Recipes

Spice beetroot pickled turnips

It probably goes without saying that we appreciate the magic of a pickle here at Little Duck. Crunchy, briney, sour: you’ll find us snacking on them throughout the day on a wedge of bread and butter. Quick and easy to make, they’re without a doubt a fool-proof way to impress your friends and family. 

Here’s a fuss-free, festive and delicious recipe for spiced beetroot pickled turnips…

Ingredients

1kg Tokyo turnips, cut into wedges (6-8 pieces)

50g red chillies, halved lengthways

A few bay leaves

A few sprigs of dill

Peel of 1 orange

½tsp black peppercorns

A small head of garlic cloves, peeled, each clove gently crushed

1 large red beetroot, peeled and sliced

20g table salt

500ml water

333ml white wine vinegar (if you can find some, it'll be extra tasty with some specialist vinegar like muscatel or chardonnay).

167g caster sugar

Method

Wash the turnips and cut them into quarters or wedges, depending on their size (roughly 4x4cm chunks), coat in the salt and leave for an hour or so.

The turnips will release liquid when salted; drain any excess water and pack them into clean, sterilised jars (put through a dishwasher if you have one) with the chillies, bay leaf, dill, orange peel, peppercorns, garlic and beetroot, evenly distributed between the jars.

To make the pickling liquor, whisk the water, white vine vinegar and caster sugar together in a pan over the heat so that the sugar dissolves and then leave to cool.

Pour the liquor over the vegetables until fully submerged and even top up further to be sure they remain covered.

Seal tightly and store in the fridge. After a week the turnips should have been dyed a brilliant pink from the beetroot and have taken on the flavours of the other ingredients.

These make beautiful gifts and I advise making extra to keep for yourself to enjoy with cold cuts and cheese across the Christmas period and beyond!