Pickled Red Onion

If you’re looking for an easy way to add more flavor to your meals, keep a jar of these pickled red onions in the fridge. They take about 5 minutes to prep, require no cooking, and add the perfect tangy crunch to salads, tacos, bowls, burgers, eggs, avocado toast, and more.

Red onions also contain beneficial plant compounds, including quercetin and anthocyanins, so you’re adding more than just flavor to your plate.

And if you’re trying to eat more vegetables, sometimes simple additions like this make all the difference. Healthy food doesn’t have to be boring!

Ingredients:

• 1 red onion, thinly sliced

• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

• 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup, optional or adjust to taste

• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

• 1 cup hot water, not boiling

Instructions:

1. Slice the red onion as thinly as possible. I use a mandoline, but a sharp knife works well too.

2. Place the sliced onions in a clean glass jar.

3. In a measuring cup, combine the apple cider vinegar, salt, honey or maple syrup, and warm water. Stir until the salt and sweetener are dissolved.

4. Pour the mixture over the onions, making sure the onions are completely submerged in the liquid.

5. Let them sit for at least an hour before eating. The flavor will continue to develop as they sit.

6. Cover the jar and store it in the refrigerator. For best quality, use within about 2 weeks..

Why Add Red Onions to Your Meals?

Red onions are an easy way to add flavor, color, and beneficial plant compounds to your meals. They contain quercetin, a flavonoid with antioxidant properties, along with anthocyanins, the pigments responsible for their beautiful red-purple color.

But one of my favorite reasons to keep pickled onions around is much simpler: they make healthy food taste better.

When your salads, proteins, bowls, and vegetables actually taste good, it becomes much easier to eat them consistently.

Ways to Use Pickled Red Onions

Once you have a jar in the refrigerator, you’ll find yourself adding them to everything.

Try them on:

• Fish or shrimp tacos

• Grilled chicken or steak

• Burgers

• Green salads

• Grain or Mediterranean bowls

• Eggs

• Avocado toast

• Roasted vegetables

• Charcuterie boards

• Sandwiches and wraps

They’re especially good anytime a meal needs a little acidity, color, and crunch.

Make It Your Own

This recipe is easy to customize depending on what you have on hand and the flavors you like.

• Add red pepper flakes for a little heat.

• Add sliced garlic cloves for extra flavor.

• Try whole peppercorns, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, or mustard seeds.

• Add a bay leaf or a few sprigs of fresh herbs.

• Substitute white wine vinegar, rice vinegar, or white distilled vinegar for the apple cider vinegar.

• Adjust the honey or maple syrup depending on whether you like your onions sweeter or more tangy.

• Double the recipe if you want to keep a larger batch in the fridge.

Just make sure the onions stay submerged in the pickling liquid.

Simple, flavorful, and an easy way to make everyday meals a little more interesting.