and white onions.

Note: This option for cooking pickled vegetables is also suitable for short-term use. In this case, the product will reach full readiness after a day. Before serving, fold the onion in a colander so that the glass has excess liquid.

Seasoning appetizer

Snack lovers will surely appreciate this pickled vegetable option. As in the previous recipe, such a workpiece can be prepared for long-term storage or used immediately.

Product Set:

• onion - 3 heads;
• vegetable oil - 30 ml;
• vinegar - 15 ml;
• hot water - 0.4 l;
• coriander (seeds) - 1 tsp;
• garlic - 3 prongs;
• laurel - 2 leaves;
• peas peas - 4 pcs.;
• salt with sugar - 1/2 tsp.

When the set of necessary products is ready, you can begin to prepare a delicious snack, which will brighten up the diet and saturate the body with vitamins during the long winter.

Process sequence:

1. Start with the main ingredient - onion. Peel each head, wash, cut into any shape.
2. Then carefully divide the onion slices into the cans without tamping.
3. After each layer add a plate of garlic.
4. In a separate bowl, prepare the marinade according to this scheme: first mix the coriander, pepper, sugar and salt with bay leaves, then add the liquid components to the dry spices. Pour the vinegar last.
5. Ready marinade pour onion in jars so that the vegetable is completely immersed in brine.
6. Close the jars immediately with sealed lids. Shake each container well a couple of times.
7. When the marinade cools down, put the jars with blanks in storage in the refrigerator or basement. The sample can be removed in a day, but it is better to wait a week for the pickled onions to acquire a rich, vigorous taste.

Note: Spices should not be abused, because a high concentration of spices will interrupt subsequently the aroma of cooked dishes.

Universal option

This method of cooking pickled red onions for each hostess will be a valuable acquisition, because such a product can be added to any salad, herring under a fur coat or make burgers.

The main ingredients:

• onions - 0.4 kg;
• water - 200 ml;
• sugar - 25 g;
• salt - 10 g;
• vegetable oil - 30-40 ml;
• vinegar - 30 ml;
• garlic - 3-5 cloves;
• bay leaves, peppercorns, any other spices - optional.

As you can see, the set of products is almost the same as in the previous recipe. But this method of pickling is distinguished by the fact that in advance it is necessary to sterilize the cans well in the oven or by the "grandmother" method, that is, over steam. The preparation scheme is as follows:

1. Cooked marinade from all of the listed spices and liquid components put on fire.
2. When the brine begins to boil, remove the dishes from the stove.
3. Fill the onion jars with hot marinade, and then immediately roll up the lids.

An onion appetizer prepared in this way can be stored in the basement for up to a year.

Helpful advice: if the bulbs are small, they can be put in a whole jar or cut in half.

Fastest way

Products:

• onion - 2 heads;
• water - 0.2 l;
• honey - 2 tsp;
• beets - ½ root vegetables;
• mustard seeds - ½ tsp;
• vegetable oil - 1 tbsp;
• salt with pepper.

How to cook:

1. Put chopped onions in a deep container.
2. Pour the workpiece with warm water, then add honey, mustard and vinegar.
3. After that, cut the beets into strips and send them to the marinade.
4. Top with oil, salt and pepper.
5. Wait 20 minutes and you can take a sample.

Note: marinated onions prepared according to this recipe will make an excellent company with strong drinks and chopped slices of bacon with layers.

Onion appetizer with wine

A spicy vegetable combined with dry red wine makes up a harmonious composition. The result is an original product with an exquisite and even noble taste. Moreover, the preparation of such a spicy delicacy also does not require extra effort and time.

Product List:

• wine (red) - 200 ml;
• onion - 2 heads;
• black pepper and salt - as needed;
• sugar - ¼ tbsp

Cooking step by step:

1. Determine onion slices in a deep bowl, add salt, add sugar.
2. Pour the contents of the dishes with wine, and top with a lid.
3. Leave the onions in the wine marinade for 2 hours. A vegetable prepared in this way will complement the kebab, perfect for vegetable salads. The remains of the brine can be sprinkled with meat during the preparation of barbecue.

Red onion in lemon juice

This recipe will suit those who do not like the presence of vinegar in dishes. The food package is practically no different from the options already described here. Only instead of vinegar in this case, half the lemon is taken.

Algorithm of actions:

1. Cut a large onion of any red variety into rings or straws.
2. Pour into a bowl and immediately sprinkle the whole mass with plenty of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Season the marinade with pepper.
3. Separate in a glass of water salt with sugar.
4. The resulting composition pour onion slices.
5. Lastly, add vegetable oil (1-2 tbsp). After half an hour, the pickled onions are ready.

Important: when choosing a preservative, one should always proceed from the characteristics of the prepared dish: balsamic vinegar is more suitable for chicken, and fruit varieties or lemon juice for salads and vinaigrettes.

Onion in apple marinade with herbs

This is a great summer option that is suitable for everyone.

Ingredients per 100 gram serving of red onion:

• apple vinegar - 10 ml;
• vegetable oil (preferably unrefined sunflower) - 1 tsp;
• salt is a little;
• pepper - optional;
• parsley, dill, you can additionally take other types of spicy vegetation.

The sequence of culinary actions:

1. Chopped onions into thin rings immediately connect with chopped herbs.
2. Spicy foods mix well, add salt and pepper.
3. Determine the dishes with the workpiece for 5 minutes in the refrigerator.
4. Before serving, add vinegar and then butter.
5. Mix well again and leave for another 5-10 minutes.
6. Prepared in such a simple way, pickled red onions can be added to a vegetable salad, herring, or simply spread on a toasted piece of bread with a juicy layer.

Features of storage of blanks

All recipes that have been described here are selected with the optimal combination of the main ingredients. Therefore, all cooked varieties of pickled red onions are distinguished by high taste characteristics. With proper storage of the finished product, a spicy onion snack will retain all the beneficial properties. Here are some tips to help keep the crunch and piquant taste inherent in a fresh spicy vegetable:

1. The ideal container for storing onion marinade is a ceramic container or a glass jar. Since plastic and metal quickly enter into an oxidation reaction with vinegar, dishes made of these materials cannot be used for long-term storage of any pickled products.
2. The shelf life of snacks in a domestic refrigerator is from 2 to 4 weeks. All recipes using the cold pickling method give a nutritious vegetable product with excellent taste.
3. Sterilized winter preparations do not lose nutritional value during the year.
4. After opening the jar, you need to use its contents for several days, the maximum shelf life of such a product is 2 weeks.
5. Each portion of the workpiece should be squeezed slightly before adding to dishes to remove excess marinade.
6. And one more tip that will help cook onions without tears: before cutting, peeled heads need to be held for 10 minutes in the freezer.

Summing up, it is easy to conclude that red onions in any marinade can change the taste of festive and everyday dishes. Crispy rings awaken a healthy appetite and improve the secretion of gastric juice. Therefore, such an additive in any combination of combinations will be of great benefit if there are no serious gastrointestinal pathologies.

Photo of Pickled Red Onions